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peternelson
Inspiring
October 19, 2019
Pregunta

How do I import vector graphics from Illustrator CC to Indesign CC?

  • October 19, 2019
  • 3 respuestas
  • 7966 visualizaciones

I'm brand new to InDesign and I'm using it to design an event card for my club.   Everything has gone well and the only thing I have left to do is add our logo to the card.    Our logo is an Adobe Illustrator (.AI) file and since ID also knows how to do vector art I thought it would be easy, but I haven't figured out how to do it.

 

I tried a suggestion from here to export it as an EPS file from AI and use the File | Place feature in ID to import it, but that turns it into a bitmap.  I want it to stay as vector art so I can resize it smoothly for our card.

 

BTW, I also tried Placeing it as a native .AI file but that still turns it into a groddy bitmap so it's no longer vector art and cannnot be smoothly resized by selecting it and grabbing a corner.  It's vector art in AI and I want it to still be vector art in ID.

 

How do I import vector art from AI?

 

Thanks in advance!

3 respuestas

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Papagordo
Participating Frequently
October 21, 2019

Is it possible to see the vector piece you created? I've seen many a designer import a raster image into the AI design thinking it will magically turn to vector when saved out. This can happen to text that has been rasterized as well. Not saying it's what you've done at all ... just brainstorming. 

    Barb Binder
    Community Expert
    Barb BinderCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    October 20, 2019

    Hi Peter:

     

    "InDesign already has simple editing tools for native vector art, but on the Adobe website it says, "Import the graphic using the Place command, and when you want to edit it, choose Edit > Edit Original to open the graphic in Illustrator."  I should be able to edit it in InDesign."

    I've been in this business since 1986, and old enough to remember when page layout, illustration and photo editing applications didn't play well together. I still think it's awesome that we can use Edit > Original to hop over to Photoshop or Illustrator to make an edit to the original art, hop back and see the update. We are both users, by the way, so neither of us have any control over how Adobe "should" do things. My role here on the forum is to explain how the features InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator work, but that's it.

     

    Since we aren't getting anywhere on your original question, let's talk about your workflow. Illustrator is often used for simple layout jobs—business cards, flyers, postcards, etc. Why use InDesign at all? They both have a similar type engine—though InDesign has far greater type controls, as a brand new user, I'll wager a guess that you aren't using them yet.

     

    Is there any reason you can't complete the job in Illustrator?

     

    ~Barb

    ~Barb at Rocky Mountain Training
      Barb Binder
      Community Expert
      Barb BinderCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      October 19, 2019

      Hi Peter:

       

      You can simply use File > Place to place the .ai version of the logo onto your InDesign page. It may look pixelated, but vector files don't have resolution so that's just InDesign's way of quickly showing you the file. Printing will alleviate your concerns, as will View > Display Performance > High Quality Display.

       

      This post will give you a little more information on how Display Performance works:

      https://www.rockymountaintraining.com/?s=display+performance

       

      ~Barb

      ~Barb at Rocky Mountain Training
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        peternelsonAutor
        Inspiring
        October 19, 2019

        I did try that and, as you say, it pixelates it and the resizing handles don't work.    How do I resize it, and also how to I display it as vector art?   I have other vector art in my card that I drew in ID and that looks good.  But the imported stuff looks too groddy to evaluate.

         

        I'm new to ID but my understanding is that it's a native vector-graphics program.    So how do I take vector graphics from AI, which is also native vector graphics program, and just treat it like any other vector graphics in ID?  The Performance setting certainly helps, but I'm unclear why it's necessary for the imported art and not the art that was made in ID.

        E
        Community Expert
        Eugene TysonCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        October 20, 2019

        I wrote an article on why Hi-res images look low resolution to give you a better understanding

        https://indesignsecrets.com/high-res-image-look-low-res.php

         

        In short - InDesign creates a proxy image which is a low resolution version of your file in-situ in your layout - there are controls to show a higher resolution proxy - but InDesign then only uses your Linked files to create the output file.

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