PDF Files - Reducing Size with Acrobat Pro
Step 1. The Reduce File Size Command
Open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro.
1. Choose Document > Reduce File Size.
2. Select the version compatibility that you need. Usually 6.0 or 7.0 will be fine. Go to Save As and give the file a
new name. Check the size of the resulting file.
Step 2. PDF Optimizer
If the file is still too large after
performing Step 1 above, try the
PDF Optimizer…
Choose Advanced > PDF
Optimizer. Go to Settings and
select Standard from the dropdown. OK, Save, and check the
size.
With PDF Optimizer, you can also
select Images, select Custom, and
change the Downsample to 75 ppi
for Color Images and Grayscale
Images. That should substantially
reduce file size.
Notes and Tips:
You can sometimes reduce the file size of a PDF simply by using the Save As command, and saving as a new name. If that doesn’t
work, the steps above should dramatically decrease the file size. When reducing file size using the PDF Optimizer or the Reduce File
Size command, you should save it under a new name, or, keep a back up of the original, in case layout and formatting are adversely
affected. Reducing the size of PDFs usually improves their performance—particularly when they’re being opened on the web or sent
in an email—usually without altering their appearance.
PDF Optimizer provides many settings for reducing the size of PDF files. It’s possible to save space by removing embedded fonts,
compressing images, and removing items from the file that are no longer needed. Before you optimize a file, you can audit the file’s
space usage to get ideas about where best to reduce file size.
Some methods of compression may make images unusable in a print production workflow. You should experiment with various
settings before making changes that can’t be discarded. And, keep a backup of your original file. If PDF Optimization makes the
pages too blurry or poor for your needs, you might have to break the PDF up into smaller files, instead of optimizing one large file.
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