Is there a way to Batch "Image Color Settings"?

[Mystical_Mirage157F]

We often receive InDesign files from our customers, in order to make some changes and corrections on the content, and then create a PDF to be printed.

Our workflow is based on PDF/X-4, and for that reason we preffer to activate the ICC profiles for all the linked images in every InDesign document we deal with.
Most of the files we receive come with the ICC profiles being ignored, as it's the default behavior for InDesign.

So today we have two options in order to get this done:

1. Clicking in each individual image, then in "Image Color Settings", and then activating the embedded profile for it. It's a nightmare, specially for jobs with lots of pages and images.

or

2. Forcing an ICC profile mismatch before opening the file, and then choosing "Enable all profiles" while assingning the correct ICC profile for the file. It's not ideal to keep forcing profile mismatches always, as it can lead to errors.

I wonder if there is another way to do a batch "enable ICC profile" to already-linked images.

If not, hey, Adobe, it must be one very easy feature to make, huh?

Thanks in advance.

Tiago Cheregati

[Steve Werner]

This may be a scriptable issue. If it's not answered here, ask in the InDesign Scripting forum here:

InDesign Scripting

[rob day]

It can be done via scripting, if you are using OSX try this AppleScript:

http://www.zenodesign.com/forum/ChangeDocCM.zip

You'll get this dialog showing the doc's profile assignments and CM policy settings where you can make a change and choose whether to update all of the link policies:

In case you are not aware; PDF/X-4 includes profiles for all color except document CMYK colors.

Native CMYK colors and swatches, and placed CMYK images with embedded profiles that match the document's assigned profile, or CMYK images with no embedded profile export as DeviceCMYK (no profile).

If you change the CMYK policy from Preserve Numbers (Ignore Linked Profiles) to Preserve Embedded, and update everything, then only CMYK images with conflicting profiles will be affected. So a GRACol image placed in a SWOP doc will keep its profile on export to X4, but an image with SWOP embedded will not.

[Srishti Bali]

Moved to InDesign Scripting

[Laubender]

Hi Tiago,

for Mac OSX and Windows as well see into the ExtendScript (JavaScript) script by Roland Dreger:

Farbmanagement in Adobe InDesign — Roland Dreger, Grafikdesign

Regards,
Uwe