Expert: Scott Valentine - 10/12/2008

Question
QUESTION: Hi

I've been using Photoshop to make brochures for both web use and print. I usually create them in the size for print (ie. 8.5x11, 300dpi) and save them as pdfs for online use.

However, when I do this, the file sizes are too huge for the pdfs to be used online, and when I try to save under the smallest pdf size option, my text and graphics lose all quality.

I would like to know how to create pdf brochures for online viewing - maintaining high quality images & text as well as having them in a reasonable, small file size (below 1mb).

Thanks a lot!

ANSWER: Thanks for a great question, Charlene!

I have been thinking about how best to answer this question, and there are two major solutions to consider: reducing the content in your files; purchasing InDesign.

The size of your PDF will be determined by many factors, including how you treat graphics and embed fonts. Photoshop has no way to manipulate these elements, and indeed is not really meant for handling text. When you choose any PDF options in Photoshop, you are letting it decide how to treat your content. And to Photoshop, everything is art, which can be scaled and compressed (or so it thinks).

In order to deal with this compression, and to hit a target size from within Photoshop, you will have to remove some content and text. Unfortunately, this is not usually an acceptable solution, since presumably you need everything you've put in. And actually optimizing everything in Photoshop is not an exact science; you may find yourself tweaking the files endlessly, and still not get what you want.

If you plan to do this kind of work on a regular basis, I highly recommend purchasing InDesign. It is built to help you create brochures, magazines and even books. InDesign has a lot of output options to help you deal with PDF creation, and is actually meant to combine all kinds of images and text into a print-ready format. Printing to PDF is very easy, though you will have to spend some time learning the finer points.

I have been using InDesign for about 5 years, and it is the only application I will use when I have to create any kind of print file that requires precise creative control (business documents are the exception, usually because it's easier to use a dedicated word processor). There is a learning curve, but if you create one brochure a month or more, it will pay for itself very quickly.

I hope this helps! If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate :)

-Scott

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Scott

Thanks for the detailed answer to my question - I've been struggling with this for quite a while.

I will definitely look into purchasing InDesign - I've been using Photoshop for a while now, will InDesign be similar in terms of usage? Will I be able to create graphics in PS and then transfer to InDesign for pdf work?

Looking forward to creating high quality, small-sized web pdfs. Thanks again, hope to hear from you soon!

Answer
InDesign has many similar concepts, including layers, guides and some basic adjustments like transparency and gradient fills, but it is aimed squarely at collateral production (brochures, ads, magazines, etc). So, there will be quite a few differences.

The nice thing is Adobe has worked to ensure that communication between InDesign and Photoshop is very clean. You can import PSD files directly to InDesign, and turn on/off layer visibility - very handy if you have one file that contains several related pieces of art. InDesign will also use a common color palette that you can export from Photoshop, if that is your workflow.

However, you will need to spend some time learning the vocabulary and capabilities. I highly recommend taking some training, either online or at a local school. Otherwise, you will feel frustrated.

So, yes, you will be able to use Photoshop (or Illustrator, Flash or Fireworks) to create graphics, then lay them out and control positioning, color rendering, typography, etc. quite well and relatively painlessly. You can also create templates in InDesign, and combine that with data from a spreadsheet or database to automatically perform some common tasks like date of publication, table lists (for example, listing contributors or sponsors), and many other things.

As an example, I use InDesign to create folded programs for local events, and have used the data features to automatically create a line of greeting cards for a client based on a spreadsheet with image names and quotes. Both of these projects are sent directly to printers and a web version just by publishing.

-Scott