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WSU-UMC-JP
Participating Frequently
April 6, 2021
Answered

Edit > Transparency Flattener Presets… not working in InDesign 2021 Mac

  • April 6, 2021
  • 2 replies
  • 8829 views

Is Edit > Transparency Flattener Preset… broken in InDesign 2021? I can’t get any setting besides [Low Resolution] to stick, nor custom settings. Exporting compatibility Acrobat 4/PDF 1.3 (requested from vendor printers) produces low-resolution flattened images that I have to up-sample in Photoshop. Have tried everything. Used to work. Others have posted outside ASC that custom settings will save won’t stick either when applied.

Correct answer rob day

Interesting. This is what I have experienced whereby with some conbinations of effects and their settings I get adequate flattened resolutions, and other combinations not. I have come to rely on these effects as a designer since it is fun to experiment “right in” layout and get results fast, not like the days of building all the effects in Photoshop for PageMaker and Quark backgrounds. It’s just that from layout to layout—in the multiple projects I work on—I’m never quite sure if the InDesign effects will kick out in Agfa workflow or not with the exports required by some vendors.

 

So, what is your final thoughts on how to minimize these inconsistencies? (Thanks so much for your expert analysis.)


So, what is your final thoughts on how to minimize these inconsistencies?

 

Looks like you can put a long Drop Shadow on a top layer with opacity set to 0 and force the gradient resolution on all of the layers below. As far as I can tell, the lower resolutions are limited inner glows and shadows? That certainly would be preferable to manually creating image files. This works with the default [High Resolution] flattener:

 

 

I wouldn’t expect a fix on the InDesign side, the problem is really with the Acrobat and Agfa preflights flagging resolutions that wouldn’t actually be a problem on press. There’s only a 2% value change in your background gradient—no need for 300ppi to make that gradient.

2 replies

rob day
Community Expert
rob dayCommunity Expert
Community Expert
April 7, 2021

The Flattener preset would only affect an Effects’ resolution (i.e., a drop shadow), not the image’s output resolution. Here’s a PDF/X-1a with the Transparency Flattener is set to Low Resolution and the image with an Effective Resolution of 400pppi exports unchanged. So it sounds like the problem is something else maybe missing links, or the scaled image’s Effective Resolution is too low?:

 

 

 

 

BobLevine
Community Expert
BobLevineCommunity Expert
Community Expert
April 7, 2021

That's an archaic workflow but if you must use it, use the PDF/X-1a preset. I won't even pretend to know what's in that preset but it should be high resolution.

FWIW, which may be nothing, I would never use transparency for any job that had to be submitted this way. I'm sure others will disagree.

    W
    WSU-UMC-JPAuthor
    Participating Frequently
    April 7, 2021

    Bob (good to see you still posting!): I am using an PDF output export preset which already calls for high resolution, therefore, all effects ON IMAGES do process at high resolution…

    My problem is that InDesign effects on OBJECTS—that rasterize during Acrobat 4/PDF 1.3 (required by printer)—flattening ends up low resolution. Images are fine, objects with effects that rasterize are 125ppi. I have been using these effects for years in InDesign and not sure why this has become a problem. I have to open the PDF in Acrobat, find the low-rez rasterized objects, and then up-sample them in Photoshop so they will go through Agfa Portal without prepress errors. 

    W
    WSU-UMC-JPAuthor
    Participating Frequently
    April 7, 2021

    BTW, your X4HiResFlattener.joboptions still only produced 150ppi

     

    Right, the resolution of the gradient ramp changes depending the start and end values of the gradient—the export is smart enough not to oversample long gradients with not much change in value, in those cases higher resolutions are not needed.

     

    InDesign TFPresets wouldn’t hold onto it?

    I’m not seeing that. If I create and set a custom flattener in the PDF/X-1a Advanced tab it’s sticky for the next export.

     

     

     


    Well, I appreciate all your time on this. Unfortunately, I need resolutions that don’t trigger Agfa to reject. I’ve tried  your X4HiResFlattener.joboptions (that default to your HiResGradients.flst in the Advanced tab), I’ve used my vendor’s Acrobat 4/PDF 1.3 joboptions (and then modified using your HiResGradients.flst in the Advanced tab). I’ve created my own .flst file setting the Gradient/Mesh resolution to 1200 ppi … “every which way” still produces some flattening at only at 125–175 ppi which Agfa doesn not like. I will just have to continue fixing the PDFs after the fact, or pre-flatten my object effects by exporting them as images out of InDesign. I really don’t see anything else to do. This may not be a “bug’ according to Uwe, but they should delete the Edit > TFPresets… out of the menus since it doesn’t do anything, It did work once upon a time. And using the Advanced tab in InDesign File > Adobe PDF Presets (selecting a custom .flst) doesn’t catch everything.

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