Why do PDF imports have a clipping mask?

[Spirited_happiness5D41]

I do not understand why the majority of the time I import very simple polygons and lines in PDF format and they all have clipping masks.

There is no  reason for there to be clipping masks on these PDF files, but it seems that Adobe automatically adds clipping masks for no reason. 

I have to go through the tedious process of looking for every clipping mask and one by one unclip them.

The clipping masks tends to span the entire document size.

There are the steps I have to go through to "process a file"

1) Go through layers panel and unclip all clipping masks one by one.

2) Go to the 4 corners of each document and delete all the nodes on each corner for every shape present.

[Ton Frederiks]

The pdfs with clipping mask were certainly not made in Illustrator with Illustrator editing capabilities checked.

They are converted from PDF to Illustrator file format, and these clipping mask may sometimes be there for a good reason.

Make sure that no fill or stroke is selected in the tools panel and choose Select > Same Fill & Stroke 

Then just delete the selected objects.

[chirp88]

@Ton_Frederiks - That is not correct. I have created PDF files directly from Illustrator (or InDesign) and when I open them back up in Illustrator they will have clipping paths around either the whole document or possibly elements within the document.

[Monika Gause]

THe argument was not "made from Illustrator" but "made from Illustrator with editing capabilities checked". There is a huge difference between these two.

Please see this about Illustrator files: https://youtu.be/IpDh8Y7q8yE

[chirp88]

It makes clipping masks either way. Or, alternatively, creates extra space around objects that shouldn't be there. As if there were invisible points floating around.

[Monika Gause]

Please tell us about your issue

Please tell us where the file originates from

Which options were selected when you saved it

Any error warnings when you opened it

What's in the file

[Monica MacGeen]

Illustrator is 100% creating clipping paths. Save a file with no clipping masks, reopen file...full of clipping paths

[Monika Gause]

Illustrator is 100% creating clipping paths. Save a file with no clipping masks, reopen file...full of clipping paths

By @Monica MacGeen

You missed the second part of the sentence "with Illustrator editing capabilities checked"

[Monica MacGeen]

No, Its a huge problem when trying to print the required pdf format for the rip software and it generating clipping paths prevents those elements of the design to not print.

[Monika Gause]

Why are you re-opening the PDF in Illustrator? You're not supposed to do that.

As long as you're working on it: save an AI file. When you're done: Save a PDF file. Do not open it in Illustrator. Use Acrobat for printing.

[Russ282077443vs0]

Because that's how clients send me their art for screen printing. Sometimes we don't have a choice. And it's incredibly annoying to have to go through it and eliminate all the clipping paths individually. 

[Bobby Henderson]

At my workplace, there are times I feel lucky if I get customer provided artwork in the form of a PDF containing vector objects. Far too many people just grab the first thing they find, be it a low res JPEG or PNG image on a web page. "This will work; it's a digital file isn't it?" When I ask for vector artwork they'll often save the same JPEG or PNG image inside an Illustrator AI, EPS or PDF container file. Or they might even give me a PowerPoint PPT file, as if I can do anything useful with that.

[Russ282077443vs0]

That is the absolute story of my work life, lol

[chirp88]

Had someone send me a PPT with a JPG logo in it just last week LOL. And another sent a Word doc.

[Bobby Henderson]

I get PowerPoint PPT files most often from military customers. Sometimes they bring us the files burned onto a CD-R (most military facilities will not allow USB memory sticks to be plugged into computers). We try to warn them in advance the PPT files are no good. A JPEG saved inside a PPT file is just another layer of bad added on top of bad. MS Word docs aren't any better.

Lately Canva has become a serious headache (in addition to the other ones). Too many customers are hopping into that app and giving us art files we can't use. Most of the time the files are flattened PNG images. I'll ask the customers to export a PDF or SVG file using the Download options under the Share command. It doesn't take much tech talk to go over their heads. So I end up having to get into Canva and try to re-create some of the elements on my own in "dummy" documents and save PDFs of those. Some of the fonts in Canva are unique to that app. Then there are other fonts where the versions within Canva are different from those available elsewhere. Canva is a walled garden of sorts that does not play well with other more professional design applications.

[huthbot]

What? Maybe if you are only priting digitally but for screen print, letterpress, riso, where you need access to the layers you have to open PDFs in illustrator all the time. Because clients, even print savvy clients, arent clear on your file or output preferneces and just save EVERY print file as a PDF even though thats not ideal... its not even ideal for digital printing, in most cases, becuse even though its a layout with raster and vector mixed elelemnts, like a large format graphic or even a magazine I bet you all the photo or raster "art" elements are going to work better placed in as .TIFFs. So yeah opening PDFs is an issue for traditional printers. The nesting of clipped elements where Adobe sort of arbitrarily compresses layers and adds things to completly unrelated things and torjan-horses existing clipping masks that were intentinally included in by the designer its horrible. You have to open a file in illustrator and in acrtobat side by side to make sure things dont change in the layout as you remove the clipping masks... and as someone who didnt make the original design sometimes its really difficult to track if something changed in a layout. 

[Bobby Henderson]

Just about any PDF file is not going to be edit-friendly. The only exception is a PDF saved by Adobe Illustrator with the "preserve Illustrator editing capability" option checked. When the PDF is re-opened in Illustrator it's actually appended Illustrator data being opened rather than the PDF portion.

Nested clipping masks and clipping groups are common to PDF files saved by many graphics applications, including those from Adobe. A PDF saved by InDesign can be a real mess when opened in Illustrator.

PDF files can be great for large format digital printing work, but only if the files are prepared well. I usually have no problem with PDF files I create from artwork in Illustrator. PDF has native support for transparency, it will preserve vector artwork. A flattened TIFF image will not do that. One of the critical things needed to get good print output from a PDF: a printer or RIP application that has an Adobe-certified PDF print engine.

Many of us are stuck having to handle customer provided artwork in the form of PDF files. The problem isn't with PDF. The real problem is so many people are just winging it when it comes to graphic design tasks and print production tasks. If the person doesn't really know what they're doing they can easily make big mistakes.

Lately it has become an even harder chore getting decent vector-based artwork from clients. Canva has been one problem. AI-generated graphics turning into an even bigger pain in the neck.

[CHMprepress]

Keep also in mind that Illustrator is not a PDF editor.

That is why you get unexpected results when you do so.

[Monica MacGeen]

Yeah. it is, and it is required to make .pdf files when printing illustrator files

[Monika Gause]

Yeah. it is, and it is required to make .pdf files when printing illustrator files

By @Monica MacGeen

Yeah sure.

But it's not required to delete your AI file after saving a PDF for printing.

[chirp88]

I found an amazing solution to this issue. Buy the Affinity suite. Affinity Publisher and Designer both open PDFs without any issues. Objects are opened as groups instead of inside clipping masks. It's awesome.

[Monika Gause]

And then how do you get the content into Illustrator?

Because clearly you don't want to use Affinity Designer, since it doesn't have a lot of functionality.

[chirp88]

I don't. I do clearly want to use Affinity Designer, Pubisher and Photo. I've completely switched over to Affinity apps. Desginer is SO much better than Illustrator. But, regardless, you can export to EPS if you really want to.

It boggles my mind how third party software can open PDFs better than the apps of the company that actually created the format.

[Monika Gause]

Export as EPS? Really? A PDF can still have transparency, EPS can't.

PDF was never meant for opening. It's a pure presentation format. Its purpose was that any app on any supported system can write a file in a way that a PDF reader can then present that file in the exact same layout that has been intended. Not being able to edit this layout is intended (think legal papers) and thus somewhat part of the format.

That was a huge invention back then.

"Desginer is SO much better than Illustrator."

It doesn't have 90% of the functionality that I'm using daily.

[chirp88]

You seem to be getting defensive for some reason. I am making a statement that Affinity apps can open PDF files and let you edit them as if they were actual files. And it works. Unlike InDesign, which can't open PDFs at all. Or Illustrator which breaks up text blocks and puts everything in clipping masks. Whether that is intended or no is irrelevant, because if other apps can do it then Adobe's apps should be able to, as well.

Whether Designer doesn't have the functionality YOU need is also irrelevant. You are the one that TOLD me that I clearly don't want to use Designer. I'm telling you that it has 95% of the functionality I need that Illustrator has. In fact, it is better for illustration work than Illustrator is. The only thing Illustrator can do that Designer can't is making charts. The brush tools are far better than Illustrator. Plus it has pixel editing capability and can export web graphics far better. And, again, opens PDF files flawlessly. I am not debating that PDF wasn't a huge innovation "back then." I am offering a solution to the original poster's issue. Don't use Illustrator, use Affinity Designer.