Prepping files for web - Photoshop Elements alternatives?

[theluggage]

OK, so a common workflow for me is:

1. Start with PDF file (may also be a screenshot, photo or a scan)
2. Render 1 page as bitmap
3. Crop
4. Export PNG-8 thumbnail version (say 400pix wide)
5. Export PNG-8 or PNG-24 larger version (300dpi)

To date I've been using Photoshop Elements and its save-for-web option, which worked pretty well - but in the ancient version 11 I've been using, save for web has stopped working in Mavericks and, of course, its 32 bit so won't make it to Catalina. Also, I'm finding more and more .pdfs don't render in PSE, and save-for-web gets very slow with broadband'n'retina-sized images. I'm currently using a demo of PS Elements 18 which at least works on current MacOS but otherwise hasn't improved on PSE11.

I also have Affinity Designer which can do the job well, and the 'export persona' is terrific for more complex jobs (like maintaining all the buttons'n'stuff for a web app at multiple resolutions) but it's a slight overkill for one-off jobs (...which don't come to me in a very consistent form - otherwise I'd script the whole thing).

So, basically, I have two ok-ish solutions but I wonder if anybody has found something else to compare to Photoshop's PDF import and save-for-web (except a bit more up-to-date)...?

NB: I'm not looking for every package that can import the first page of a PDF at some fixed DPI and export PNG in some default format (e.g. Pixelmator). I want to be able to pick the pixel dimensions of the PDF render and export at multiple resolutions and bit/colour-depths.

 

[organicCPU]

At the moment I'm utilizing Image Processor Pro by Russell Brown / Ross Huitt on Adobe Photoshop CS6 for saving one (cropped) image to different sizes and formats containing different suffixes. Afterwards ImageOptim reduces the files' sizes even better than what PS Save for Web does. As Image Processor Pro is a JavaScript, it probably won't work with PSE. To get an impression of what the script does, you could have a look at that article from photoshopscaresme.com.

I wonder if there are chances that the free of charge Adobe Bridge app would be able to run the script without having Adobe Photoshop installed. However, a Serif Affinity Photo solution or some plain script, maybe based on pdftopng or ImageMagick, would be nice to have.

 

[theluggage]

I wonder if there are chances that the free of charge Adobe Bridge app would be able to run the script without having Adobe Photoshop installed.

Thanks, I may give it a try. I'm sure Adobe has thought of that wheeze... and ideally I'd like something with regular image editing tools as well. The work I'm doing doesn't really have an income stream, otherwise I'd probably just grit my teeth and get a CS subscription. ImageOptim looks useful, though.

 

[Szczelec33]

how do you do all that? I mean render a pef file as bitmap? just export it to jpeg from apple mac preview?

 

[theluggage]

how do you do all that? I mean render a pef file as bitmap? just export it to jpeg from apple mac preview?

That certainly does the basic job.

Most "serious" graphics software (Pixelmator, Affinity...) will do it too - just open a PDF or even cut/paste from Preview. Where they vary is in how much control they give you over the process in terms of resolution, colour depth etc.

Photoshop (including the cut-down 'Elements' version) will open PDFs and render a selected page - but I've been finding it a bit unreliable lately (some files just render as blank). It also has a very handy 'save for web' tool which gives far more choice over the size, format and encoding options than (say) Preview although it seems to have be written in the days when 800x600 was a large image and not updated since...

My issue isn't doing the job - it's whether or not to shell out for a new copy of Photoshop Elements (which offers no advantage I can see beyond running properly on current MacOSs).