The magic of InDesign’s effects all happens via Adobe’s transparency technology, which allows us to blend colors and detail from different objects. In order for it to all work there has to be a consistent color space for InDesign to use when it blends colors. This is called the Transparency Blend Space and it’s really important that you understand it in order to get the most out of InDesign’s effects. When we use transparency effects, InDesign compares different objects and combines their colors and detail. In order for objects to be blended, they have to be in the same color space. So when you apply transparency, InDesign converts everything on a spread to the Transparency Blend Space, regardless of whether that object is actually involved in the effect. And it’s important to note that when we say things are converted, we don’t mean that InDesign alters your placed files; they are left completely alone. What we mean is that InDesign is using a different method for interpreting the colors in those files. It simulates as if you change the colors in those documents, just to give itself a reliable method for blending. It’s a totally nondestructive change. See the Transparency Blend Space and check if it is Document CMYK. So now if you apply any transparency on this spread, everything on the spread will be converted to the Document CMYK blend space. You can test this by selecting any object and going to the Effects panel and just changing the Opacity from 100% to 99% and you can see that all the colors shift. That’s really interesting because they’re not even touching. But just because they’re on the same spread, InDesign will convert them to the transparency blend space.
Remember, everything on a spread is converted to the blend space that is selected under the Edit menu. Keep an eye out for color shifts when you apply effects and know what color spaces your document is using. Make sure they are appropriate for your final output. That way you won’t get any unexpected color changes at the end of your workflow.
You can also watch the video : “Assign the Transparency Blend Space” by David Blatner and “Understanding Transparency Blend Space” by Mike Rankin (both on LinkedIn Learning) to learn how this feature works.
Hope it helps.
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Adobe InDesign team
The magic of InDesign’s effects all happens via Adobe’s transparency technology, which allows us to blend colors and detail from different objects. In order for it to all work there has to be a consistent color space for InDesign to use when it blends colors. This is called the Transparency Blend Space and it’s really important that you understand it in order to get the most out of InDesign’s effects. When we use transparency effects, InDesign compares different objects and combines their colors and detail. In order for objects to be blended, they have to be in the same color space. So when you apply transparency, InDesign converts everything on a spread to the Transparency Blend Space, regardless of whether that object is actually involved in the effect. And it’s important to note that when we say things are converted, we don’t mean that InDesign alters your placed files; they…
This is not a fix. This is an explanation of the problem -- and it's still an issue in 2023. Please fix this, or tell us how to stop InDesign from changing ALL the settings instead of just the item selected.
Erica Welter
This is not a fix. This is an explanation of the problem -- and it's still an issue in 2023. Please fix this, or tell us how to stop InDesign from changing ALL the settings instead of just the item selected.