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casinclaire
casinclaire
Inspiring
January 7, 2020
Answered

Missing Background in Illustrator

  • January 7, 2020
  • 2 replies
  • 12785 views

I think this is an Illustrator question ....

 

I have a book cover file in InDesign of which the background comes from an Illustrator file. I needed to make a text edit to the book title, and that bit of text happens to be in the Illustrator file (supplied by someone else, and that's where they put it; I'd have put it in Indesign but that's just me). Anyway ....

When I worked with the file a few days ago, everything in the Illustrator file was fine and dandy, right where it ought to be, etc.  But when I opened the .ai file today to make this text change, the whole background was gone.

 

I panicked for a moment, then realized that, as far as the InDesign file was concerned, there were no problems, so I could at least proceed with creating my PDf. I was getting a green light on the InD preflight panel and no missing link messages. I also double-ck'd and for sure that I was linked to the file I was working with in Illustrator (correct file name, correct folder -- and for further confirmation, when I made the text change, the InD file updated). But in Illustrator, that whole background image in the file is just not viewable. It must BE there since it is showing up in InD, but no matter how many layers I turn on or off -- in case it is blocked by something else -- it doesn't show up. It shows in the Links palette -- I even brought it in a second time from the original, untouched file supplied to me, and still nothing. Two images show in the Links palette, but none on the pasteboard (and there is only one pasteboard -- well, okay, three, but they are side by side, creating the back, spine, and front of the book, so all are right there).Also, I've made sure I'm not in isolation mode on any one object that would make the background gray out (but it would still show up somewhat, I'd assume, in that case).

 

Has anyone ever run into this before? Nothing actually appears to be wrong (again, no problems when I link it with the InD file) other than the image in the .ai insists on remaining invisible. Any thoughts, anyone? I'd love to know what is going on here!

 

 

{Renamed by MOD}

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer casinclaire

    Without seeing the file, it's impossible tosay anything. duplicate and nested layers with transparency might cause issues when applied where they should not be applied.


    To all who tried to help me with this situation, I am here to confess that it was a simple problem and caused by what I suppose had to be user error -- though I still have no idea how I managed it. I never change the views in my documents -- like, I never, for instance, use the outline view. But that, indeed, was exactly what was implemented, causing the graphic to disappear.

     

    To glance at the available views under the View menu, nothing appeared to be "checked," so I didn't try to change anything back. Because I don't use those view options, I didn't notice "preview" was showing instead of "outline." But just this evening, I was fooling around with this file again, and after comments made in another reply in this thread made me go look at the View menu again. I'm not even sure why I did it, but I clicked on "Preview," and the missing image was suddenly showing again.

     

    If there had been a menu item under View that stayed resident and just showed a checkmark when implemented, then I would have noticed it early on and "unchecked" it and made the image visible again. But that was not the case, and since I don't use the views and didn't realize any one of them had been changed or selected, I never tried it.

     

    I'm embarrassed to have taken up room in the forum with something this simple. On the other hand, I'm still a little surprised that the view ever got switched to outline at all because I had no reason to do it and don't remember doing it. Still, I'm facing up to my embarrassment just so this thread is answered properly and can be closed out. Thanks all!

    2 replies

    Monika Gause
    Community Expert
    Monika GauseCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    January 7, 2020

    Did the person give you just the AI file? Or some more things?

    And screenshots would be great.

    casinclaire
    casinclaireAuthor
    Inspiring
    January 8, 2020

    Yes, they provided an .ai file with an embedded graphic. Some of the text was in outlines, but some not, and that's how I figured out the typefaces to use over in InD to add the back cover text (the back cover is not complete, still awaiting testimonials, but you should get the idea from the attached).  I saved the whole file under another name (so as to leave the original untouched) and worked in a few changes, leaving room for the text I'd add over in InD. Before today, the last time I looked at the .ai file, it had the water-drop background you'll see in the second attachment here and just the title on front and back, plus author name, and the spine text, leaving me a clean palette to add my InD text.  Today, the background is gone.

     

    Something I only this minute noticed -- and this may be a clue -- is that in the original file, the text is white, so as to stand out against the dark background, but as it stands now in the file, the text is black! I remember wondering vaguely about this earlier but forgot again, and it didn't really hit me till now anyway. It only really dawned on me just as I'm writing this note. It made me wonder if somehow the whole .ai file got inverted, color-wise. With that in mind, I stepped away from writing this for a moment to select it all and go to Edit>Edit Colors>Invert Colors, and nothing changes. So, the mystery deepens (or else my mind grows more shallow as the answer might be right in front of me, but I'm not seeing it <sigh>).

     

    Screenshots below:

     

    Illustrator file:

    As you can see, all layers are visible (plus two rows that wouldn't fit on the screen.) I don't agree with how the cover designer built the file -- lots of extraneous layers -- so I simplified by placing just the background in InD -- i.e., I didn't try to clean up the .ai -- and handled the bulk of my text there, which is what I prefer anyway. Just mentioning, as you'll no doubt notice so many layers. InD screenshot follows below. Despite the missing graphic in the .ai file, the graphic shows up in InD and the PDF is fine.

     

     

    casinclaire
    casinclaireAuthor
    Inspiring
    January 8, 2020

    What can give you a clue is in the original file, locate the image in the layer panel. Then target it and see if you find out what people did in the appearance panel.


    Thanks.  I had found it in the layers -- though there are a TON of duplicate layers; don't know what that designer was going for -- but hadn't thought to look at the appearance panel to see if anything was done to it. I'll give it a go. But that won't explain, I'm afraid, why it showed up initially and then disappeared. It seems to me that if it disappeared AFTER I took possession, then it was something that flipped out at that point, not something the original designer did. <big sigh> Well, I'll live. But it is really perplexing! Thanks for the suggestion. Maybe I'll find something that _I_ did accidentally!

    Ashutosh_Mishra
    Ashutosh_Mishra
    Inspiring
    January 7, 2020

    Hi there,

     

    Thanks for reaching out. Please click on Hide Transparency Grid option under View menu. I am also attaching a screenshot for your reference:

     

     

    Hope it helps. Let us know if you need more assistance, we'll be happy to help.

     

    Regards,

    Ashutosh

      casinclaire
      casinclaireAuthor
      Inspiring
      January 8, 2020

      Hi. It was a good try, but the transparency grid wasn't turned on. I never use it, so would have been surprised if it had been. Not even sure what it's for, to tell the truth.

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