Is there a maximum image size?

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RussellCollier

Good morning. I am building a report for a client using images extracted from PDFs they supply. The extracted images are mostly at 600 DPI, with a few at much higher resolution (1800 DPI) and a few at lower resolution. I have about 60 of them to insert, and am about 3/4 finished.

I noticed yesterday that quite suddenly, none of my images were showing on-screen, just the frame they sit inside. When I examine the frame, it tells me the image is missing. I use Manage Images function to find them again, but this does not seem to work. The frame remains empty.

After many hours trying things out, I wondered if Scribus has an upper limit for file size it can import. I experimented with reducing the file size of several of the larger images, reducing them to 300 DPI. To my surprise, suddenly, I could again see most of the other images, though not all of them.

Does Scribus have an upper limit, or maximum image size it can work with?

I am using Scribus 1.4.1 on a very new Mac Pro (Retina) with 16 GB RAM.

a.l.e

no, i don't think that there is a hard limit for it...

... but you'd really better resize the images in a bitmap editor before loading them into scribus.
it's useless to have a 600 DPI image if your printer can only print at 150 DPI...

however, for the empty frames: i wonder if you are not seeing the top left corner... which may be white....

RussellCollier

I think there must be a hard limit, based on my experiences. I have downsized my images systematically, and this results every time in previously unviewable images suddenly coming into view.

I used GIMP to resize some of them. Most of them I just used Mac's Preview to choose a 150 PPI exporting. 300 PPI proved to be too much to Scribus, and trying to import immediately resulted in another blank frame. I have opted for less PPI in favour of getting the job done so I can get paid.

That crack about "useless to have a 600 DPI image" was not helpful, as my client has access to professional printers. Professional, not your corner store offering a laser jet for hire. Sorry if that seems harsh, but you need to know, not helpful to assume common limits.

No white upper left corners, just a blank image frame with filename listed inside. Reducing the image resolution has immediate results.

Thanks. I appreciate your taking the time to reply.

Best,
Russell

Quote from: a.l.e on August 25, 2012, 07:30:58 AM
no, i don't think that there is a hard limit for it...

... but you'd really better resize the images in a bitmap editor before loading them into scribus.
it's useless to have a 600 DPI image if your printer can only print at 150 DPI...

however, for the empty frames: i wonder if you are not seeing the top left corner... which may be white....

Nermander

There still are not many professional printers that print more than 300 PPI. Your avarage glossy fashion magazine will probably be less than 200 PPI.

RussellCollier

Thanks for the information about printers. I did not know that. However, I don't think many printers in my area know that either. Most, if not all, will ask for hi-resolution imagery in at least 300 DPI, not the same thing as 300 PPI, I am finding out.

So, does anybody know if there is an effective maximum size of file, or resolution of picture, before Scribus will not show it? I have been told I may not have enough RAM to run Scribus properly, or at least not with many pictures. I have a very new Macbook Pro (Retina) with 16 Gigabytes RAM, lots of hard disk space. Is this simply too small a laptop to run Scribus? I thought 16 GB was pretty good, but I could be wrong.

Reducing the resolution of the PNG file does seem to make a difference. I reduce from 600 DPI to 150 DPI, and quite suddenly the pics start appearing again. The actual file sizes range from 1 or 2 Mb on the small size at 150 DPI to 21 MB on the large size at 600 DPI.  I am guessing somewhere between the small and the large files there is an optimum I should aim for. Does anybody know how to identify optimal file size and resolution for Scribus?

My thanks for your time.
Russell Collier

toyotadesigner

I have designed several books, brochures and flyers with huge images (some of them 120 MegaPixels), because I was too lazy to scale them down. The only thing that happened was that Scribus reacted a bit slower, and it needed a really long time to load the documents. But I've never experienced and empty frames. Just specified a max. resolution of 300 dpi in the PDF export and got great results.

I am working on a Mac Core Duo 3.01 with only 4 GB RAM... so your dream machine is anything but too small for Scribus!