How do I optimize photos, vector illustrations, and grayscale tones for a crappy and probably lo-res copier? I'll be using Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign.
June 6, 2010 5:28 PM Subscribe
How do I optimize photos, vector illustrations, and grayscale tones for a crappy and probably lo-res copier? I'll be using Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign (CS3 if it matters).
I'm designing a 50-75 page booklet for my mother's high school re-union in InDesign with photos (with unfortunately varying resolutions) and illustrations in it. I'll be processing the photos and illustrations in Photoshop and Illustrator respectively.
My mom's re-union committee has a limited budget and will be doing a basic black and white photocopying job at Kinko's. How can I make the most of the tones in grayscale? Past experience with them has taught me that changing something 50% gray in Illustrator's color swatches will force the Kinko's to use a color printer, so it doesn't turn all black. So I'm thinking I'll have to go the halftone route.
Is there a good method to do halftones in Photoshop and Illustrator? Most of the halftone files available for download are for a decorative effect, which isn't what I'm after. Are there settings that I should be aware of when I create the PDF in regard to halftones/dot gain/line resolution?
I'm designing a 50-75 page booklet for my mother's high school re-union in InDesign with photos (with unfortunately varying resolutions) and illustrations in it. I'll be processing the photos and illustrations in Photoshop and Illustrator respectively.
My mom's re-union committee has a limited budget and will be doing a basic black and white photocopying job at Kinko's. How can I make the most of the tones in grayscale? Past experience with them has taught me that changing something 50% gray in Illustrator's color swatches will force the Kinko's to use a color printer, so it doesn't turn all black. So I'm thinking I'll have to go the halftone route.
Is there a good method to do halftones in Photoshop and Illustrator? Most of the halftone files available for download are for a decorative effect, which isn't what I'm after. Are there settings that I should be aware of when I create the PDF in regard to halftones/dot gain/line resolution?
Best answer: If you want to create non-decorative halftones in Photoshop, first convert to greyscale mode and then convert to bitmap mode. You'll be prompted for a resolution, here you might want to be conservative so as to not create tiny dots that the copiers will then not be able to handle and will smash together into solid black. (I think what you have to be more concerned with here, rather than dot gain, is the sophistication of the copier's scanner. I'm afraid I'm at a loss here)
Depending on the images, diffusion dither will probably be the best. Or you may want to do a combination: convert one copy of an image with threshold to get solid blacks for definition and then copy a halftone overtop in multiply to get the best of both worlds.
posted by Brainy at 5:51 PM on June 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
Depending on the images, diffusion dither will probably be the best. Or you may want to do a combination: convert one copy of an image with threshold to get solid blacks for definition and then copy a halftone overtop in multiply to get the best of both worlds.
posted by Brainy at 5:51 PM on June 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
When you say photocopying job, do you mean literally? Is it really less expensive to have Kinko's copy a master than to have them run your job on their printers? (This doesn't really answer your question, because the issue is, I think, the same -- but may affect the degree to which this issue will affect the output. For instance, I think you'll be able to get away with a little more resolution when you convert to bitmap as recommended by Brainy if you have Kinko's run the job on their printers because the job will go straight from electronic file to printer, without an intervening scanning step.)
posted by devinemissk at 6:29 PM on June 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by devinemissk at 6:29 PM on June 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
For what Kinko's will charge for that kind of job, you could probably buy a decent laser printer and run it off on that with full control.
That said, copiers are pretty darn smart these days.
posted by gjc at 7:19 PM on June 6, 2010
That said, copiers are pretty darn smart these days.
posted by gjc at 7:19 PM on June 6, 2010
Response by poster: @devinemissk.
I probably should've said "printer" instead of "copier," (whoops). I can scan images at home, I can make PDFs and give them the file. The issue for me is prepping the file beforehand for one ink color and not have the shading in my pictures look like ink blots. Doing that at home isn't an option, because 50+ copies of the book have to made and bound, a job I didn't sign up for : (
But I do agree that Brainy's suggestion about using bitmaps is the best one. Thanks!
posted by deinemutti at 10:23 PM on June 6, 2010
I probably should've said "printer" instead of "copier," (whoops). I can scan images at home, I can make PDFs and give them the file. The issue for me is prepping the file beforehand for one ink color and not have the shading in my pictures look like ink blots. Doing that at home isn't an option, because 50+ copies of the book have to made and bound, a job I didn't sign up for : (
But I do agree that Brainy's suggestion about using bitmaps is the best one. Thanks!
posted by deinemutti at 10:23 PM on June 6, 2010
Hey, at my local copy shop, I can take my file in on a flash drive (or send it to myself via gmail) and then get on the computer and print directly from the computer to the black and white copier. You should be able to have whoever print it black and white but directly to the copier, not as a copy of a printout.
posted by redsparkler at 10:27 PM on June 6, 2010
posted by redsparkler at 10:27 PM on June 6, 2010
In Photoshop you can use the Color Halftone filter (Filter/Pixelate/) to create custom halftone patterns on a per object/layer basis (running in grayscale mode). If you bring in your vectors as separate layers You can apply the filter with different settings for each layer. I would keep your hard edged black lines as a separate layer (keep it as a smart object) and convert the different vector color layers to pixel layers and run the filter on each layer.
You can also make patterns in Photoshop to imitate just about any old Zipatone effect. To create a halftone gradient, just lay down a gradient in the proper shape and orientation and run the Halftone filter.
As noted above, converting to bitmap will give you a different conversion choices. It's limiting in that it applies it to the whole image but it does let you do one thing that Color Halftone doesn't. You can select a custom shape for you halftone based on a grayscale pattern. If you make a radial black to white gradient and make it a pattern, that creates the equivalent of a normal circular dot halftone pattern. Creating more complex gradients can create very interesting patterns in the final image. The pattern is converted to black and white based on the grayscale level of the converted image.
posted by doctor_negative at 2:40 PM on June 12, 2010
You can also make patterns in Photoshop to imitate just about any old Zipatone effect. To create a halftone gradient, just lay down a gradient in the proper shape and orientation and run the Halftone filter.
As noted above, converting to bitmap will give you a different conversion choices. It's limiting in that it applies it to the whole image but it does let you do one thing that Color Halftone doesn't. You can select a custom shape for you halftone based on a grayscale pattern. If you make a radial black to white gradient and make it a pattern, that creates the equivalent of a normal circular dot halftone pattern. Creating more complex gradients can create very interesting patterns in the final image. The pattern is converted to black and white based on the grayscale level of the converted image.
posted by doctor_negative at 2:40 PM on June 12, 2010
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posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:36 PM on June 6, 2010