How to print a drawing reference at actual size

The phrase “actual size” matters because most printers try to be helpful. A dialog may offer Fit, Scale to Fit, Shrink Oversized Pages, or Borderless expansion. Each can alter the distance between two grid lines. For a commissioned pet portrait, print the PDF at 100 percent or Actual Size, then measure one horizontal and one vertical interval with a ruler. If the guide says 22.5 mm, the paper should say 22.5 mm too.

Check more than one interval. A correct first cell does not prove that the full rectangle is right if the page was clipped or the wrong paper preset was selected. Measure across three intervals, compare the outer border, and confirm that your drawing paper has the same count of rows and columns. Mark the destination edges before connecting rules. This takes minutes and prevents an error that becomes visible only after the eyes, nose, and fur have been rendered.

Keep the approved crop, exported PDF, and final drawing size together in the job folder. The source reference is for colour and edge decisions; the printout is the ruler-checked measuring sheet. If a client changes the crop, make a new export rather than trying to move one section of the old grid by hand.