A logo in PNG comes out fuzzy: what can we do?

Check the following:

- Size of the file (logo) in KB and its DPI count. Most images on the internet have low sizes (30-50 KB) which helps fast loading. These small sizes come out blurry in print even when the DPI (or pixel) count is 300, the standard DPI count for professional printing. To achieve good print quality you need a chunky file of 400-500 KB at least. See if you can get the logo in larger KB size from whoever made it originally.

If not try processing the PNG file via Distiller separately BEFORE importing the image into the Pages document. Then import the logo in PDF. PDFs are crisper and retain image quality better then other types of files when you resize images. You can check DPI count in Acrobart or in Preview under Tools menu or press Command+i.

- Downsize PNG image (e.g.from 4x4 to 2x2) and Distill it in that size. Then try increasing the size of PDF (from 2x2 to 4x4)

- Shadows. Check if your PNG image has shadows. Pages sometimes struggle with shadows producing blurred effect. If you can, remove shadows altogether, or increase the Wrap count around the logo to the largest possible, it may help.

- Check Distiller settings. DPI count is the most important setting - it should not be below be 300. The settings I give in this previous article have provided me with consistently good results.

From Pages to CMYK PDFs

The key here is to use the PostScript stage when converting Pages documents to PDF. Simple Export to PDF will not work with professional printers who use CMYK (four colour) separation.

- 'Print' Pages to PS
- launch Acrobat Distiller and process your PS files through Distiller

Acrobat Distiller has several settings. Choose Press Quality or Prepress, whichever settings are available in your version of Acrobat. Here is a summary of my settings which have given me consistently good results for over a year now:

- Under General set Resolution to 2400 dots per inch;
- Under Images set Sampling off and resolution for color and grayscale to 300 pixels per inch and 1200 pixels for monochrome;
- Under Color: Settings file none, Color management policies: set to 'Convert All Colors to CMYK';
- Under Fonts: check Embed all fonts checkbox.

These should give you CMYK ready PDFs and keep your printer happy.

If you regularly use the same printer, I strongly suggest that you arrange a session with them to synchronise all your settings. It's easy to overlook a minor difference in settings which can result in serious problems at one of the later stages in the printing process.

Most printers use specialised computer service companies to fine-tune their machines and processes. Find out who they use, get in touch with them and ask them to run through your workflow and settings.

I also highly recommend Enfocus Pitstop software which works like an extended set of tools to Adobe Acrobat. It allows you to convert your PDFs to CMYK in one go and thoroughly check the prepress quality of your PDFs.

Nearly two years ago I described a different process of creating press quality PDFs using Colorsync in an article on this blog . The Colorsync process worked great for me in the early stages of my project and allowed to produce good quality PDFs. However, with the iWork/Pages version 3 (2008) I found that there is no need for it. It is enough to Print a Pages document to PostScript and process it through Acrobat Distiller with Press Quality settings to create a CMYK separated PDF.

A linked list of other articles dealing with CMYK and PDF on this blog is here.

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Web-Pages to iWork Pages: just copy-paste

Quite often I need to copy material - text, images, logos from the internet.

Apple Mac allows just to click and drag elements off a web page onto your Desktop.

I haven't realised until recently that I can also copy-paste web pages straight into iWork Pages. Drag cursor over the web-page to highlight what you want to copy. Both text and graphics paste beautifully with pictures set as inline objects into a Pages document.

I find it useful for my own project because I can immediately see how images would look in my document, resize them, reprocess for high-end publishing or file for later use, already in Pages, or 'print' them to iPhoto.

I am sure many researchers and students who do a lot of work on the internet would find this simple trick useful too, because, as I hear, a lot of work these days is done the copy-paste way and not as we, old hands, used to do it by endlessly copying in long-hand from dusty volumes.

Bear in mind though, especially if your end product goes to professional printshops, that most images on the internet are low definition RGB with DPI count at 72 or lower. These are not good on high-quality print presses. Avoid them if you can. In fact, my printers ask me to provide them with a list of low-grade images in the magazine, so that they know I'm ok with that.

You can slightly improve the quality of 72 DPI images by reprocessing them through Acrobat to 300 DPI, the industry wide standard.

Check if higher definition downloads are available. Quite often images on internet pages are clickable and allow you to get a higher resolution version of the same image. Click on the photo of the beautiful Reinette Grise cider apples above to see how it works.

And don't forget to check the copyright!

In most cases you can find a free alternative to an image you are looking for. Many photo, cartoon or clipart downloads are inexpensive and allow multiple use. Or you can recreate the image yourself - these days it may not require sophisticated and expensive equipment.

Check these earlier articles:

- Quick JPEGs straight from Pages
- Creating your own clipart with instant Alpha in Pages