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dvslondon
dvslondon
Participant
February 28, 2019
Answered

Export trim size of all pages in a PDF file

  • February 28, 2019
  • 1 reply
  • 2857 views

I'm looking for a way to export the trim size of all pages in a PDF document, either as a list of each page with size or as a proof/contact sheet with a sample of the image and the trim size.  I have found scripts which seem to do one page at a time or that print the size on the edge (which isn't any good when you have multiple pages as the text can be quite small).  I downloaded a trial of Pitstop but I couldn't see anything and I suspect the software is too advanced for my needs.

PDF Expert almost does what I want without scripts as you can see thumbnails of all the pages with sizes (although I need to screenshot rather than print a thumbnail page).  However, it doesn't show the correct artwork size because of the the trim marks. I can't find an automated way to remove these (other than to manually crop each page).

I presume there is a script for either displaying the artwork size with out trim marks or a way of removing trim marks for multiple pages and saving as a new PDF?

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer Stephen Marsh

Are all PDF files single page files? Or are there multiple pages per file, each with a different possible trim box size?

It is possible to remove all marks using registration/all and resave the PDF, either using an Acrobat preflight single fixup or using Enfocus PitStop Pro.

It should also be possible to create an Enfocus action list that would resize each page to say A4, scale the artwork to a “thumbnail” and then place the trim box info as text next to the artwork thumbnail. This would be a “mock report” but it should create a visual of what you are looking to do.

1 reply

Stephen Marsh
Community Expert
Stephen MarshCommunity Expert
Community Expert
March 1, 2019

I guess it depends if this is more for internal use or external to a file supplier/client...

One option below using print production tools > preflight > single check using page box/trim box:

You can use the “create report button”...

dvslondon
dvslondonAuthor
Participant
March 3, 2019

Many thanks for taking the the time to respond. 

I've followed the instructions and have managed to get the page sizes listed in preflight.  The results page contains really useful information.  It's probably my limited knowledge of Pitstop but I've not managed to get the sizes to print with the artwork.  When I run the report, text is added to the top left of the artwork which states 'All problems according to preflight profile' but no size information appears.  I suspect this is possible with Pitstop but I've not managed to work it out.  It would be really helpful if the page information could appear next to the artwork rather than on the artwork as the artwork varies considerably in size so will be difficult to read when printed on paper for checking.

Ideally, something like this:

Some background info which may explain the situation – We had to create over 300 artboards Illustrator, all of varying sizes, with a very quick turnaround.  The artboards in the Illustrator files were created in a logical sequence for the job but the files were repackaged for printing according to the print media so each PDF file might contain artboards from multiple Illustrator files.  Therefore, it will be a really manual process to check each Illustrator file for the size and work out the material used.  I believe the easiest option would be to use the PDF to check sizes because the PDFs were packaged for one print media type only.  Although we could use the size with the trim marks (the cost impact is likely to be negligible), it makes it more difficult to check that we have completed each task and all of those contain the actual size requested.

So it would be great if:

  1. There is a way to edit the report with the artwork and size as above (it seems we are almost there) OR
  2. There is a way to remove trim marks and save as a PDF so I can use PDF expert to print something similar to a contact sheet (a bit basic but works for our needs)
Stephen Marsh
Community Expert
Stephen MarshCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
Community Expert
March 3, 2019

Are all PDF files single page files? Or are there multiple pages per file, each with a different possible trim box size?

It is possible to remove all marks using registration/all and resave the PDF, either using an Acrobat preflight single fixup or using Enfocus PitStop Pro.

It should also be possible to create an Enfocus action list that would resize each page to say A4, scale the artwork to a “thumbnail” and then place the trim box info as text next to the artwork thumbnail. This would be a “mock report” but it should create a visual of what you are looking to do.

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