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Aly.A
Participant
May 6, 2025
Answered

WMF Export from Illustrator Distorting images

  • May 6, 2025
  • 2 replies
  • 817 views

Hi all,

I regularly use Adobe Illustrator to create custom vector assets for presentations (mainly for google slides). I export the assets into WMF format, open them through google drawings and then copy from there and past them into slides. I do this with many different custom assets that I design for presentations. Right now, I’m working on a custom icon library. They are simple black-and-white icons. After exporting them from Illustrator as WMF, I’m seeing:

  • Distorted shapes (particularly rounded edges and strokes)
  • Jagged outlines and misaligned elements
  • Loss of that clean, crisp look I designed in Illustrator


This is very frustrating, I've tried so many different things, and it just keeps happening. 


I've tried:

  • Flattening transparency (100% vector, text and strokes converted to outlines)

  • Tried EMF files, this is an incompatible file type

  • Adding the SVG directly into Google Slides (doesn't support the file type)


Has anyone ran into this? I've tried looking for answers, but I haven't seen anything about this. I would greatly appreciate some help with this. 

Than you! 

 

 

 

    Correct answer Brad @ Roaring Mouse

    WMF is a very old and crude format. Curves are not supported so are converted to line segments, with very poor precision in this day and age (points are positioned every 1/288" so line segment end points will snap to the closest intersection in .25 pt increments, which is more visible and problematic with smaller objects). And this lack of precision can be compounded if you are converting them and resaving them along the way.

    EMF amd EMF+ well superceded and improved on this. SVG is even better. I don't know Google Drawings, but I'm surprised it doesn't handle something as uibiquitous to the web as SVG for vector.

    My advice is to save your icons at a larger size, so when the WMF is scaled down in your slides, this precision isn't so notecebale.

    2 replies

    Brad @ Roaring Mouse
    Community Expert
    Brad @ Roaring MouseCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
    Community Expert
    May 8, 2025

    WMF is a very old and crude format. Curves are not supported so are converted to line segments, with very poor precision in this day and age (points are positioned every 1/288" so line segment end points will snap to the closest intersection in .25 pt increments, which is more visible and problematic with smaller objects). And this lack of precision can be compounded if you are converting them and resaving them along the way.

    EMF amd EMF+ well superceded and improved on this. SVG is even better. I don't know Google Drawings, but I'm surprised it doesn't handle something as uibiquitous to the web as SVG for vector.

    My advice is to save your icons at a larger size, so when the WMF is scaled down in your slides, this precision isn't so notecebale.

    A
    Aly.AAuthor
    Participant
    May 8, 2025

    Thank you so much for explaining all of this. I used to not have this problem at all, even when I exported small icons. But this work-around works! I made the icons larger and then exported them and the distortion is very minimal, since icons will be smaller it won't be noticeable. 
    Thank you so much @Brad @ Roaring Mouse!!

    Monika Gause
    Community Expert
    Monika GauseCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    May 6, 2025

    Are you on Mac or Windows?

     

    WMF is the Windows Meta FIle format. It relies on system routined which are just not present on a Mac.

    A
    Aly.AAuthor
    Participant
    May 6, 2025

    Hi Monika! I'm on a Mac, but I've been doing this for the last couple of years on a mac without a problem. This is a very recent issue. 😞 

    Anubhav M
    Community Manager
    Anubhav MCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    May 7, 2025
    Hello @Aly.A, Could you share a link to a sample AI and WMF file, along with screenshots of the settings used after uploading it to a file-sharing service, so I can check it on my end? Also, try installing an earlier version of Illustrator (https://helpx.adobe.com/download-install/using/install-previous-version.html) and share your observations. Looking forward to hearing from you. Anubhav
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