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LisaMettier
Participant
January 14, 2019
Question

Set fixed ratio for images

  • January 14, 2019
  • 4 replies
  • 6871 views

Hi InDesign pros!

I am wondering if it is possible to set a fixed ratio for the image sizing (like 16:9 or 4:5)?

In Photoshop it is very easy, but in InDesign, there is no option in the sizing field for it.

PS. I don't mean to resize the image by holding shift. I mean to set it as a fixed ratio for all images to be placed into the file.

Please help! Thank you!

4 replies

Mike Witherell
Community Expert
Community Expert
January 17, 2019

Maybe the solution is to pre-design 16:9 ratio frames on Master Pages?

Mike Witherell
Community Expert
January 15, 2019

lisamettier  wrote

… I am wondering if it is possible to set a fixed ratio for the image sizing (like 16:9 or 4:5)? …

PS. I don't mean to resize the image by holding shift. I mean to set it as a fixed ratio for all images to be placed into the file.

Hi Lisa,

you could prepare container frames of that ratio before any image is placed.

And you could also prepare them with a fitting option: E.g. Fill proportionally.

The prepared container frames could be easily resized proportionally using the Shift key before or after an image is placed.

Maybe that's a bit more flexible than using object styles for fixed dimensions, but of course, if a designer is not using the Shift key when changing the dimensions of a frame you would end up with frames that are not 16 to 9 or any other prepared fixed ratio.

Regards,
Uwe

Community Expert
January 15, 2019

Good point

Community Expert
January 14, 2019

As you aluded to you can set this up in Photoshop - and if you do that and place it into indesign the way you want it - then it's that aspect ratio going forward.

You could setup an Object Style that uses those widths/heights and then scale your image to fit the frame.

You can also set your fitting options here too

LisaMettier
Participant
January 14, 2019

Thank you Bob.

This still does not solve my problem, as we talk about hundreds and hundreds of images per brochure. Its a complex project with many designers working on it. Therefore I asked to set a fixed ratio in InDesign. But it looks like there is no such

option..

Community Expert
January 14, 2019

Well I gave you the answer - you can have object styles, and set this up going forward, you could switch between different aspect ratios by choosing different object styles.

It does not work the same as photoshop - but you have 2 ways - do it in photoshop or do it in inDesign.

It should be fine.

BobLevine
Community Expert
Community Expert
January 14, 2019

No. You can set up a library for image frames and then set the fitting options as you wish, but InDesign is not an image editing applicating.

LisaMettier
Participant
January 14, 2019

Thank you, Bob!

The situation is that I am working on brochures which works with images of all kinds of sizes, vertical and horizontal. But the ratio stays always the same, no matter the actual size.

So setting fixed sizes does not help too much, as the creativity would be stuck. Also, it is less an image editing problem, more a layout problem.

Thank you though :-)