Drop shadows w/FusionPro?

[buckeye]

Customer sent a postcard created in InDesign CS3 wherein the variable name has a drop shadow behind it. I don't think FusionPro can apply a feathered drop shadow to variable data but if it does I'd like to hear about it. Anyone have a work around? I tried using InDesign's Data Merge but with 3,000 records it's not possible. I broke it down to 500 records but it took 40 minutes just to create the merged document and the file size was 750mb. I also have a XMPie uDirect plug-in but I think it's the Designer version because the Dynamic Print option is grayed out. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Erik

 

[buckeye]

Fusion Pro 5.0 can create soft drop shadows.

Fusion Pro 5.0 can create soft drop shadows.

I guess I should have mentioned that I am using Fusion Pro Desktop 3.2. I see now that Fusion Pro 5.0 has that ability.

Thanks anyways,

Erik

 

[jordanh]

Fusion Pro 6.1 has the option of adding a feathered drop shadow to variable text now. I don't think it did before 6.0. The only bad thing is upgrading to 6.0 costs an extra 300 bucks. If you don't have that option, you could always create a black drop shadow by copy and pasting the entire variable text box onto its self...then move the box down and to one side...then arrange the box behind the colored text. It will give an echoed/shadowed appearance but it will NOT be feathered. That might get you by next time it comes up for you.

 

[gumbylives]

but....

but....

how big is the file size when you used it I wonder?
Gumby

 

[darktico]

You can do transparent drop shadows...

You can do transparent drop shadows...

But the question is do you really want to. Depending on the number of records the print file could be enormous. I suggest stay away from transparent effects for the sake of your processing speed.

Alberto Garcia
305-469-3890

 

[JasonFF]

I use XMPie, but the same issue occurs there. It will use X-Dot technology to simulate the dropped shadow, but ineffect rasterizes and jpgs your variable name, which makes the file size pretty huge, and decreases the quality. If there is nothing but white underneath the variable, the dropped shadows work much better, and we will sometimes do this. If it's another image or a gradient anywhere underneath the text effects, we don't allow it.

 

[kyle]

Try creating a document with everything on a master page except for the variable data, then merge and apply the master to all of the pages. This would prevent unnecessary duplication of objects in Indesign.

Based on some tests I ran a long time ago (with CS3), Indesign appears to not redundantly encode identical objects when exporting to PDF, even if they are on different pages in different positions. It probably puts the object in the PDF and then references it multiple times. I think the scaling/rotation has to be the same, and I think it is more efficient when the redundancy is by virtue of master page application instead of independent objects. It might require Acrobat compatibility higher than 4 (meaning live transparency also), though I don't think I tested that.