Skip to main content
Zirngibism
Zirngibism
Participant
September 20, 2019
Question

Exporting PDF from Photoshop: Shows up in Bridge/Windows Explorer as a much "smaller" size

  • September 20, 2019
  • 1 reply
  • 1809 views

I am trying to save a bunch of images out of Photoshop with 450 DPI.  I selected the high quality print (modified) setting on export, and chose to downsample to 450 DPI.  The full size image should be 3,329x4,229.  When I open it in Reader, it looks small at 100%.  I can't tell if there's something wrong about how I'm exporting from Photoshop, or the way Adobe Reader/bridge interpret the file. They still report the correct size on disk. When I zoom in with Reader, I can see there are definitely more pixels than "reported" In Explorer.

 

I am guessing that Bridge/explorer are defaulting to 96 or 72 DPI somehow.

 

I am concerned that sending the file as-is might confuse the printing service.  It is a tight deadline so I want to make sure my file is right before sending off.  Is there something I can do in Photoshop export to default this file to 450 DPI?  Thanks.

 

This topic has been closed for replies.

1 reply

Conrad_C
Community Expert
Conrad_CCommunity Expert
Community Expert
September 20, 2019

One clue is in your Bridge screen shot. At the top it says 399 x 507. That means it has been resampled to very small pixel dimensions, so something has been probably set wrong somewhere.

 

In Acrobat Reader, see if you can turn on the rulers to find out what it thinks the physical size of the image is, in inches. I'm using the full version of Acrobat where the rulers are under View > Show/Hide > Rulers & Grids > Rulers (or press Ctrl-R). Is the physical image size correct when seen against the rulers?

 

Finally, are you required to hand off the images as PDF, instead of a pure image format such as TIFF or JPEG? If so, is High Quality Print (Modified) the PDF export preset the printer recommends, instead of a preset more customized to their workflow?

    Zirngibism
    ZirngibismAuthor
    Participant
    September 20, 2019

    HI Conrad_C. Thanks for your reply.  I am able to get the size to show correctly if I change this setting in Adobe Reader preferences (custom resolution).  I can see lots of pixels after changing that setting.

     

    I don't appear to have a "ruler" setting in Reader (2nd screenshot).

     

    What makes me think it hasn't been downsampled is that the file size is larger than it should be for that pixel size.  So it's like there's something in how the file is "marked" to be displayed that's off.

     

    My printer specified that PDF is preferred, but they can take others, implying that it would be a higher turnaround time for the digital proof if I submitted non-PDF files.  I am close to just submitting JPG files though, PDF files seem needlessly complicated for pure image files.

     

    Conrad_C
    Community Expert
    Conrad_CCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    September 20, 2019

    OK, I played around with it after setting up a Photoshop document with the same starting specs, 3329 x 4229 px at 600 ppi. I used Image > Image Size to change it to 450 ppi with Resample on. I saved as Photoshop PDF and I got about the same weird, low pixel dimensions you saw in Bridge. Mac Finder agreed with Bridge and not Windows Explorer, so you are probably right that one is assuming 72 ppi and the other 96 ppi.

     

    Now why are Bridge and Explorer assuming a resolution instead of finding one, and not agreeing?

    Because a PDF file doesn't have a ppi value itself, being a vector-based format that can include multiple images at different ppi values. So Bridge, Explorer, Finder, etc. assume a generic resolution, which works out to the wrong pixel height and width.

     

    If the printing company normally requires PDF even for single photo prints, does their website have a guide for how to set up and export an image from Photoshop to PDF in a way that meets their requirements? If available, that would remove a lot of doubts. If they don't provide instructions online, you should probably call them and ask about this in advance if you don't have time to reprint a mistake. Otherwise, here's what I would try:

     

    1. In Photoshop, choose Image > Image Size. With Resample enabled, change the Width and Height field to Inches, enter the correct print size (you haven't mentioned the physical size of the print yet, but it's a critical missing piece of info), enter 450 ppi, and click OK.
    2. Choose Save As, choose the Photoshop PDF format, and in the Compression panel, choose Do Not Resample from the downsampling menu. The reason is that if you already set the correct print size and resolution in Image Size, you do not want it changed at any point thereafter, because any change would be wrong. Resampling for PDF is intended for images that have been resized on a layout, such as a page layout made in InDesign or Illustrator. This is not that situation.
    3. Finish exporting and hand it off.

     

    When I tried this, I used the Edit feature in Acrobat to select the image in the exported PDF and send it back to Photoshop for analysis, and the specs were unchanged, it was still 450 ppi.

      Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
      Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices