I mask an image in photoshop and delete the background to create a transparent background. I save it as a photoshop file. I then bring the image with the transparent background into illustrator (these are CS versions) with a colored background -the image looks fine but when it is printed there is a light box where the transparent part of the image was. I am in school and all the students and all the teachers cannot figure out the problem so if anyone can figure it out you would be helping alot of people. i've tried cutting and pasting the object into illustrator but I still get the same result. Someone please help this is driving me crazy! Thanks thanks thanks

It just so happens that I came home and did the same experiment with photoshop 7 and illustrator 9 with no problem -I think I found a bug in CS. Come on everyone help me out. I've been wanting to upgrade to CS but now I'm not sure

I'm not sure what you mean by a light box. Are these light colored pixels around edge of image or are they scattered over the transparent area? You say it only happens when printed but not when viewed in Illustrator even when zoomed? Very hard to tell without a post of the image.

i agree dreamer, sometimes an image makes it easier to understand and get to a solution faster.

This example above is with Photoshop made brushed text with a mask, imported in Illustrator, printed to a pdf (to simulate printing) and the pdf openend in Photoshop. No problems found.

I think you should try to start with a transparent Photoshop file, doodle some lines, import in illustrator on a background and print. See if that replicates the situation. I do not think so, actually. But I can think of some factors.

Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign (my current choice of lay-out software) all use the same pdf standard to handle transparency and it works like a breeze. I use transparent photoshop files all the time. Without problems.

The problem could be your printer, that should be Postscript 3 compatible to handle the transparancy. (you could open your illustrator file in Photoshop and print that, to get what you make on paper)

One more thing I can think of: If your Photoshop file is RGB and the underground in Illustrator is CMYK and the file is printed, what actually happens is that the information gets interpreted and 'flattened', creating 'new' material that is divided in squares and consists of vector and pixel information that the printer can handle. The light square you see could be a wrong interpretation of the transparant part, because the color management settings are not correct.

Things like this can ruin the fun of creating. Sometimes you have to dive into the technique behind the pretty picture. And sometimes just work around the problem.

Message edited on: 12/02/2004 03:00

What it is is a lighter tone around the object that has the transparency -exactly the same size and shape of the transparent portion. I don't have a sample because it happened at school on a mac and photoshop and illustrator cs -like I said when I did it at home with version 7 and 9 it worked fine. The printer there is a laser black and white printer so that could be the problem. Or maybe its just the mac software I have a PC. Someone try this who has CS if you have the time. Create an image in photoshop with a trans background -save as a .psd and bring it into illustrator by file -> place. Print it and see if anything funny happens -like I said if you have the time. I would appreciate it -I'm on the verge of upgrading to CS and I don't want to if I 'm going to get this problem -thanks all

That is print it in front of a colored box

If I understand correct you should make a clipping path around the object you want. When you bring over an object from Photoshop you will always get a white box around the object. Make a path around the part of the Photoshop file that you want in Illustrator. Select both the path and the object in Illustrator In Illustrator, click on Menu bar Object>Clipping Path>Make and bingo! There is just the item without a white box.

I mask the background with the magic wand in photoshop -it comes out transparent when I bring it into illustrator -just when I print it there is a slightly lighter then the background box where the transparency was -like an artifact from the transparent portion. I have no problem creating the transparency on the screen

Here I simulated what it looks like just when printed though

???

Message edited on: 12/02/2004 17:10

Butyou shouldn't need to create a clipping path -in my programs the watch imported perfectly with the transparency and printed fine-its just at school that I had the problem

My CS programs (on Mac) do not have the problem, as I stated above. I tried. Someone at school might have fiddled with (color) settings, the way of working you describe should be perfectly possible.

What is the colour mode of the PS image and of the AI document. I'm pretty sure Hoofd' is right (it's what I'd have said if he hadn't) - either mismatched colour spaces or odd colour m,anagement, this comes up for both AI and InDesign quite often on the Adobe forums.

Ok Ill check that -thanks