Skip to main content
C
CuriousEm
Participant
June 28, 2023
Question

[URGENT] Press Quality from InDesign outputs highly bitmapped photos

  • June 28, 2023
  • 5 replies
  • 1118 views

Yesterday Acrobat completely disappeared from my Mac, so I did a re-install. Now that I'm on the updated version, I'm creating a press-ready file for a client — all the photos are severely bitmapped in the PDF as if they are 72dpi. I've double-checked the images in Photoshop, all's good, 300dpi and CMYK and reduce to 21% in IDD.

 

What happened to my trusty software that I've had no problems with for years? Can support help with this please? I'm in a holding pattern, I cannot handoff files with bad-quality photos.

 

Thank you. The partial image below shows the issue.

 

    This topic has been closed for replies.

    5 replies

    BobLevine
    Community Expert
    BobLevineCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    June 28, 2023

    First off, if Acrobat disappeared, you have a very serious system issue that needs to be explored.

    That out of the way you've given us nothing to go on. What version of InDesign? What were your export settings? What is the actual and effective PPI of these images?

    Edit: one more thing...have you checked that the links were up to date?

     

    Your screenshot tells us nothing without the above information.

      C
      CuriousEmAuthor
      Participant
      June 29, 2023

      Thank you all for your input. Answers to all questions below, with a portion of the PDF

       

      • Have always exported via InDesign for many years (ah I remember the Distiller days!)
      • Links: all good
      • ID 2023 v18.3 >>> Acrobat Pro v23.0
      • PDF Export settings: Press Quality (no modified settings)
      • Main image: 300dpi / CMYK
      • Main image box dimensions: 1.75" square at 43% reduction (I resized in PS per advice)

       

      If you enlarge you'll see the quality of the photo. Troubleshooted with PDF/X-4 per @rob day  settings above. Same issue very bit-mappy / pixelated. Have never had this occur as an ID creator, so perplexed. 

       

      (Have also restarted - MacBook Pro 16-inch, 2021 fwiw.)

       

      Thanks again,

      Lisa

       

      Scott Falkner
      Community Expert
      Scott FalknerCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      June 29, 2023

      Both images are saved at 300 pixels per inch. The size of the PDF is small, which means despite the high resolution of the images there aren’t a lot of pixels there. If you view the image full screen on a large monitor it will appear low resolution, but the resolution is acceptable for print at this size.

        Jumpenjax
        Community Expert
        JumpenjaxCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        June 28, 2023

        21% reduction is a lot. Try to reduce the original graphics or photos in photoshop, so you do not have to reduce any smaller then 35%.

        Lee- Graphic Designer, Print Specialist, Photographer
        Joel Cherney
        Community Expert
        Joel CherneyCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        June 28, 2023

        Well, we're not "support" but I'm pretty sure we can help. Are you exporting PDFs from InDesign, or are you printing to PDF, or printing Postscript and distilling? I would typically assume that you're not using the 20th century workflow of printing PS and distilling, but your mention of Acrobat makes me wonder.

         

        Assuming that you're using File -> Export -> PDF (Print) from InDesign, you should check your export settings, which I suppose may have been changed or deleted when you reinstalled Acrobat. You're going to check your Adobe PDF Preset in the Export dialog, as well as the Compression section, where image downsampling can be adjusted:

         

         

        If you're not exporting PDFs straight from InDesign, can you tell us how you have produced PDFs in the past?

        rob day
        Community Expert
        rob dayCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        June 28, 2023

        Hi @CuriousEm , Can you share the exported PDF page? What’s the magnification setting in your linked screen capture? What you are describing sounds similar to this:

         

        https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign-discussions/exports-pdf-as-low-res-images/td-p/13895997

        Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com
        Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com
        Legend
        June 28, 2023
        quote

        ...300dpi and CMYK and reduce to 21% in IDD.

        By @CuriousEm

        Moved this to the InDesign forum, based on the last stage of the poster's workflow is InDesign, which would control the quality and settings of the exported PDF.

         

        |    Bevi Chagnon   |  Designer, Trainer, & Technologist for Accessible Documents ||    PubCom |    Classes & Books for Accessible InDesign, PDFs & MS Office |
        Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
        Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices