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Miker2426
Miker2426
Inspiring
September 24, 2017
Answered

Identical copies of shapes end up different sizes when transformed together

  • September 24, 2017
  • 1 reply
  • 1852 views

So for a project I'm working on, I have a shape, and then I copy the shape and lay it on another layer directly over the top of the first.  If the top shape is white, and the bottom blue, you wouldn't be able to see the hidden blue shape beneath. Then I put a 4pt stroke on the the bottom shape. If I use the selection tool, select both shapes together, and then pull on a corner to enlarge the two together, the two shapes end up being different sizes, every time.The bottom shape is always slightly bigger then the top. Now, if the top shape is white, and the bottom blue, after the transformation with the select tool, you will be able to see the blue shape peeking out under the white. What's going on here? I need to make multiple copies of the two shapes laying on top of each other, and size them according to need. I also need the stroke weight to remain consistent. But InDesign insists on altering the size of each shape differently when I transform them, which really makes no sense at all. This happens even if I use the shift tool. Can anyone help? Thanks much in advance for any ideas or suggestions.

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Correct answer barbara_a7746676

I just tried scaling in InDesign CS6 and had the same issue so this must be a long standing bug. As with InDesign CC, using the Control panel to scale works fine in CS6.

1 reply

barbara_a7746676
Community Expert
barbara_a7746676Community Expert
Community Expert
September 24, 2017

Couple of things to check. In the Stroke panel, choose the alignment for the stroke. Sounds like you may want "inside".

Also, select the object with the stroke and in the Transform panel, uncheck "Adjust Stroke Weight when Scaling" before you resize the object if you don't want the stroke weight to change.

    Miker2426
    Miker2426Author
    Inspiring
    September 24, 2017

    Hi Barbara, thanks for the response. For the first point, I definitely do not want the stroke inside. I want two identical shapes, one directly atop the other, with the bottom one having a stroke so the shape is outlined. If the bottom shape has an inside stroke, it wouldn't be seen at all. To the second point, the stroke is not adjusting with the scale. I start with a 4pt stroke, and after scaling, it's still a 4pt stroke. Which is exactly what I want. BUT the physical size of the two shapes are different!

    Here you see the top layer - the red circle on layer 2 is selected. Info shows the size of the shape as 18p0 for height and width. The red circle layer has no stroke. You can't see the blue circle beneath the red, but you can see the stroke on the blue circle and it seems to outline the red..

    In this one the bottom layer - the blue circle with the stroke is selected and the red circle is hidden. The size of the shape is exactly the same.

    In this image all the layers are selected together.

    Then I take the selection tool, hold shift, and scale the two images up. Notice immediately that the bottom blue circle is no longer hidden beneath the red one. Note the size of the top layer, which is 40p7.529.

    Now we hide the top layer and look at the info panel for the bottom blue layer. Its size is different from the top red layer. It is 41p8.1!

    My strokes are exactly the way I want them, and they're working as advertised. However, I can't for the life of me understand why InDesign is making two identical shapes two different sizes when they're scaled together. THAT'S my problem! Thanks again for the help!

    Bill Silbert
    Community Expert
    Bill SilbertCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    September 24, 2017

    By default InDesign recognizes the stroke of an object when calculating its size and reporting it in the Transform Panel. If you want to have the sizes shown without including stroke weight then uncheck "Dimensions Include Stroke Weight" in the Transform Panel pull-down. See screen shot:

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