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I am unable to save a layered TIFF file in Photoshop. An error message pops up expressing the file is larger than 4GB. The file which contains one medium format image (~500MB) and 8 adjustment layers seperated into 2 Groups. There are no smart objects. MacOS finder caluated the exact files saved as a PSD and PSB as 1.24GB.
I've run into this problem randomly for the past 4 years. I always thought there must be hidden bits pumping up the files size. But this is as clear as day..... There is no way the file is over 4GB. I regularly save layered TIFF files with composites of 3 full (500MB) images with several layers with no problem.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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@gerald5C9C PSD and PSB have different compression algorithms compared to a TIFF file.
TIFF file format has a limitation of 4GB uncompressed. You can try changing your compression settings in the save as window but with something that large you are better off saving as a .psb which is built for files this size.
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@Kevin StohlmeyerThank you for the feedback and suggestion. I save all of my large working files as a PSB for archival purposes. But ultimately everything needs to end up back into Capture One for final crop and export. C1 can not recognize a PSB file.
As I mentioned in my post I have successfully saved layered TIFFs with much more than this. And especially from the same job with similar files with the exact same groupings of adjustment layers. I guess I am asking if this is a bug, or if perhaps there could be corrupted files?
Or maybe I don't understand how a file that is completely under 2GB in every measurement possible is unable to save down as a TIFF.
I can easily stack 3 500MB medium format images, add a couple adjustment layers and save it as a TIFF. I do this all day everyday. Yet this file, which only has one image and 8 adjustment layers is recognized as over 4GB. It's impossible.
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But ultimately everything needs to end up back into Capture One for final crop and export.
By @gerald5C9C
Why? Cropping and exporting are both possible in Photoshop... As I don't use Capture One, I fail to see the added benefit.
Can you express the dimensions of your files in pixel width and height, 8 or 16 bpc and alpha channels?
I doubt that this is the case from the description of your workflow, but to rule it out, check for excessive metadata:
https://prepression.blogspot.com/2017/06/metadata-bloat-photoshopdocumentancestors.html
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Agree with @Stephen Marsh I have Capture One and have no idea why you need to roundtrip back to that app for cropping...
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@gerald5C9C In the 4 GB file - go to File>Info and check the metadata under Photoshop and see if you have an error or a ton of Metadata bloat. That could be causing this.
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@Kevin Stohlmeyer @Stephen Marsh Final treatments such as cropping and minor matching is done in Capture One because it's more efficient and I use it as a DAM. I work in the cultural heritage field for museums and art galleries, consistency is a top priority. To do this in PS with 20+ large images open at once would be wildly cumbersome. In C1 I can use a primary image and then breeze through the full set making small adjustments without having to rearrange the files as I zoom in out etc. And I can export the full set while adding custom meta data with as many output recipes as the client needs.
I've looked into the File Info in PS and I'm not seeing anything relating to file size or meta data. I would be more than happy to Dropbox the file to anyone wishing to have a look.
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@Stephen Marsh The file is 11,648 X 8,736 @300dpi 16Bit. Under Raw Data within the FIle Info dialogue there is a rather long list of data. Could this be the culprit? If so why on this particular image and not others. Can it be eliminated or reduced?
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@gerald5C9C you can try Export As to a jpg for the base layer image - that will strip out the errant metadata altogether. Otherwise you can try selecting the layer and using Layer>Duplicate Layer to a new document, however with a file this large that may choke your PS.