Convert PDF to 100% black and white (NOT grayscale)?

[sandrah80731053]

Does Acrobat Pro have a way to convert PDFs to true black and white? When I look in the "convert colors" function in print production it has grayscale, but I don't see black and white as an option. I've been searching for fixes and every tutorial and question/answer I find only converts to grayscale; does Acrobat not have the capability to convert to ture black and white?

[Cerbo24878402260w]

Maybe a solution I have find, but I have not tried it full. I'm working with an old version of Acrobat. 

Open the PDF in Word (2016, maybe 2010 also)... Sometimes Word doesn't change the fonts, and you can "black and white" each page... Then you can save in PDF, and your PDF is black and white.

If Word alters the PDF (I can't find how to tell him "don't do that"), maybe you can try that : save the PDF in Acrobat in JPG (or PNG ?)... Then add all the JPG files in Word, "black and white" them with the option for that in "Images" you know, and then save in PDF, your PDF will be black and white... Maybe a few long, and I had problem to save all the PDF in JPG with my old Acrobat version, but in theory, it works...

[Larry27184742edwb]

Solution that worked for me after some time of trying: 

1) Open your PDF in ADobe

2) In Adobe - File -> Export To -> Image and select JPG

      this will export each page as a separate image in a separate JPG file

3) In Windows Explorer navigate to the file, right click onk the file name select Open With ->  Paint and open one image 

4) In Paint select File -> Save As -> Save As Type -> Monochrome Bitmap

Now you have a pure black and white image in a bitmap file. You can open this in Paint and save as JPG. Then add multiple pages back to a new PDF and combine into a new PDF file.

Shame that ADOBE, as expensive as it is, cannot do monochrome bitmap conversions like good old (30 year old at least) MS Paint does. 

3) 

[Abambo]

Your operation will destroy the PDF. If that's your goal, go ahead. But please don't compare apples and oranges. And you can't do it with a 30-year-old MS Paint. You need a more modern version.

[mario27188307sq8h]

For my situation, I needed to break up the PDF into images to upload in another application to generate letters.  I personally don't use MS Paint. I use Snag It. Going to Monochrome as others suggested would not work with my PDF. Grayscale almost works, but some pages I have to Color Adjust. No sure what Sandrah's goal is here other than go B&W.

[Nicola28319202g2w3]

The issue that the others mention, I guess, is: can I scan a document full of shades as the annexed into a purely black and white document? If yes how do we do so? See the annexed page. If the answer is simply "no", I am surprised that there is no easy-to-access tool for this purpose in Acrobat is needed. We all know that people send photos and tend not to use scanners, and this impairs filing, archiving and printing of such documents. 

[try67]

Instructions were given above on how to do it. It's not easy setting it up, but it is possible.

[try67]

If you want to do it easily use an image editor, though, like Photoshop. It's much more adapt at this kind of editing than Acrobat is.

[Nicola28319202g2w3]

Thank you. Your replies, instructions and the tool you shared unfortunately do not help. As Acrobat is used for documents it still seems appropriate to insist that Adobe implements these tools into Acrobat.

[Nicola28319202g2w3]

The only efficient solution I found is to send the document to my phone, use an app called Genius Scan, convert to black and white each page separately as the tool does not run for full documents. I am truly surprised that a market leader like Acrobat does not have a predefined tool for this. I see from the suggestions that is an issued raised many times. Hope you implement it soon.

[try67]

I don't work for Adobe, nor speak on their behalf, just to be clear.

[JayZoop]

I tried it out, and it almost worked.     But for some reason the yellow lines disappeared, and some other lines were rough looking.       AutoCAD has a way to adjust how the program treats colored objects, but Adobe seems to not be as powerful.   

[Jai Agrawal]

This worked perfectly!  Thanks you so much for cutting through the noise and nailing the solution!!

FWIW, I'm an architect and often get large drawing sets that were plotted incorrectly out of AutoCAD.  The files will have red/orange/yellow/blue linework on white background and impossible to read.  Going greyscale in this common situation is not entirely helpful because the lighter colors will translate to very light grey and still be unreadable.  The answer is to force black and white using a method like yours.  This instantly makes the drawings useful.  When working with historic/archive technical vector drawings, something like this is invaluable.

Thanks again try67!!

[Abambo]

FWIW, I'm an architect and often get large drawing sets that were plotted incorrectly out of AutoCAD.  The files will have red/orange/yellow/blue linework on white background and impossible to read. 

By @Jai Agrawal

I feel your pain. The correct way would be to go back to the initial draftsperson and to require the correct plot. But if the Autocad file disapeared on the harddisk of an unknown person, you are out of luck. 

[James39031506nuq8]

SOLVED.  Exactly the solution I needed.  Thank you!

(Use case: Patent Offices can be strict with B&W only, no greyscale.)

[mario27188307sq8h]

I do not believe there is. I have an app called Snag It Editor. I had to save my pdf as images, and then click Color Adjustment. Worked like a charm. Hope this helps.

[Abambo]

Please see here… same remarks, more or less: https://community.adobe.com/t5/acrobat-discussions/convert-pdf-to-100-black-and-white-not-grayscale/...

[kathleen_7434]

I recall doing this in the late 1990s with a slider to choose the cutoff for readability and got clear black text on white with bit of black shadows in the corners.   Dunno what program.  Too bad Adobe cant be bothered.