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How to create vector PDF file of 300DPI for logo?

Forum|Forum|9 years ago
January 26, 2017
4 replies
13963 views

Hi everyone. I am trying to save some money by designing my logo myself. The company who are printing my business cards need me to send the file as a vector PDF, 300DPI. I do not know how to save the file this way. I only have Lightroom and Photoshop on my Mac (I'm a photographer.) Can I save the file as they requested using Photoshop? If so, how?

Thanks in advance!

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Correct answer D Fosse

As pointed out, Illustrator is Adobe's primary vector app. But Photoshop has some vector tools built in. They're mainly there as an aid to making masks and selections, but with a little care you can make finished vector files from Photoshop. As long as you keep it simple. Anything complicated, and you need Illustrator.

The Photoshop tool you need to master for this is the Pen tool. No space for a full pen tool tutorial here, but basically you draw a path over the original, fill and stroke as required - and delete the original pixel layer. You don't want any pixels. Then Export to PDF with the appropriate settings.

Nancy OShea

Community Expert

Original canvas must have sufficient pixels and at least 300 PPI resolution.

Switch Image > Mode to CMYK color.

File > SaveAs > PDF...

At the PDF dialogue, set Adobe PDF Preset to High Quality Print. Under Options, disable Optimize for Fast Web Preview. You do not want this optimized for web. It's a print file. See screenshot.

Nancy O'Shea— Product User & Community Expert

Trevor.Dennis

Community Expert

Of course you can use Photoshop to make your logo as a vector object, and of course you can save it out as a high quality print PDF. Heck, it sounds like the OP doesn't have Illustrator, so it is moot anyway. The logos below are a tiny percentage of ones I have made using Photoshop, and they are all infinitely scalable vector art that can be saved as PDF with the High Quality Print Preset.

[EDITED] to make it clear who I was referring to

Eternal Warrior

Inspiring

Did you use the Pen tool and fills to make all these logos? Otherwise for SVG's an Pixel based elements of your image will look shockingly blurry and exporting as a PDF will still mean that its a pixel based logo even though a PDF won't compress your logo (and it will a loseless save) it wont be "VECTORED".

Using a Pen tool and path based shapes etc may allow you to create a simple logo (in Photoshop) but it won't replace Illustrator otherwise Adobe and others wouldn't bother having it / using it.

Trevor.Dennis

Community Expert

Detail of the National Geographic logo, but I have absolutely no idea why I am bothering, because of course it is fully vectored. Why would I make it any other way?

D Fosse

Correct answer

Community Expert

As pointed out, Illustrator is Adobe's primary vector app. But Photoshop has some vector tools built in. They're mainly there as an aid to making masks and selections, but with a little care you can make finished vector files from Photoshop. As long as you keep it simple. Anything complicated, and you need Illustrator.

The Photoshop tool you need to master for this is the Pen tool. No space for a full pen tool tutorial here, but basically you draw a path over the original, fill and stroke as required - and delete the original pixel layer. You don't want any pixels. Then Export to PDF with the appropriate settings.

Eternal Warrior

Inspiring

Should have mentioned that.

Good point.

Keep it simple....

D Fosse

Community Expert

Well, to be perfectly honest I'm not entirely sure it really is that simple.

I mean, you can fill/stroke paths in Photoshop, but the fill/stroke acts as pixel content. If you modify the path, the fill doesn't follow, as it would in Illustrator. So you may still, effectively, be left with a pixel file.

I've never really researched this. I always use Illustrator for anything vector, and hardly ever touch the pen tool in Photoshop.

Eternal Warrior

Inspiring

Even if you could just make the logo in Photoshop you REALLY shouldn't... Illustrator is what you should use....

Everyone should always use Illustrator for Logos and Illustrations...

Even InDesign would be better...

Vectors are point based rather than pixel based so for goodness sake if you ignore this comment and do it in Photoshop anyway at least make it using the Pen tools rather than brush etc...

Really sorry I'm not answering in the manner you want... As I want to say you can do it this way...

You can... but you really shouldn't... because Photoshop is a pixel based programme which also means that the company you make the logo for will distort every time they shrink or grow it to print on other thinks.. Resolutions will get weaker and eventually they could end up with something that doesn't look like what it started as.

Sorry

A

amis13064776Author

Participant

No need to apologise, I appreciate the information, I genuinely do not have a clue about this stuff (I only really use Lightroom!)

The logo is for my own branding, not somebody elses. The company need me to send them my logo design so that they can print my business cards for me.

Thanks guys I appreciate your help, I think I will either have to purchase illustrator or find a designer to do it for me! I only want my full name with a small floral design underneath it, so I thought I'd be able to do it myself.

Eternal Warrior

Inspiring

Well I'm not sure I've done my good deed for the week so perhaps go ahead and make a pixel version of the logo and write down in a text file all the colours and font sizes, types etc you use and then either I might be nice and vector it (cause hey the world is going to hell anyway) or someone will have an easier time doing it.

Or get illustrator I suppose...

Best regards,

EW

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