Participant

Question

Illustrator CS6 to Powerpoint 2011 (Mac)

Forum|Forum|12 years ago
October 1, 2013
13 replies
48558 views

Hi All,

Please help, I've been searching for hours trying to find a solution to this and can only find a patch for CS5!

How can you export vectors from Illustrator CS6 to PowerPoint allowing them to be editable in Powerpoint? I've tried every vector format (ai, eps, pdf, wmf, emf and on importing/pasting/paste specialing (which used to work in older versions of Illustrator) but it seems to either rasterize, or fill the bounding box. The shapes themselves are not editable in any form, colouring or otherwise.

Please help!

Thanks

Pete

This topic has been closed for replies.

Vasily Panchishko

Participant

Hi all! Here's my way to fix this problem inside Mac. Mac OS X El Capitan, PowerPoint 365, Adobe Creative Cloud.
In Illustrator: export your vector as .SVG, .WMF or .EMF.

Then go to LibreOffice and make a new or open an existing presentation file in .ODF format. Go to Insert > Image > and insert your .SVG / .EMF picture. Select picture > Right click > Break. It becomes editable in LibreOffice. Save the file.

In PowerPoint. Open this .ODF file. PowerPoint says it may be opened as read-only and offers you to save it as a copy in .PPTX format. Save the file.

Now you have pictures fully editable in PowerPoint. The curves stay perfect!

This method works best with simple figures — like icons. And I don't need anything more within PowerPoint. The better way is to expand strokes in your picture and convert it into a compound path.

Complex vectors are interpreted by LibreOffice with random success. For example, filled curves with stroke are separated as filled and stroked ones. Maybe playing with export settings can resolve that. But I think it makes sense to prepare the images within Illustrator, as each tool must be used properly.

E

EvBond

Participating Frequently

Hi all,

Just to add to this, I tried Vasily's suggestion and perhaps Libre have updated their file formats or something but Powerpoint was not able to import any of the files - or at least I was not able to save an ODF file, only .opd, .fodp presentation files. I could not see how to save out an .odf file. But I did, however have success saving the file out as a pptx file and that opened in ppt with the svg as an editable shape which I could colourise.
I might also add that Valerie's OpenOffice solution worked well too, saved the OpenOffice as a ppt file and that imported the image as editable too, so happy days.
Extremely annoying that you cannot just save out an emf/svg from illustrator into Mac PPT or copy / paste with all vector editability intact. Seems bizarre that this seemingly basic function just doesn't work and we need to resort to 3rd part open source office apps to 'right click break' the graphic in order to ensure editability in ppt.

Anyway I'd like to thank Vasily and Valerie both for their solutions. Massively appreciated as I have had this issue for ages now - and really glad I can at least change the colours of my graphics in ppt! Will make my clients' lives so much easier as before I was just exporting separate pngs and emfs of all the colours they needed!

Monika Gause

Community Expert

PowerPoint pastes graphics as PDF. It does not understand SVG code.

You maybe want to complain to Microsoft that PowerPoint behaves like this. Illustrator copies usable objects into the clipboard.

G

gideonmaxim

Participating Frequently

There's a very simple solution to getting vector images from Illustrator to PPT (on Windows)

In Illustrator, copy your vector image (Ctrl+V)
In PPT, paste special ((Ctrl+Alt+V)
This gives you paste special dialogue box (in picture 1 attached)
Pick 'Enhanced Metafile' (that's an EMF)
That puts an EMF into PPT
Select object & Ctrl+Shift+G
You'll get a warning (picture 2)
Click Yes, and you've an editable vector image in PPT, straight from Illustrator
Let me know if that doesn't work for you (doesn't work this way on Mac, that's just a straight cut and paste)
I'm using latest Illustrator and PPT in Windows 10. However, I've been doing this for years.

D

d0nut247

Inspiring

this looks great (for windows people...)

Anyone know how to add the EMF option into the paste special menu for mac?

the keynote work around doesnt work any more, and although PPT now allows you to just copy and paste directly into PPT (office 365) it totally nukes the file when you hit save regardless of any options you may choose for image quality (which incidentally is only available within the doc, not at the save point in the workflow - and is ignored when you subsequently save anyway).

this has ruined a handy use of .ai to PPT and also means i dont dare open PPT file at the moment without triple checking its heading to office 2011 as 365 will kill all contained images.

Monika Gause

Community Expert

EMF and WMF are meta files. They rely on Windows graphics functions that are not available on Mac OS.

stephent65675321

Participant

Keynote works. Copy your vector from AI into Keynote, then from Keynote into PPT. Make sure your fonts are outlined. KEEEEY NOOOTE.

D

d0nut247

Inspiring

This is what i was about to write,

keynote isnt much use for a lot, but to copy and paste between it works a treat,

iWeb was actually really good for this too. RIP

so much quicker doing this copy paste, / copy paste than exporting and saving etc..

V

ValwRichardson

Participant

I found a solution to this problem that I use regularly and it employs Open Office's presentation module as a go-between.

From Illustrator, export vector shapes as enhanced metafiles.

Open the presentation module of Open Office. Go to Insert>Picture>From File and import your shape.

Left click on the imported object(s) and then choose "Break" from the pop-up menu.

Then go to File>Save as and save as a Powerpoint file. When you open the file in Powerpoint, you will have fully editable vector shapes.

Two caveats: (1) Small shapes will sometimes get distorted in the conversion process. If you have a lot of small complex shapes, it might be necessary to choose parts of your drawing and enlarge them before you do the export and conversion process. (2) If a shape is exported as just outlines, the outlines might become filled shapes. You should fill all objects and not have them outlined before you export from Illustrator.

I was searching to see if an easier way had been developed since I first hit on this solution several years ago, but I guess not.

--Valerie (Illustrator and Powerpoint user since 1994)

R

rjcaldwell70

Inspiring

The only way to get perfect vector shapes into PowerPoint on a Mac is to save from Illustrator as SVG, place that into an OpenOffice presentation, then save that as a PPT file. It actually comes out with perfect curves! The Acrobat export method doesn't even result in bezier curves—you get thousands of points. Might be passable at the original size, and okay for quick conversion of full layouts that will stay as is. However, if you want to import graphics that will be enlarged, SVG is the way to go.

M

MMH designing

Participant

IT IS EASY AND QUICK TO DO:

no need to do all the work-arounds suggested previously

QUICK INSTRUCTIONS:

1) save your illustrator file as a PDF

2) open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat

3) go to file, export to, Microsoft Office Powerpoint

4) the file is now a Powerpoint file and can be opened in powerpoint.

This works for single AND multiple-page illustrator files

MORE DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS IF YOU NEED THEM:

1) While in illustrator go to: File > Save as

2) A dialog box will pop up. At the bottom of the dialog box select: Adobe PDF (pdf)

3) Name your file, click Save

4) In the dialog box the pops up, click on the menu bar that says illustrator Default and select Smallest File Size

5) agree to the next dialog box that pops up and close the document.

6) Open Adobe Acrobat. Go to file, open and open the PDF you created.

7) In Adobe, go to file < Export to < Microsoft Power Point

8) Save and name your file in the next dialog box.

Now you can open your Power point document in Powerpoint.

If the file is larger than you like, you can always (in Powerpoint) go to File > reduce file size

The great thing about saving to PPT this way is that clumps of the illustrator art are actually editable in Powerpoint!

Good Luck!

D

deadstk

Participating Frequently

There is a way if your a Mac user, although it's a little clunky, it gets the job done

If you have Acrobat Pro for Mac (used v11.0.11) try this:

Save your vector artwork as a PDF file in illustrator
Convert the PDF into a PowerPoint (File > Save As Other > Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation)
Open in PowerPoint, vector will appear to be locked and unselectible.
Go to edit slide master (View > Master > Slide Master) vector should appear, although it may be behind some text boxes that need to be deleted.
Select and copy, close Slide Master
Paste vector graphic on to any slide. You can add fills, scale just like any native PP graphic. Select and right click to "Edit Points" to modify.

You now have a fully editable vector graphic in PowerPoint. At least it works for simple line graphics — have not tried anything more complex.

Good luck.

hopelesser

Participant

It works to a degree, not all information gets translated. But definitely a good work around. Thx much.

emilygcy

Participant

When I try to open OpenOffice it shows error messages saying:

“OpenOffice” can’t be opened because it is from an unidentified developer.

Your security preferences allow installation of only apps from the Mac App Store and identified developers.

How do I resolve this?

Willi Adelberger

Community Expert

Change your security settings in the System Preferences.

P

pait9796372

Participant

I have found a way!

With the last version of OpenOffice, Illustrator CS6 and Office 2011 for mac:

Save your AI file as .svg instead of .emf, then import it in a OpenOffice presentation, break, and save as .ppt. Forms and curves are perfect!

Hope helps someone!

R

rjc70

Participating Frequently

Awesome—using SVG does indeed work much better in OpenOffice!

Finally a way to get Illustrator vectors into PPT entirely on a Mac.

Thanks for sharing!

ed----

Participant

A solution is to save the vectors as a PDF file in Illustrator; then convert the PDF into a PPTX in Acrobat Pro.

When you open that PPTX, all the vectors are editable in PowerPoint.

R

rjc70

Participating Frequently

Thanks for the tip about Acrobat now having that feature. I finally got a chance to try it out, but there's a problem. Curves are converted into just points and straight lines—creating rough shapes—unlike in the other methods above. This is made a little better if I blow up the vectors really huge in Illustrator, but then there are even thousands more points on the shapes in PPT.

Is there something else that needs to be done to get the bezier curves converted to PPT bezier curves? This is done properly in method (1) above, when Illustrator exports as EMF. Why wouldn't Acrobat's export do the same?

I should post this issue to the Acrobat forum as well...

ed----

Participant

Yes the curves are not properly converted with the Acrobat method.

Using the EMF method with OpenOffice gives better results: the bezier curves are much better, even on small objects.

R

rjc70

Participating Frequently

Old post, but seeing this for the first time…

Unfortunately, on the Mac side, it has not been possible (at least in PPT versions 2004 and up) to bring in vector objects (in any format) from Illustrator to PPT and turn it into an editable PPT shape. It will either just come in as if it were a PDF or as a raster image. There are two options to get around this:

1) If you export the Illustrator graphic as an EMF (doesn't matter what version of Illustrator or whether Mac or Windows), then import that into a Windows version of PPT. Then ungroup and you'll have editable PPT graphics that you can recolor/stylize just like a PPT shape. You only need Windows for the import to PPT portion of this, and once you have it in a PPT file, you can move it over to Mac. Yet another example of MS shutting out a capability in the Mac version of Office!

2) If you don't have access to a PC to do this, you can try OpenOffice (Mac) to import EMF files and break apart to create shapes. Then save as a PPT file and open in PPT. However, the resulting shapes I've seen from this method can turn out imperfect, especially if they were small vectors and you blow them up in size. So, okay for small icons, but if you need larger graphics, then method #1 is better.

Hopefully a better method than those two can be found.

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