Big Files, decent workflow…

T
Posted By
Thundercross
Jun 6, 2007
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305
Replies
3
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Closed
For this and most projects I have a fairly large image size, this one being 10950 x 12500 pixels at 100dpi. Oh and I’m working in CMYK colour space, for printing purposes of course.

Most of the 20 odd pictures I have added to the canvas are 3072 x 2048 16bit files, so they are large too. The reason for the size is because I am doing the layout for a Litho print box for a gate motor. The box is 1.25m x 1.095m so its pretty big…

Anyway my file size is quite large and the layers and stuff are starting to get quite complex. I need to rotage my canvas a lot and it takes a long time to rotate it. I have turned off layers Im not currently working with (using the layer ‘eye’) to speed things up, it does when I work.

But, when I rotate it still takes a long time to rotate, and save for that matter, is there a quick rotate way, help pls?:-)

Thanks
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C
chrisjbirchall
Jun 6, 2007
I need to rotate my canvas a lot…

The best advice I can give is… Don’t! At least not "a lot".

Each time you rotate the canvas a degree of interpolation takes place and this "messing with pixels" will have a detrimental effect on image quality. Try to limit rotation to just once – at the beginning of your edit to correctly orient the image. And then again, if necessary, at the end just before printing.

The fact you are using 16 bit images leads me to believe that quality is important in this project. However, a 16 bit file is much bigger than its 8 bit equivalent. With 20 or more layers, that file is going to be quite unwieldy.

Why not work on each individual image in 16bit mode RGB and as each is completed, save out a flattened 8 bit version. Then bring each of these into the project using the "Place" command. Because these will now become "Smart Objects", they can be resized and rotated any number of times without detriment. The pixel structure is only affected once, when the Smart Object(s) is/are finally rasterized.

Once everything as positioned, but still in layers, change the mode to CMYK (if necessary) and tweak your colours as required whilst soft proofing using the profile supplied by the print shop.

Hope this has been of some help.

Chris.
T
Thundercross
Jun 6, 2007
Let me some up some key points you made:

1) "Rotating" an image, text file causes it to degrade quality?
2) "Smart Ojects" don’t lose quality?
3) Only "Rasterize" at the end?

If you rasterize a layer do you lose the alpha channel and the ability to edit the file, if it were say a text file?

My pics are in PSD format from .crw RAW files… Will those lose quality?

Due to the nature of the layout of the box, it is 3D and has 6 faces, so I cannot get around rotating the image, I have to rotate it in order to have the 6 sides of the box the right way up.

Thanks was a help… 🙂
JJ
John_Joslin
Jun 6, 2007
Why can’t you get the faces right separately and then "Place" them in position on the box?

(Hint: do a small scale mock-up first to get things right.)

MacBook Pro 16” Mockups 🔥

– in 4 materials (clay versions included)

– 12 scenes

– 48 MacBook Pro 16″ mockups

– 6000 x 4500 px

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