How to crop images and reduce the size of a particular image using illustrator?

[Guest]

Hi friends...

Could you please help us by answering the above question or which other tool from Adobe software family will help us in this regard.

Thanks and Regards,

BioChem Adda Team

[Lilybiri]

What is the goal for reducing file size? Do you need a raw AI-file or could a SVG file be sufficient for that goal?

Maybe give some more details about 'cropping' as well?

[Doug A Roberts]

what is contained in the image you want to crop? what software created it, and what file type is it?

[Mike_Gondek · Accepted solution]

To crop an image (by that word people usually mean a bitmaped image such s a photograph) is best done in photoshop if you want to reduce your file size.

Illustrator does have masking capability, to crop an image, but that will not reduce your file size any.

If your main objective is to reduce file size

1. Make sure you are linking not embedding an image
2. File >> Save As > and turn OFF pdf compatible as that significantly increases your file sizes. You only need pdf compatible, if you plan to place  into InDesign or After Effects.

[Guest]

thank so much.... your help appreciated...

[Mike_Gondek]

For my part you are welcome.

[Jacob Bugge · Accepted solution]

biochemadda,

If you mean what you may mean, namely to actually crop a raster image to a smaller pixel x pixel size with the help of Illy, you may create a rectangle with the desired size and position (remember to make it in whole pixel values), then select it along with the image and Object>Clipping Mask>Make.

This will merely make the outlying parts invisible, but then there is the dirty destructive deed, with the Clipping Mask selected:

1) In the Transparency palette/panel dropdown list select anything but Normal (Multiply is fine; this step may be unneeded in your version, you may try without it);

2) Object>Flatten Transparency, just keep the defaults including 100% Vector;

3) Shudder (optional, unless unavoidable).

This will crop thre image to the Bounding Box of the Clipping Path (the rectangle).

When you Export/Save for Web, the file size will reflect the new reduced size (depending on the settings).

[Guest]

Thank you so much this helped...

[Jacob Bugge]

You are welcome for my part too, biochemadda.

[KDS4444]

"3. Shudder".....  meaning, what?  Is that a joke?  I don't get it, don't see it anywhere in any menu option, and am still unable to crop a jpg image in Illustrator 18 CC.

[Doug A Roberts]

jacob is shuddering at the thought of committing a destructive edit to his image, and you probably will too.

[Doug A Roberts]

that said, you can (again, destructively) crop raster images in illustrator 21 on.

[Jacob Bugge]

KDS,

What Doug said.

Is that a joke?

A joke? From me?

Are you serious?

[jonathancharles]

Thank you this worked. My pdf was 240mb and with this 'trick' it is down to 13mb 🙂

[Jacob Bugge]

You are welcome, Jonathan.

The How to crop images thread lives.