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Jopheza
10-10-2015, 01:18 PM
Hi there, I've written about 25 best selling books with your diagrams!They're great! Could you answer a quick question please?

I normally work with many grids on my page at once, these are all really big and I copy and paste individual images into word for my books.

Once the images are in word, I use a macro to shrink the image to the correct (proportional size.

I've noticed however that this really degrades the quality of the image. The fretboard is grainy and the notes/intervals are hard to read.

Is there any way to export or copy/paste diagrams one at a time from ND to Word and get them the correct size (about 4x3cm) without destroying the images?

Thanks.

Joseph Alexander

www.fundamental-changes.com

Dean
10-12-2015, 10:39 AM
Hi Joseph

That's a great line of books you've published.

Unfortunately ND2 is taking longer than we anticipated. Once that's available you'll be able to export all diagrams as individual files - in a chosen format (JPEG, PNG, TIFF, SVG, EPS) - at a set DPI - all at once.

Until then....... here are some suggestions / thoughts.

1 - The diagrams will copy and paste at the same size they are on the page. So you could make them 4x3 in ND and remove the need to use your macro / any resizing in Word.

2 - I wonder what version of Word you're using? I believe 2007 and 2010 both use a 'Shrink to fit' setting so images fit the application margins/window.

In Word Right-click the image, select Format Picture, on the 'Size' tab, make sure 'Scale' is set to 100%.

3 - Word 2010 also has a Compress Images feature to reduce the file size. I believe this is the default so maybe worth checking to make sure it's turn off.

Click File > Options, then select the 'Advanced' tab and make sure the "Do not compress images in file" option is CHECKED.

4 - Also, what happens if you paste into mspaint? Does the image have a better quality than word?

5 - What about zooming right in on the diagram, taking a screen shot and pasting that into Word? Is that any better?

Hopefully something in the above helps until we can get ND2 out. Do let me know us know if you have any further questions though.

Thanks
Dean

MassGuitar
10-14-2015, 05:15 PM
Unfortunately ND2 is taking longer than we anticipated. Once that's available you'll be able to export all diagrams as individual files - in a chosen format (JPEG, PNG, TIFF, SVG, EPS) - at a set DPI - all at once.


Thanks for the update, Dean. Eagerly awaiting ND2. Is ND2 it still on track for 2015 as previously announced, or will it get pushed to 2016? Just trying to plan for a large upcoming project. Most importantly, will current .fbd files be compatible with ND2? If so, I can get started in ND1 and migrate to ND2 when it becomes available. Otherwise, I might be better off waiting.

Justin
10-16-2015, 08:24 AM
Is ND2 it still on track for 2015 as previously announced, or will it get pushed to 2016?
Well it's a bit touch-and-go at the moment really. We've had a few technical challenges, and still have some to resolve but we're trying hard to get on top of them.


Just trying to plan for a large upcoming project. Most importantly, will current .fbd files be compatible with ND2? If so, I can get started in ND1 and migrate to ND2 when it becomes available. Otherwise, I might be better off waiting.
Yes, ND2 will of course read ND1 .fbd files! We'd be mad if it didn't! Docs created in ND2 won't be compatible with ND1 though as it won't understand the new new things, which is to be expected. So, you're fine to get cracking with ND1 and then migrate like you say!

MassGuitar
10-16-2015, 05:18 PM
Thanks, Justin! That's good to know. Best of luck with the development.

Justin
10-19-2015, 06:43 AM
Joseph, will ping you very shortly but I'm guessing you're using Windows, not a Mac?

I think Preview's abilities are mentioned in the other high DPI thread, but you can also use it to shrink images to the desired size in centimetres at a higher DPI!

Just copy from ND, in Preview hit CMD+N to create a new image from the clipboard and under menu Tools > Adjust Size.. change the settings to suit, and save as PNG (avoid JPG as it's lossy). You could easily use Automator to do all the Preview steps in a script too!

Original:

http://www.neckdiagrams.com/images/forums/DPI_change_via_Preview_1.jpg
No resample & DPI change:

http://www.neckdiagrams.com/images/forums/DPI_change_via_Preview.jpg

MassGuitar
10-19-2015, 02:42 PM
Thanks, Justin.

Yes, I use Windows. My current workflow is to copy a diagram to the clipboard and paste it into a new document in Photoshop CC 2015. The files are saved as either PNG or TIF with a resolution of 300 DPI and no resampling. The quality is still poor, unfortunately. The only work-around is to zoom way in in ND, or make the diagram very large, before copying.

The final output needs to be around 1080 pixels wide, so I don't really have a need for shrinking images.

Thanks again.

Justin
10-19-2015, 05:23 PM
Well if you know how big your final image needs to then that simplifies things I think, no? 1080 pixels @ 300 DPI is 3.6", or 9.1cm, just under half an A4 page width, sound about right?

So the image quality is poor in Word after your processing? Presumably it still looks fine in Photoshop? Sounds like Word is up to no good to me! Would be helpful if you could email us some examples of your output in this process, e.g. a .fbd file you're copying from, the output you get from PS and a Word doc.

MassGuitar
10-19-2015, 06:47 PM
Sorry, I think you're mixing me up with Joseph, the original poster. I'm not using Word at all. My final output will be BluRay video, so I need to create full-width screen overlays. The diagrams will be created in ND and touched up in Photoshop, then imported into the video editing software (Vegas).

I already know how to work around the copy/paste limitations, such as exporting to PDF (then export as PNG from Acrobat Pro), zoom in and take a screenshot, etc., but the workflow can obviously be improved. Maybe copy/export as vector graphics instead of copying at the screen resolution? You have already stated that this will be addressed in ND2, so all is good.

Justin
10-20-2015, 05:11 AM
Hi MassGuitar,

Yes, my earlier post was aimed at Joseph, as it started "Joseph, .." :) You didn't explain what your use case was so I assumed you're also publishing!

For video work you can use ND exactly as it is now and you don't need to do any processing whatsoever. Remember video is also a pixel based format - you don't want to be resizing a raster based (PNG,JPG,etc) image as it gets resampled and quality is lost which isn't so noticeable on something like a photo but wreaks havok on precise diagrams.

BluRay has a resolution of 1920 wide by 1080 high, you should set you page size to Custom of 1920 px (stands for pixels) wide by 1080 pixels high and then you have a page that is the same size as your video. That way your diagrams are already sized to fit the video.

Now create your diagrams as big as you want to see them on the video and you can copy/paste them into Photoshop for whatever editing you want and then save them as PNG or whatever Vegas will import them as. But don't change the image size!

When you're viewing your video at 100% like it'll be in the end result then the diagrams will be crisp and sharp just like in ND!

There's loads of guys out there already using ND in videos, for example David Wallimann does loads on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/Wallimann), and Deryl Gabel uses ND in his BluRay videos (http://derrylgabel.com/).

You don't need PDF/SDV or ND2 to do what you want with video, load of folks are already doing this :cool: if you're still unsure you could reach out to them?!

MassGuitar
10-20-2015, 02:24 PM
Oops. I was reading it quickly on my phone and read it as "Joseph will ping you...". The comma changes the whole meaning.:) Sorry about that.

Yes, we can indeed work with ND1 for now. Sometimes we need to move and resize diagrams, depending on what is happening in the video, so it would be nice to be able to make these edits in-place in Vegas instead of editing the original document in ND. We can use EPS files in Vegas by using the Boris Graffiti plug-in, or use Photoshop PSD files with Smart Objects.

Anyway, we also plan to produce accompanying print material and publish eBooks that will use a combination of programs (ND, Finale, Illustrator, etc.), so we are still looking forward to the announced ND2 features.

Thanks again!

Dean
10-28-2015, 01:29 PM
Feel like we're teasing a you a bit now but.....

EPS and SVG export will also be available in ND2 which should improve your workflow and assist with other applications you use. You'll be able to export as individual files, select transparent backgrounds on .PNG's, custom dimensions and resolutions.

Thanks
Dean

MassGuitar
10-28-2015, 03:11 PM
Sounds great, Dean. Bring it on!

Feel free to ping me if you eventually plan to recruit any external beta testers for ND2.