I'm not at all usually this indecisive, but I'm up against a wall here with this question. Usually, I'd fly the flag for vector lines, but some considerations for PDF job emailers are making it difficult to decide.
Vector lines for details/diagrams etc. - crisp, scalable printing (good). looks terrible in acrobat when viewed on a monitor, especially when positioned near a photo or rendering (bad). Looks great on a monitor when zoomed in at 200%+ (good). Larger file sizes (bad).
Raster lines for details/diagrams etc. - grainy, pixelated printing (bad). looks great in acrobat when viewed on a monitor, especially when positioned near a photo or rendering (good). Looks terrible on a monitor when zoomed in at 200%+ (bad). Smaller file sizes (good).
I'm leaning towards vector line art, but every time I open in Acrobat to check my work, I throw up in my mouth a little bit at the jumbled, indecipherable thicket of slowly refreshing black lines.
How are others handling this pro/con? I'd love to hear some other opinions.
it all depends on the purpose that you need the pdf for, that's all. Make different versions for each particular use. And have to agree that I think you're trying to transform a mosquito into an elephant.(?)
I'm with you paranoid--it's too bad that reader/acrobat have this "enhance thin lines" option as default. It really does make arch stuff look bad. I've gone lately for exporting the worst of the pages from indesign as raster, then (re)placing them to make my pdf. There's probably a better way
Why is the vector a much larger file? It shouldn't be, unless you have tons of crap in the vector file (like lines on top of lines).
If it is just simple floor plans or diagrams, it shouldn't be an issue.
The problem with Acrobat displaying the lines at different sizes, well, that's another issue altogether (you can turn off a setting, but that won't make a difference on others computers).
I actually think this is very important. Many employers review portfolios on their computer scrolling through acrobat reader, or they print it out - you should be prepared for both scenarios. Leaving them vectors and printing to pdfs are the best for a print portfolio, but horrible viewing from acrobat.
I tend to rasterize my linework at a very high resolution, then shrink it to fit the document. Rasterizing also reduces your file size significantly.
Agreed with above. I struggled with this too. I think for some drawings like larger ones, I use vector. But for really intricate line work, raster seems to look the best. Rastering at 1000+ looks good.
Apr 21, 10 2:44 am ·
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PDF Line Art - Raster vs. Vector
I'm not at all usually this indecisive, but I'm up against a wall here with this question. Usually, I'd fly the flag for vector lines, but some considerations for PDF job emailers are making it difficult to decide.
Vector lines for details/diagrams etc. - crisp, scalable printing (good). looks terrible in acrobat when viewed on a monitor, especially when positioned near a photo or rendering (bad). Looks great on a monitor when zoomed in at 200%+ (good). Larger file sizes (bad).
Raster lines for details/diagrams etc. - grainy, pixelated printing (bad). looks great in acrobat when viewed on a monitor, especially when positioned near a photo or rendering (good). Looks terrible on a monitor when zoomed in at 200%+ (bad). Smaller file sizes (good).
I'm leaning towards vector line art, but every time I open in Acrobat to check my work, I throw up in my mouth a little bit at the jumbled, indecipherable thicket of slowly refreshing black lines.
How are others handling this pro/con? I'd love to hear some other opinions.
I think your making a mountain out of a mole hill.
it all depends on the purpose that you need the pdf for, that's all. Make different versions for each particular use. And have to agree that I think you're trying to transform a mosquito into an elephant.(?)
I'm with you paranoid--it's too bad that reader/acrobat have this "enhance thin lines" option as default. It really does make arch stuff look bad. I've gone lately for exporting the worst of the pages from indesign as raster, then (re)placing them to make my pdf. There's probably a better way
Why is the vector a much larger file? It shouldn't be, unless you have tons of crap in the vector file (like lines on top of lines).
If it is just simple floor plans or diagrams, it shouldn't be an issue.
The problem with Acrobat displaying the lines at different sizes, well, that's another issue altogether (you can turn off a setting, but that won't make a difference on others computers).
I actually think this is very important. Many employers review portfolios on their computer scrolling through acrobat reader, or they print it out - you should be prepared for both scenarios. Leaving them vectors and printing to pdfs are the best for a print portfolio, but horrible viewing from acrobat.
I tend to rasterize my linework at a very high resolution, then shrink it to fit the document. Rasterizing also reduces your file size significantly.
Agreed with above. I struggled with this too. I think for some drawings like larger ones, I use vector. But for really intricate line work, raster seems to look the best. Rastering at 1000+ looks good.
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