Jpeg created in InDesign not sharp when placed into InDesign (not display performance)

[aaf88972914]

Hi, I am hoping someone can help, as I am having no luck googling. 

I have created an invite in InDesign, that I want to mail merge in InDesign. So have exported it as a jpeg and used the highest settings. When I open the image and zoom in, it is really sharp. 

I then placed it into InDesign to do the merge, and it's a bit jagged on the text. 

Everything I google tells me to do the display performance - but I alreadu have that on high. 

Can anyone help? I am a beginner, so at a bit of a loss what to do!

[Laubender]

Hi,

check the effective resolution PPI value of the placed image in the Links panel under Information.

What number or numbers do you see?

Did you apply any effect to the image or its container frame?

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Eugene Tyson]

I wrote an article here

https://creativepro.com/high-res-image-look-low-res/

It might help understand.

However, I don't understand why you exported it as JPG?

A PDF would be better and you can place that in InDesign.

Or you can place the InDesign file itself within the document.

And I really don't understand why you're exporting a jpeg first.

You can do the mail merge directly from your design.

If it was me.

I'd export the InDesign design to PDF.

Place that.

Then do the mail merge.

[John Mensinger]

I am a beginner, so at a bit of a loss what to do!

Exporting to JPEG was a mistake. PDF would have been the right choice, although it's debatable whether you needed to export at all.

But just so you know, when you place an image in InDesign, a dedicated proxy image is created just for display in InDesign. So, the image you're seeing in on your InDesign page is not the image that will print, and you should not make any quality judgements based on its on-screen appearance.

[Willi Adelberger]

When you have text or other vectors in Photoshop, don't use JPG, not PSD or any other Raster image. 

Save in Photoshop as PDF (or Photoshop PDF as PDP). Only with PDF can InDesign distinguish between the raster element which have an output in the resolution (ppi) of the Photoshop file and the vectors (including text) which are rendered with the much higher resulution of the output device (dpi). This makes a huge difference in visible quality as you have experienced.

[aaf88972914]

Thank you for all the responses. I initially tried the merge with it just in indesign (not exporting) but the options were greyed out & it wouldn't let me continue). So I found a youtube video & followed the guidance, that person exported to jpeg and then did the merge over the top once placed. 

However, I actually decided to just try to export the jpegs after merging, and once exported they came out sharp. I has expected the high display perfromace to match what would happen upon export. 

Next time I will try as you have all suggested below & do the pdf.

Thanks!

[James Gifford—NitroPress]

Just a note on YouTube videos, independent blogs and the like — many out there are outdated, from a little bit to using stone-age techniques from a decade ago. If they are more than about three years old, or don't identify the version of ID (or any software), use caution. They might be recommending old processes or unnecessary workarounds that later software handles more smoothly. (It really gripes me that these "experts" never update things or at least take down old material!)

The training-video sites and providers (like Lynda) are usually careful about keeping things up to date, and can be very useful in coming up to speed on InDesign or specific processes. Others might chime in here with their favorites.

—