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bartonlew
bartonlew
Legend
August 27, 2023
Answered

JPGs appearing pixilated in InDesign

  • August 27, 2023
  • 2 replies
  • 1410 views

I don't know whether it's apparent in the screen shot below, but I'm importing images into InDesign and they appear pixilated.  I'm sizing them at 300 DPI and they're 6" wide in a 9" x 9" document, one image per page.  If I view the image at 100% pixilation is apparent if not terrible.  Why can't I get a perfectly crisp image on screen?  I'm sharing these images with an editor.  I'm not sure if she's going to print out the book mock up but if so I wanted to print at 300 DPI.  I also want her to see them sharply on screen.  Thanks.  

 

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Willi Adelberger
    1. Is the problem in InDesign or in PDF?
    2. Do you use high quality preview?

    2 replies

    rob day
    Community Expert
    rob dayCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    August 27, 2023

    I'm sizing them at 300 DPI and they're 6" wide in a 9" x 9" document

     

    Hi @bartonlew , Are you scaling the 6" wide JPEG up to the document’s 9" width? If that’s the case the Effective Resolution (the output resolution) would be 200ppi not the actual 300ppi. Also all placed images are previewed with a low res proxy so try Exporting a PDF to the default PDF/X-4 preset and see if the problem is with the proxy preview.

      bartonlew
      bartonlewAuthor
      Legend
      August 27, 2023

      Thanks Rob I had not yet printed to PDF and was viewing on screen where I was seeing the problem.  When I opened the jpgs on their own they looked fine.  That should have been a tip off.  As previously posted the issue was the low quality preview that the system seems to default to.  Rather unfortunate for people with short memory like me but easily corrected.  They look great viewed high quality. 

      rob day
      Community Expert
      rob dayCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      August 27, 2023

      Thanks Rob I had not yet printed to PDF and was viewing on screen where I was seeing the problem.

       

      Just to be clear I meant Exporting (not Print) to PDF/X-4—there would be no proxy involved when you view in Acrobat.

       

      Also, in general there is no reason to place JPEG. Not sure if you would see a proxy difference, but the PSD format has a number of advantages and none of the downsides of JPEG.

      Willi Adelberger
      Community Expert
      Willi AdelbergerCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
      Community Expert
      August 27, 2023
      1. Is the problem in InDesign or in PDF?
      2. Do you use high quality preview?
      bartonlew
      bartonlewAuthor
      Legend
      August 27, 2023

      Thank you!  This happened to me once before and the answer was high quality preview (in InDesign I find Display Performance>High Quality Display).  Now it looks great on screen (I had not printed to PDF).  I must remember this.

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