Using Cloudinary's Adobe Creative Cloud Connector in InDesign

This tutorial shows how to use Cloudinary's Adobe Creative Cloud Connector to easily update your InDesign files with Photoshop assets through the Connector. We recommend reviewing our official documentation to understand all of the Connector’s capabilities.

Tutorial Sections:

• Watch a Video
• Improving Collaboration with the Adobe Creative Cloud Connector in InDesign
• Using the Connector to Place Cloudinary Assets in an Adobe Document
• Linking Photoshop Files in InDesign Files Through the Connector
• How Changes to Photoshop Files Update in InDesign
• Additional Resources

Watch a Video

Improving Collaboration with the Adobe Creative Cloud Connector in InDesign

Cloudinary’s Adobe Creative Cloud Connector has features specific to InDesign that make it easy to store, modify and update the assets in an InDesign file with Cloudinary. 

This includes the ability to maintain Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign files in Cloudinary and share them with team members. Once a document is stored in Cloudinary, it's easy to insert those files into Photoshop, Illustrator or InDesign through the Connector and always be sure you're getting the latest version.

Additionally, if an image you've already inserted into an InDesign document gets updated in Cloudinary, it notifies you so that you can update the linked file in InDesign to the latest version with a double-click through the Connector.

In this example, we’ll show you how to place an asset edited in Photoshop within an InDesign project through the Connector. Then, we’ll show how to update it with a double-click when the Photoshop asset is changed.

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Using the Connector to Place Cloudinary Assets in an Adobe Project

To start, we’ll open a new Photoshop document. To add an asset from Cloudinary, we’ll need to open the Connector. This can be done by going to the Window menu, choosing Extensions, and then selecting the Cloudinary Adobe Creative Cloud Connector. 

A dialog that says, Connect to Cloudinary appears, and we’ll select Next. 

Doing so opens a browser tab where we can sign in to our Cloudinary account.

After clicking Sign In, we’ll get a confirmation that our authentication has completed. 

We can close the browser window and go back to Photoshop. From here, we’ll choose the cloud name we want to work with and choose Connect. Then we’re good to go. 

The Connector enables us to access Cloudinary's Media Library. We can find assets by browsing folders, collections, keyword searching, or even using the advanced search options. Some of these options include searching by file type, metadata, format and size, tag and more.

Once we find the asset we want, we’ll select it and then choose Insert. The asset will be placed in the Photoshop file.  

We’ll save the Photoshop file locally, then upload it to Cloudinary using the Connector’s option menu. 

Before uploading the file, we recommend checking the Connector’s Preferences to determine what folder, tags and upload presets you are using. 

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Linking Photoshop Assets in InDesign Through the Connector

Next, we’ll open InDesign. We'll want to open the Connector so we can access the project we’ll be working on. In InDesign, you can easily open the Connector by choosing Cloudinary then Cloudinary Panel. 

Once the project is open, we can use the Connector and search for the asset we want to insert. In this example, we’ll choose the Photoshop asset we worked with earlier. We'll select the file and choose Insert. 

You can adjust the resolution of the asset in InDesign from the Links window. Double-clicking the resolution option will change the asset from low-resolution to high-resolution, and vice versa. High-resolution is often necessary before going to print your document, while low-resolution can be beneficial for sharing the file and keeping it at a smaller file size. 

Once we’ve made the adjustments we want to make in the InDesign file, we’ll save it locally. 

Just like we did in Photoshop, we’ll check the Connector’s preferences before uploading the file. Particularly, we’ll make sure the folder path matches the folder where we opened this InDesign file, so that the updated version will replace the one we opened from Cloudinary.

Then, we’ll upload it to Cloudinary using the Connector’s option menu. 

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How Changes to Photoshop Files Update in InDesign

Anyone that has access in Cloudinary to the Photoshop file we uploaded can open and edit it through the Connector and other ways, such as logging into your Management Console and directly accessing the Media Library. 

This way we can be sure we are always working on the latest version of that asset without duplication. It really simplifies the collaboration process. 

Now, let’s say someone on the team decides to edit one of the assets linked in the InDesign file, such as the Photoshop asset.

Let’s walk through what that process of updating the asset in the InDesign project would be like. 

First, we’ll open the Photoshop file and make the photo black and white. 

When we have finished our edits, we’ll simply save the Photoshop file and upload it to Cloudinary again through the Connector. Making sure to upload it to its original folder path so that the original file in Cloudinary is updated.

Now, let’s go back to the InDesign file. In the Links window, the yellow triangle notification shows you changes have been made to the Photoshop file linked via Cloudinary. You will also see this notification on the asset itself. This is another way the Connector improves collaboration across teams. 

Double-clicking the notification will apply the modifications and update the asset in your InDesign file.

Saving the InDesign file and uploading it to Cloudinary through the Connector will ensure you have the most up-to-date version of your document in the cloud.  

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Additional Resources

If you need further assistance using Cloudinary’s Adobe Creative Cloud Connector, we have plenty of options for you. This includes complete documentation on all of its features, as well as a skilled Support team that is ready to answer all of your questions and address your requests.

We hope to see you using Cloudinary and our Adobe Creative Cloud Connector for all of your future projects!

Credits: 

• Tutorial production: Jenny Spoelma
• Video footage: Distill and Edmond Dantès
• Background music: Apollo by Patrick Patrikios
• Icons: Vitaly Gorbachev

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