Guides

These guides follow situations that come up when submitting documents online: the portal only accepts PDF, there is a file size limit, photos must be JPG, or some details should be hidden before sending. All examples use sample data. Sizes and limits mentioned here are common examples and do not replace the official requirements of the organisation you submit to — always read their instructions.

Prepare a whole document set with several groups

A typical application contains several kinds of documents, each with its own rules — for example “Degrees: one PDF under 2 MB” and “Portrait photo: a JPG under 500 KB”. Prepare documents handles the whole set in one session:

1. Drop or choose all images (JPG, PNG) and PDFs. Every PDF page and every image becomes a page card with a thumbnail.
2. Create a group for each kind of document (suggested names are provided, or type your own).
3. Move pages into the right group, drag to reorder, rotate upside-down pages, crop table edges from phone photos, delete extra pages (with undo).
4. Set requirements for each group: one PDF or separate images, size limit, A4 or original page size, file name.
5. Create the files. Each group is checked with real data: byte size, format, page count or pixel dimensions.
6. Download each file, or everything in one ZIP.

If a group does not meet its size limit, the result is kept and clearly marked “Not met” with its real size, so you can lower quality, switch to grayscale or change the limit — the site never reports success that did not happen.

Combine both sides of an ID card into one PDF

Many procedures ask for “both sides in one file”. With Images to PDF or a group in Prepare documents:

1. Choose the front and back photos. Phone photos are rotated upright using their EXIF orientation.
2. Put the front first. If the photo shows a lot of table, use Crop image.
3. Choose A4 with Normal margins if the recipient may print it; choose Keep original size for on-screen use.
4. Set a size limit if there is one (for example 1 MB) and create the PDF.

By default the result is a two-page PDF, one side per page. To put both sides on the same A4 page, choose the “2 cards at real size per sheet” layout: each side is placed at exact card size 85.6 × 54 mm (when printed at 100%), front above back, 1 cm apart for easy cutting. Crop the photos to the card edges first for an accurate size. The “2/4/6/9 per sheet” layouts gather several images or PDF pages onto fewer sheets.

Compress a PDF to under 2 MB

Use Compress PDF and pick 2 MB (or enter your own limit). How it works:

• Only images inside the PDF are downscaled and re-encoded; text and vector drawings are kept, so they stay selectable, searchable and copyable.
• Several levels are tried and the real size of the saved file is measured, to pick the highest quality that is still under the limit. 1 MB means 1,000,000 bytes.
• If the file is already under the limit and nothing needs changing, the original file is returned untouched (keeping digital signatures and quality).

Not every PDF can reach every limit. A 30-page scan at 600 DPI may not fit in 2 MB and stay readable. You will then see the smallest real size achieved and can switch images to grayscale, split the file with Split PDF, or allow pages to be turned into images (off by default, because those pages lose selectable text).

Convert PNG to JPG under 500 KB

With Convert & resize images:

1. Add your PNG (or several images at once).
2. Choose JPG and a 500 KB limit.
3. If the PNG has transparent areas (a logo, a signature with the background removed), choose a background colour — JPG has no transparency, so those areas are filled with that colour instead of turning black.
4. Export. JPG quality is lowered step by step while the real bytes are measured; pixel dimensions are reduced only if you allow it.

GPS location and other EXIF data from phone photos are removed from exported images.

How many pixels is a 3×4 cm or 4×6 cm photo?

A print size in centimetres becomes pixels only once you choose a print resolution (DPI — dots per inch; 1 inch = 2.54 cm):

Print size	300 DPI	600 DPI
2×3 cm	236 × 354 px	472 × 709 px
3×4 cm	354 × 472 px	709 × 945 px
4×6 cm	472 × 709 px	945 × 1417 px

Formula: pixels = cm ÷ 2.54 × DPI. In the resize tool choose the cm unit, enter the size and DPI; the pixel size is calculated and the DPI is written into the file. If your photo has a different aspect ratio, choose Fill the frame (crop) (crops the edges) or Fit inside, add background (adds a white background). This resizes to the numbers you enter — it does not certify that a photo meets any authority’s rules about background, pose or age of the photo.

Redact a PDF the right way

Drawing a black box in Word, in a PDF reader or with an annotation pen does not delete the text underneath: the recipient can still select, copy or search it. Redact PDF removes the real content inside the areas you mark:

• Characters inside an area are deleted from the page content (including invisible OCR text layers); the remaining text keeps its position and stays selectable.
• Pixels of images under an area are erased in the image data itself; the unredacted original image is dropped from the file.
• Vector drawings crossing an area are clipped; annotations touching an area are removed.
• After creating the file it is read back to check that no extractable text remains inside the areas.

Pages with elements that cannot be edited directly (for example JBIG2-compressed scanner images) are turned into images and listed in the report. Draw areas that fully cover the text, and always open the result to check it visually before sending.

Split or extract a few pages from a PDF

Split PDF offers four modes: extract selected pages into one file, one file per page, every N pages, or ranges such as 1-3, 5, 8-10 (each range becomes a file). Several results can be downloaded one by one or as a ZIP. To reorder or rotate pages first, use Organize PDF pages and send the result straight to the split tool without downloading it.

Check files before you submit

• Format and size: compare with the recipient’s rules (PDF or JPG, under how many MB/KB). Aim slightly below the limit.
• Pages and order: all pages present, upright, no stray blank pages.
• Readable: zoom in on small print, stamps and signatures.
• File name: if the portal rejects accented names, turn on the plain-ASCII name option.
• Unneeded details: redact account numbers or ID numbers that are not required.

Every tool’s result shows a checklist of automatically measured items; “content is clear and complete” always needs your own confirmation.