Publisher: How to obtain several images of different sizes from an original photograph

[Pyanepsion]

Hello everyone,

I'm asking for your help with a problem I'm facing: I'm trying to get images of different sizes from an original photograph. Here are my specific questions:

1. Is there a method to load an image only once and automatically resize it to predefined dimensions?
2. Also, I need to apply this process to a large number of images. Is there a simple and efficient way to do this in series?

I thank you in advance for your valuable advice and recommendations. I am open to any suggestions and remain at your disposal for any clarifications.

I remain at your disposal for any clarifications,

[walt.farrell]

Use Photo, not Publisher, and use the Export Persona.

[carl123]

47 minutes ago, Pyanepsion said:

Is there a method to load an image only once and automatically resize it to predefined dimensions?

Assuming all images are the same initial size, a macro can do that

47 minutes ago, Pyanepsion said:

Also, I need to apply this process to a large number of images. Is there a simple and efficient way to do this in series?

Use File > New batch job with the above macro

[MikeTO]

While thinking about this, I wondered if there was a way to do it in Publisher since that's what Pyanepsion showed in his screenshot. Someday with scripts it should be easy but for now you'd have to use some tricks to make the same image appear at multiple sizes on a page.

1. Draw a picture frame on Master A, the size and position isn't important because you'll change it later
2. Create Master B and apply Master A to it (1 copy of the image)
3. Create Master C and apply Masters A and B to it (2 copies of the image)
4. Create Master D and apply Masters A, B, and C to it (3-4 copies of the image)
5. Create Master E and apply Masters, A, B, C, and D to it (5-8 copies of the image)
6. Repeat as required for the number of copies you want - this gets more tedious as times go on because you can apply only one master at a time and must be careful to not replace the master(s) already applied
7. Edit the final master page and expand all of the layers in the Layers panel
8. Right click each master and nested master in the Layers panel and edit it detached - Tips: It's easier to edit detached from the panel than the menu because it's more obvious which you want to edit, and you can edit multiple nested masters detached at the same time. So just right click every nested master and edit detached.
9. Position and size each frame however you like
10. Apply the final master to page 1

The attached document shows this in action with 8 copies of an image at different sizes on the same page. Go to Master A and place a different image in the frame and all 8 copies of the image will change on page 1. The Resource Manager will show that there is only a single copy of the image in the document.

Test.afpub

If I wanted to create a book with 100 pages, each with 8 copies of the same image at different sizes, I couldn't do it just like this because the image must be changed on the master page and not on the actual page. But if I wanted to do it, I could output page 1 as a PDF, change the image, output page 2 as a PDF, change the image, etc, and then combine the PDFs.

[Old Bruce]

Using Publisher (and its Designer Persona) I tried using a Picture Frame as a Symbol.

 

 

[MikeTO]

@Old Bruce A symbol would certainly be easier! I've never gotten into using them but this seems like a good use for them.

But it's cool that master pages can be manipulated in this way.

[Pyanepsion]

Superb demonstration. Well done MikeTo. Thank. However, there is still one major problem: you can only use it for one image. You can't make a collection of images.

[MikeTO]

1 minute ago, Pyanepsion said:

Superb demonstration. Well done MikeTo. Thank. However, there is still one major problem: you can only use it for one image. You can't make a collection of images.

That's why we need scripting. 🙂