Expert: Glen Demers - 6/23/2009

Question
Hi! I have been working with InDesign since high school when it was PageMaker. I have come across the same problem multiple times. When I place a psd, png, etc., image into InDesign with a transparent background on a colored layer, it always prints with a dark cast over the transparent areas in my colored layer... when I have exported it to pdf. If I print straight from InDesign I do not have the problem. I have changed my PDF export settings multiple times. I have even tried a "no conversion" setting and still have the same problem!

Answer
Hi Christina,

It sounds like a transparency issue. Try exporting as a PDF x/1-a, which flattens the art and then as high quality or press quality, which retain transparency, and see if the problem exists in both versions. Make sure you are exporting to Acrobat 5 (version 1.4) or higher. Try using Level 3 postscript. You may also want to try exporting a .ps file and distilling it separately.

If these don't help, in InDesign go to Edit>Transparency Flattener Presets and create a new preset. Try increasing the Raster/Vector balance to preserve more vector shapes. Click on "Clip Complex Regions", this will hide the vector/raster transition areas. Choose your new flattener preset when you go to Print/Export.

Hope this helps,
Glen Demers
Prepress Technician, Best Printing Online
www.bestprintingonline.com

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