InDesign Script • Create Separate Files of Each Instance of a Single Linked Image

[FalconArt]

When I am prepping a book file for printing, I need both the ACTUAL and EFFECTIVE PPI to be 300. This is easily achieved with "Trista DPI InDesign to Photoshop Script" (which I love and use almost every day!) However, when I have multiple instances of the same image, the Trista script will find the largest one, and scale it down to a true 300. This is good because it maintains a 300 or better effective PPI.

   BUT some print projects will not let me have 300+ effective PPI. (An image at 300 actual PPI at 100% = 300 effective PPI. But a second instance of that link at 50% scale is 600 effective PPI.) So: is there a way to script out a function that looks for every instance of a linked image and creates multiples of that image (Image.jpg (3) → Image_01.jpg, Image_02.jpg, Image_03.jpg), before linking them back in with the newly copied and renamed images?

   This would allow me to then run Trista's script on EACH of those instances and scale them to a true 300 as separate files.

Check out the Becky's Graphic Design YouTube channel, where I feature a lot of scripts!

[Eugene Tyson]

When you export to PDF - go to the compression settings - you can compress an image the 300 dpi that's above a certain resolution.

If you set it to 300 ppi for images above 301 

The images will reduce PPI as you want - using the same compression methods.

There's no advantage to resizing images to 300 ppi before placing to InDesign or in-situ in the design.

If it's 1200 ppi or 600 or 328 ppi - the software can reduce to 300 on export. 

There's very little need for 300 actual and 300 effective 

All you're doing is duplicating images on your hard drive and having 2 versions of the same image.

Where you could use 1 version of your image for all things - and only  have 1 file on your computer. 

When I say 'there's never a need' I mean rarely a need, of course, every workflow is different. 

But curious why you'd need such stringent controls when you they're already built into Adobe PDF export options. 

[FalconArt]

Trust me—I've tried accomplishing this through export settings. Somehow, IngramSpark still sees beyond my export settings and knows what the actual image files were like. Even if I tell it to reduce down to 300 on export, it will still get flagged. Could have something to do with the fact that they require a 2001x PDF version.

[rob day]

Hi @FalconArt , Are you using any Effects (e.g. Drop Shadows, Glows, etc)? With PDF/X-1a Effects get exported at less than 300ppi and that could be what Ingram is flagging. Can you share a PDF that is getting rejected?

[FalconArt]

I don't have a current PDF I can share, but yes, the last one that was having rejection issues did have drop shadows in certain parts of the document. The reason for rejection was "Resoultion too high" even though I had constrained the PDF export settings. The only thing that seems to work is making the ACTUAL linked image file a true 300.

[FalconArt]

Interestingly, there is also flagging that occurs when I export a PDF with images containing the color mode "Grayscale," even if I set the export color mode to "CMYK." The ACTUAL images have to be CMYK.

Ingram wants a black and white book to have the color mode "CMYK," even if there's no color being used. "Grayscale" is not allowed.

[rob day]

The PDF/X-1a preset only allows CMYK and Spot Color--Grayscales Export to the CMYK Black plate. Are you sure the Standard wasn't set to none on the Export?

[rob day]

there is also flagging that occurs when I export a PDF with images containing the color mode "Grayscale,"

I need both the ACTUAL and EFFECTIVE PPI to be 300.

Is Ingram actually rejecting the job or simply warning you about their preflight flags?

You really should not need a script. A PDF/X-1a Export with Compression setup like this:

Produces this in AcrobatPro—the Grayscale image has been downsampled to 300ppi and it as listed as being on the Black plate in Object Inspector:

The Separations view Shows the image when I filter for DeviceCMYK

[FalconArt]

Perhaps, then, I just ignore the warnings and proceed to upload the PDF file? I don't understand why I get flagged in the first place, though.

[rob day]

I don't understand why I get flagged in the first place, though.

We can’t help without seeing the PDF that is getting flagged. The Compression settings I showed in my last post would not allow RGB and Grayscale images to exceed 300ppi. You can open the PDF in AcrobatPro and use the Output Preview’s Object Inspector to check an image’s resolution

[FalconArt]

Thanks for the tip on Adobe Acrobat's Output Preview Object Inspector. I didn't know about that.

So here's what I'm seeing on there. This particular little image is 1,097 effective PPI in my InDesign file. When I compress it in PDF export, here's how the Object Inspector sees it.

[rob day]

Right, Ingram must be flagging something else—if you went to the trouble of sampling down linked images with a script, the result would be the same. You can also use Acrobat’s preflight to check images. For example this would list all of the document image info:

[Eugene Tyson]

It should work - the settings have to be 300 ppi for images above 300ppi

Otherwise the default is 300ppi for images above 450ppi - I believe.

There's no way ingramsparks could tell if the images were optimised on output. 

[FalconArt]

Here's what I get when I compress the images in export:

How does it even know that the images were too high-res in my InDesign file? If I go in and make the images a "true 300, effective and actual," then I don't get this message.

[FalconArt]

I had an idea—what about this process? Is it possible? I've been trying to cobble this together from other scripts unsuccessfully:

1.  Identify links that have multiple instances
2. Embed them (to separate them)
3. Apply a number counter to the end of the filename of each embedded instance
4. Unembed and choose file location

[Robert at ID-Tasker]

@FalconArt

You can't modify stored link's name - in the INDD file.

The only way would be to export and edit IDML.

But if you really need to have your images as exactly 300PPI - link can be opened in Photoshop, resampled, saved with a new name and relinked.

[FalconArt]

Right—and I have a script which talks to Photoshop, opens up an image, and matches the actual and effective PPI, but it doesn't work when there are multiple instances of an image. And my current project has a lotttttttttt of those.

[Robert at ID-Tasker]

Right—and I have a script which talks to Photoshop, opens up an image, and matches the actual and effective PPI, but it doesn't work when there are multiple instances of an image. And my current project has a lotttttttttt of those.

By @FalconArt

Then you need a proper tool that will treat each instance of the linked file as a separate entity. 

[FalconArt]

Hopefully I'll find one in time!

[Robert at ID-Tasker · Accepted solution]

Hopefully I'll find one in time!

By @FalconArt

Done - Before:

After:

Temporary inconvenience - resampled images are saved as PSD...

Not free - but I'm pretty sure well worth it.

Just 3x simple Tasks and any number of linked images can be processed.

Of course only selected links can be processed and finall resolution can be set as desired.

[FalconArt]

This is it! @Robert at ID-Tasker completed this function with his ID-Tasker Tool. I am now able to separate instances of a single file and resample them to 300 PPI—with ease!

[rob day]

The downside of trying to match Actual and Effective Resolutions is, in the future you can‘t change your mind about the image scaling in the layout—if the Effective Res is at 300ppi and you scale the image to 125%, the output Effective Res will drop to 240ppi.

Photshop would permanently remove image pixels on the down sample. That’s the reason for the Export Compression tab’s for images above pixels per Inch field.

Consider this where the top image has matching Actual and Effective Resolutions of 300ppi, and the bottom image is the same Width & Height but with an Effective Res of 400ppi:

The Export to PDF/X-a with for images above set to 300ppi—AcrobatPro lists both images at 300ppi: