Inspiring

Question

Releasing clipping masks in InDesign?

Forum|Forum|16 years ago
April 9, 2009
10 replies
39308 views

How do you release a clipping mask in InDesign? And, even when I try to direct select the mask path, and hit delete, it takes the image within with it.

Thanks.

This topic has been closed for replies.

S

soumend

Participant

Simple, need to follow the reverse way of making it mask.

Place the mouse over the masked object. The mouse pointer converted to a 'hand'. Please notice the dual circle where a white circle around a small, dark grey colored circle appears in middle. That 'dual circle' indicates to select the masked source object/picture, so, select it and use 'Ctrl+X' or 'Command+X' to cut it. Now deselect the mask frame and use 'Ctrl+V' or 'Command+V' to paste it.

Look, it has been released. Added a sample photo

Scott Falkner

Community Expert

You sound like you are more experienced with Illustrator than with InDesign. All imported graphics in InDesign have a frame that masks them. Deleting the frame deleted the contents. just like deleting a text frame deleted the text it contains. You can click on the image with the Direct Select tool, copy, paste, then delete the original frame. But the newly pasted image still has a frame masking it, it’s just that it is the size of the image. The same result can be achieved by clicking the Fit Frame to Content button in the toolbar.

Willi Adelberger

Community Expert

It is much easier: Convert cclipping mask to frame, convert frame to rectangle, fit frame to image.

C

conditmreo

Participant

I HAVE SOLVED THIS MYSTERY FOR ALL.

From the Tools palette, select the HOLLOW ARROW (Direct-Selection) and click on the item or raster image that is "masked" by the basic shape, i.e. Elipse, Square, Triangle, Rectangle, etc., once masked item is selected, select Edit / Cut.

What remains is the empty shell of the shape that once clipped it.

If you still desire to access the item that was "cut" to the clipboard, simply create a new layer (or not) and select EDIT / Paste-In-Place.

Done!

Let me know if this helps! It worked for ME!

-mreoman1

S

schulerleigh

Participant

I am having a problem with this. Someone did a catalog and saved the whole thing as a pdf without the bleeds. If i pull each page out and then release the clipping mask in illustrator, the bleeds show up. But i dont want to have to open every single page in illustrator, release the mask, then import it back into InDesign, there are 500 pages. I can't figure out how to release the clipping mask directly in InDesign. Any ideas??

L

Laubender

Community Expert

Hi,

do you have only the PDF at hand?

Adding bleeds to that could be done automatically with special PDF post production tools like pdftoolbox by Callas:

Products | callas software

FWIW: Do not use Adobe Illustrator as a PDF editing tool.

Regards,
Uwe

E

emmanuelt

Participant

Hi,

To remove a Clipped image, select only the image by clicking on the 'transparent circle'

and Cut' (command X) and past it. (com V)

Please note the path / objected which you clipped earlier will be there on invisible status.

L

Laubender

Community Expert

Ah. An old thread revived!

Some minor notes on this.

mjarrott said in post #8:

Additionally, a frame can only contain one object at a time. That's why you could not ungroup your objects within the frame.

For the average InDesign user yes, but technically, that's not true.

Editing an IDML or IDMS file and open or place it again can proof the contrary.

Also a scripter can proof the contrary in adding one or more objects to another one.

Just run this script code (ExtendScript(JavaScript)) and and expand the little triangle at the Rectangle element in the Layers Panel (InDesign CS5 and above):

var myDoc = app.documents.add();

var myRectangle = myDoc.rectangles.add({geometricBounds:myDoc.pages[0].bounds});
myRectangle.ovals.add({geometricBounds:[0,0,50,50],fillColor:"Yellow"});
myRectangle.rectangles.add({geometricBounds:[0,0,25,25],fillColor:"Magenta"});

//Should open the Layers Panel.
//If it will throw an error, the panel will not open:
try{
app.panels.itemByName("$ID/#ImageLayersPanel").visible = true;
}catch(e){};

alert("Done.");

The added document contains one page with a graphic frame, that holds two different objects not grouped: a yellow circle partly obscured by a smaller magenta rectangle.

And looking at the Layers Panel gives us also a hint how to access all objects pasted inside another object. Just select them in the Layers Panel and access their properties at your will.

Uwe

L

LizFinch

Participant

Select the Box (clipping mask that you made). Go to Object / Select / Content. Then Copy the content and then click off the box (with nothing selected). And Paste. Voila, you have your content - not in the "clipping mask". Edit it and then just copy and paste back into the box.

I've had this issue too and found this to be the best way to work around it.

AnneMarie Concepcion

Community Expert

It doesn't look as if this question was ever answered.

I'm guessing by Clipping Mask you mean clipping paths ... the kind you draw in Photoshop with the pen tool to create silhouettes.

To release a clipping path in ID, select the placed image and choose Object > Clipping Path > Options. Then from the Path dropdown menu you find in the dialog box, choose None.

If you really do mean clipping masks ... like what you create in Illustrator via Edit > Clipping Mask > Make ... the problem is that there's nothing to release in InDesign. The artwork that is masked is cropped at the mask boundaries when you place it in InDesign.

hope that helps

AM

Q

quoz

Inspiring

Anyone still out there? I have a similar problem using INDesign CS5 (7.0.4) on Mac OS X (10.6.8).

I have some simple drawn illustrations in InDesign. I grouped them and put a drop shadow on them; however, the shadow extends into another part of the drawing that I don't want covered by the shadow. So I created a box to limit the extent of the shadow, and cut/pasted my shadowed illustrations into the box (Edit/Paste Into), and now the box effectively stops the shadow where I need it to stop. Perfect.

However... Now I've been asked to edit the items within the box.

First problem:

I can't find a way to "release" the clipping path, similar to Illustrator. The two choices under Object/Clipping Path are greyed out, and they don't seem particularly relevant anyway to my problem. So Instead I try to work within it; thereby encountering the...

Second problem:

One thing I want to do is ungroup the illustrations (yes I know I'd lose the shadow effect if I DO ungroup. Specifically what I'm trying to do is remove the shadow from one object within the group). I double-click on the box, and now INDesign shows the grouped illustrations as selected (dotted box). Although the Effects palette does indicate I'm working with a group, Ungroup is greyed out.

Again, these are drawn vector illustrations within the "clipping path", not a placed image.

So the basic question is: How do I "release" such a clipping path containing vector objects?

And If I don't do that, is there any way to remove the shadow from one element of the group?

Thanks.

mjarrott

Adobe Employee

Can you post a screen shot of the problem, please?

Jongware

Community Expert

Perhaps the OP has altered the frame of an imported image.

It's perfectly possible to place an image and then adjust the frame, using the white arrow. That could count as 'clipping mask' -- you can simulate its behavior. It does not work exactly the same as in, say, Illustrator, because inside InDesign you have no choice: an image cannot appear 'on its own', it must have a frame. Compare to a piece of text -- you cannot place a single character somewhere without a frame to put it in.

If you messed up a frame, ID can reset it. Select the object; in the Object menu or in the context menu, under "Fitting", select "Fit Frame to Content".

Marvin Sable

Participating Frequently

if you're referring to text wrap's ability to honor the shape of a clipping path you just choose not to detect the edges of the graphic (in the text wrap panel) and it will ignore the clipping path. If you're not referring to text wrap we need more info.

BobLevine

Community Expert

You're going to have to give us a bit more...what kind of image? How did it get clipped? InDesign clipping path? Photoshop clipping path?

Did you simply place it in a shaped frame?

Bob

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