InDesign, the basics

Member lesson

Exporting a PDF a printer will accept

Lesson 6 of 7 in InDesign, the basics.

Checked against the makers' documentation on 9 October 2026.

InDesign Export PDF For Print · William Campbell
Lesson

A printer needs a PDF, not an InDesign file, and the PDF has to be built for paper. Choose File > Export, pick Adobe PDF (Print) in the Save As Type menu on Windows or the Format menu on a Mac, and the Export Adobe PDF dialog opens. Its first menu is Adobe PDF Preset. Adobe's table of presets lists High Quality Print for desktop printing and proofing, and Press Quality for high-end print production. For a commercial printer, Adobe says to pick a PDF/X preset from that menu or a PDF/X format from the Standard menu beside it. Adobe PDF (Interactive) is the other choice in the format list. It keeps buttons, links and video for documents read on screen.

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  1. Question 1, locked

    What does PDF/X-1a do with colour and transparency?

    • Keeps transparency live and leaves RGB unchanged
    • Allows only CMYK and spot colours and flattens transparency
    • Keeps layers for versions and converts spot colours to RGB
    • Embeds an RGB profile and keeps transparency live
  2. Question 2, locked

    Why will a PDF/X preset not catch a blurry photograph?

    • PDF/X sets no minimum image resolution
    • PDF/X downsamples every image to 72 ppi
    • PDF/X checks fonts only, never pictures
    • PDF/X turns photographs into vector art
  3. Question 3, locked

    Your document uses fonts activated from Adobe Fonts. What happens to them when you run File > Package?

    • They are copied into the package like any other font
    • The package will not finish until they are outlined
    • They are turned into pictures inside the IDML file
    • They are left out, and whoever opens the file is asked to sync them

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