Converting tables into image

[jeferson_martins]

Does InDesign converts tables into images ?

[Danny Whitehead.]

If the tables have been built using InDesign, yes, there are various ways of creating images of them.

[Steve Werner]

It does not.

Export the page as a PDF file. Open the PDF in Photoshop at the needed resoluton and crop to the dimensions of the table.

[FRIdNGE]

Hmm! …

[Just For Comment]

I prefer to do it in 1 click! … especially with a 500-pages doc, a complex layout with images, texts, … and 1,000 tables into it!

The script will "extract" all the tables in the format you want [.jpg, .png, .pdf …] with, eventually, the name they have in the layout!

Best,

Michel, for FRIdNGE

[jeferson_martins]

Where can I find this script ???

[Steve Werner]

How much are you charging for the script, Michel? I’d be surprised if it was free.

[FRIdNGE]

Hi Steve,

It's the script no. 0037 I wrote for a client 2 years ago! I've written more than 1,000 until now! …

I've opened it to see what this version 1 exactly does:

It allowed him to export to .eps all the tables of a doc naming them according to the page number (for the client, never 2 tables per page, sometimes 0)!

So it could be quickly adapted.

It's not the place to discuss money, sorry!

If Jefferson is interested (if nobody gives him a for-free solution!), he could contact me in private.

Best,

Michel

[Steve Werner]

I can appreciate that a talented scripter like you would ask for a fee to create or customize a script like that. But I just wanted it to make it clear that people don't necessarily do that work for free! The original poster didn't give any information about how many tables he/she was trying to convert to a graphic—3 or 500, for example. A few could be done easily one by one manually, but 500 might be worth paying for a script.

[FRIdNGE]

Steve,

Sure a serious guy would not post on the Adobe InDesign forum for only 1 table to play (maybe 2!).

But I agree 500 or 1,000 tables begin to be … a little problematic!

Copy/paste in a frame is a similar problematic! [ comment for Chad!  😉 ]

Don't forget: users love "1-click", not the headaches! …

Best,

Michel

PS: Thanks to keep cool! … your comment "a talented scripter like you" seems to me a little sarcastic!

[hammer0909]

Copy/paste in a frame is a similar problematic! [ comment for Chad!  😉 ]

It's not a similar problematic. Just a solution to the question that was asked by the OP. They haven't provided any details regarding what the ultimate objective is and why he wants tables output as images. We're all speculating until more information is provided. Inline frames work quite well for what the OP is trying to do unless he has many tables. We don't know the answer to that question at this point.

[FRIdNGE]

Chad,

My comment had 3 lines, not just one! So, I repeat it:

"Sure a serious guy would not post on the Adobe InDesign forum for only 1 table to play (maybe 2!).

But I agree 500 or 1,000 tables begin to be … a little problematic!

Copy/paste in a frame is a similar problematic!"

To be clearer: that means I could do it for 1 (or 2) table(s) of course, but surely not for 500 or 1,000!

BTW, what do you think the script does for each table it finds? … Simply what you say! 

[and some other things … and just a little faster than a being human!]

… And remember I just indicated this script with the mention "[Just For Comment]". That didn't mean a "direct answer"!

Best,

Michel

[Eugene Tyson · Accepted solution]

If you can do it for the guy then please do so. If not the OP should visit the scripting forum -

InDesign Scripting

Someone may be up to the challenge as a learning curve - or they may get prices.

Out of the box - Indesign won't save tables to images - but I'm sure it could be scripted.

[hammer0909]

I'm not sure what your ultimate objective is here but one way that I've done this is to put the table in it's own frame and then make that frame an inline graphic (basically copy the frame and paste it within another text frame). If you now export to HTML and instruct InDesign to generate the images, all of the tables will output as images.

[Laubender]

jeferson.martins  wrote

Does InDesign converts tables into images ?

Hi,

can you specify the type of the image, color space and resolution?

What should happen to tables that span several pages?

Should such a table go into one big image?

What you can do:

Export the pages where a table is to PDF.

Render the PDF with PhotoShop to pixels.

Crop to the area of the table.

Save as JPEG or export for Web as JPEG or PNG or whatever.

Depending of the layout of your InDesign document there could be several methods to single out tables automatically.

But for more suggestions we need to see into the InDesign document.

Regards,
Uwe

[jeferson_martins]

Actually, I'm working with ePUB, and it would be easier to work with images, because when the tables are too big they stay really out of shape in the pages, once you're seing them in devices with small displays. I've trying to make them responsible with CSS, but it has to be a generic style sheet, that would work to a several tables in several books.

[BobLevine]

What about using an object style and having it rasterized on export. You can find those options in the Export Options in the object style settings.