Section 62. Making a PDF Presentation from Photoshop Layer Comps

#62. Making a PDF Presentation from Photoshop Layer Comps

Photoshop's layer comps really come in handy when you want to explore different creative avenues in your design. Nothing beats being able to flip through several comps within the same document so that you, your colleagues, or client can review different approaches and decide among them. But what if it's not possible to get everyone huddled around your screen? Not a problem. Just save your set of layer comps as an Acrobat PDF presentation so that everyone can review and comment on them from the comfort of their own computer.

Changing Page Transitions

If you're not happy with the presentation's default page transition, change it within Acrobat Professional. With your PDF presentation open in Acrobat Professional, select Document > Set Page Transitions and choose from 40 different transitions. You can also adjust the timing of the transitions from this dialog.

Here's how to make a PDF presentation from your layer comps:

1.	In Photoshop, open the document that has the desired set of layer comps created within it (see #73).
2.	Choose File > Scripts > Layer Comps To PDF. A dialog appears prompting you to choose a destination for the resulting Acrobat file (Figure 62a). Figure 62a. Use the Layer Comps To PDF dialog to set the options for your exported PDF presentation.
3.	If you just want to select specific layer comps to save to the PDF file, be sure to first select the comps you want in the Layer Comps palette (Figure 62b) and then check the Selected Layer Comps Only option in this dialog. You can opt to adjust the available Slideshow Options for advancing the pages after a certain number of seconds and looping after the last page. Figure 62b. Hold down Command (Mac) or Control (Windows) to select multiple, noncontiguous layer comps. Then you can choose to export only those selected layer comps in your presentation.
4.	When you're ready to create the PDF presentation, click the Run button. Once Photoshop has flattened and packaged all your layer comps, Acrobat launches and opens the presentation in full screen mode for you to preview. Each layer comp becomes a slide in the presentation. Press the Escape key to exit full screen and stop the presentation.
5.	Now you can send the PDF presentation out for feedback via email or for download from your file server or Web site.