Expert: InDesign Pro - 6/17/2009

Question
We hired a company to create our website and other materials. On our website, we have some graphics. They have sent us the graphics as InDesign Files (CS3) like 10 to a page. How do I export them to Photoshop (CS4) to work on? InDesign is not a program you use to create or make changes, right? or can I make changes to the graphic and text in Indesign but how do I only use one of the graphics? do you crop the page? How do I maintain the size of the graphic? the only thing I can think of is that they are trying to make me crazy.

Answer
Hi Brigit, thanks for the question.

It's possible to design a web page in InDesign, however, it can't (really) be used to update it. And most designers would know the limitations of web design and use Dreamweaver, etc., but others simply want to take a look from a print brochure and use it for the web.

Not knowing more information than you have given me, I wouldn't know where to go from here, but if they did sent you a PDF of the InDesign files, you could open them with Photoshop. Your changes will be limited though, since Photoshop will rasterize the entire PDF which will stop the text from being editable.

If you have more information you can give me, I can try to help a little more.

Thanks, good luck!

Scott