Why is my .pdf so much larger in file size than the InDesign file I created it from?
Why is my .pdf so much larger in file size than the InDesign file I created it from?
Question
I have a 17MB InDesign file. Not a huge file size for a 40 page booklet. When I convert it to a pdf it blows out to 70MB! Usually the file size is reduced when saved to a pdf. I can't figure this one out. I'm saving pdfs as I usually do and have never had trouble before. For proofing purposes I'm able to lower the file size in Acrobat, but I can't do this for the final print file as I need high res images. Any ideas as to why the file size is so large when I convert it?
Cheers.
2015/04/29
Popular Answer
Press-ready PDF files are almost always much larger in terms of file size due to flattening and expanding of objects.
Note InDesign merely links to external images. However, a press-ready PDF must embed those links for proper reproduction.
2015/04/28