Using CS3. I want to open a bunch of TIF files and re-save using different file options. The only way I know to do this is with File > Automate > Batch. But that only works if the destination folder for all files is the same. It’s not.
Ideally I would not need to first open the files in Photoshop. Perhaps something with Bridge will work. Tools > Photoshop > Image Processor looks promising. There’s even an option called "Save in same location", which does not do what it says so is totally useless.
If you had CS4, you could put aliases of all the Tiffs (regardless of which folder that they are in) into a single "Collection" in Bridge CS4 and then output the whole lot directly from Bridge either through the Image Processor Script or through ACR.
Bridge CS4 is installed with Photoshop and should always be open anyway (Bridge CS4 is an entirely different animal from CS3) and you can automatically access both the Image Processor Script and ACR 5.2 directly from within it.
Bridge and Finder. They might both be running, but they are two programs that aren’t Photoshop to do one simple thing Photoshop should do already by version 11.
Bridge CS4 is an essential part of my life now Β I seldom use the Finder for file management of any sort these days.
Dr. Brown was what I was thinking of when I said "Image Processor" Β but you still have to collect all of your required files in the same folder.
What I have NOT tried, but which may work, is to put a collection of Aliases into a single folder (rather than moving the actual files) and see if the Script can handle that.
Bridge and Finder. They might both be running, but they are two programs that aren’t Photoshop to do one simple thing Photoshop should do already by version 11.
The whole point is that Bridge is supposed to be used as an integral part of the CS4 SUITE.
I keep Bridge CS4 running at ALL times (it uses a minute amount of resources when it is just in standby mode) and I consider it to be an essential adjunct to Photoshop Β particularly if you deal with digital camera files.
I use its "Get Photos from Camera" to download from my card reader in preference to Nikon’s download program; and I open whole batches of RAW files for processing in Bridge-hosted ACR 5.2. ACR 5.2 also handles scanned Tiffs and JPEGs.
And I use Bridge to output Web Galleries; attach files to e-mails; collect aliases of all the files of any kind (and from any folder) that are needed for a particular project into a single Collection: and generally to organize file storage throughout my System.
The only thing that I can’t yet do directly from Bridge is to burn a Collection to a CD or DVD.
Hopefully, someone like David Franzen will create a Script to do that too?
I’ve never used Smart Folders but if they work like smart mailboxes you could create a virtual-smart folder and choose automate-batch-the smart folder.
It is all semantics, as we do not know what file format the output is supposed to be. The new scripts that Ramon points out are great but the JPEG one does not convert! it extracts the jpgs from cache (not full size pictures).
I’ve never used Smart Folders but if they work like smart mailboxes you could create a virtual-smart folder and choose automate-batch-the smart folder.
No, because you cannot save to a Smart Folder. You need to specify the destination, which is why Batch is no good.
Have you yet tried collecting up aliases into a single folder as I suggested several hours ago?
I have just tried it, and it certainly works with Image Processor (but not Dr Brown’s) in CS4 and I therefore see no reason why it wouldn’t work in CS3.
Don’t you want the action to save as new file type, and use "save and close" in the batch, with override save as selected. If you just need to save over originals just include a save as too, and PS’ll overwrite the files with the new options.
Meaning that I have tested it in CS4 Β but there is no earthly reason why it wouldn’t work in CS3 too.
However, I see no reason for me to have to waste my time to launch CS3 (which I no longer use) to test something that you are capable of testing for yourself.
No Scott. "Save and Close" is an alternative to "Folder" for destination. It does what you want. Trust me. Trust PS.
What I need is a Save As to change the file options, which requires a recorded step in Actions. Save and Close will just open the file and do… nothing.
to test something that you are capable of testing for yourself.
Which I did test (Image processor anyway) and reported that it does not work.
I’ll try one last time and then I’m done man. I know I was cryptic, and for that I apologize.
My understanding is you want to strip LZW compression from 80 tiffs spread over 23 directories from a CD rip. You want to overwrite the files with the new save options (whatever they may be, lzw, byte order, etc).
So create an action that records the saving of a tiff as uncompressed (with all the options you desire). Only record the save as if that’s all want to do, or if you need to convert to CMYK, etc, record that too. Save as in any directory. Then batch that action using the umbrella folder (all subs checked) as the source, with "save and close" as the destination, with override save as checked.
Damn! That seems to test out. I used Bridge to find only TIFs (There are many files mixed in, but I only want TIFs). Only TIFs were processed, and they were saved without compression, as I wanted.
That’s just what I was looking for. Thanks.
It is sooooo long past time that Adobe improved the Batch command. It is one of Photoshop’s weakest features. To bad Adobe doesn’t improve features. Once a feature’s in the program and on the box, they call it finished.
I’d like to add that I am not trying to create an action of files in folders, now! I am simply trying to create a jpg image (quickly) of an opened file.
Instead now i have to "flatten the image" and next go to "Save As" and then Find the pull down "jpg" option. Then go to Save and then choose "12" for the quality. Then go to "close" and the "Dont Save".
What a bunch of steps…
If I could just simply press command+F12 or whatever and "walla" its done…
Any way to do that, on an opened file? just one at a time or the opened ones?
I have created an action but it has to write it to a folder named "JPGimages" then i have to go out by hand, grab them and then move them into the folder that they were originally at, which all started from the psd file in that folder to begin with…
What you are looking for is a terrific feature that is in Fireworks. What you do is the conversion once which is all done in their save as dialog the selection of optimization, format etc.
Then in their history panel you save that as a command. It will be available from the command menu and the batch process as well.
It would be great to at least save the steps performed in the history panel as a command that could at least be repeated for future use on other documents as well as the original.
By the way you can batch convert files fro different directories
As I said before this is a simple task for a script that could be triggered from a function key, this sort of thing has been available since Photoshop 7.
