Issues with bleed in Indesign and PDF

[deep_86]

I need to send a print ready PDF file to the printer and he is telling me that he can see the trim marks but the actual bleed is missing. I have created the file in Indesign and the objects definitely go past the bleed line so I am not sure why that doesn't show up while exporting to PDF. Could someone please help? Thanks

[BobLevine]

Check your export settings and make sure you set the bleed in the document set, chose use document bleed or that you manually set the bleed amount.

[deep_86]

I have tried all the but the bleed on red and grey objects still don't appear when exporting to PDF.

[Gusgsm · Accepted solution]

If you have Acrobat, open the PDF in it and go to "Tools - Print production - Set page Boxes". There, select the TrimBox (that is: The final size of the trimmed finished page) and then the BleedBox (the final page before trimming the bleed). The difference between them should give you the value of the bleed (3 mm. is the most common one).

If both boxes have the same value, you've got no bleed whatsoever in that PDF.

In InDesign, make sure that in "File - Document setup - (More options - Bleed and Slug)", you have defined the proper value for the bleed. Afterwards, you should see the bleed in InDesign in "View - Screen mode - Bleed".

After everything and all the elements are is properly bleeded..., you just make the PDF by exporting ("File export as print PDF", not "Interactive PDF"), 

There, in the "Marks and bleed marks", choose the "Use document settings" option.

Now, when examining the new PDF in Acrobat, you should see a difference between the BleedBox and the trimBox.

And, please, use a PDF/X preset when exporting.

Best regards

[deborahd68113104]

I don't know if you want me to start a new string, but I am having, what I think is the same problem. There is a bleed and I mark the crop and use document settings (or even set them manually) and make sure to use a PDF/S preset and The final pdf doesn't show the bleed, it stops before the bleed. I've attached it to show you. This is quite frustrating. I need to send it to the printer today. 

Thank you,

Deb

[rob day]

Hi @deborahd68113104 , Can you show a capture of your Export Marks and Bleeds tab?

[KaleighBarclay]

I'm having this issue too plese help!!

    

[rob day]

Hi @KaleighBarclay , You are setting Bleed Marks not Crop Marks, so the marks are lining up with the bleed not the trim. If you also include the Crop Marks they will be 1mm inside of the Bleed Marks:

[Ariel24209795tl79]

I am having this issue as well!   

I turned on the reqested items in Acrobat, and now I just have a neon Purple and Red box around my image.  😞 I am not sure why the bleeds are not showing normally.  (I have followed every export set to a T!). What is going on? 

Please help! 

[James Gifford—NitroPress]

You have the boxes in the PDF export?

Or you are seeing these boxes in the InDesign layout?

If the latter... the purple box is your page. The red box is the bleed limit. In the PDF export, you either have to specify bleeds, or check the box "Use Document Bleeds." Bleeds will be empty unless you put some content there, even a colored background rectangle. By themselves, bleeds are just space to allow trimming of the printed item, and anything meant to be trimmed at page edge — to "bleed" into the trimmed material — needs to be explicitly placed there in the layout.