Blend Mode Raster PDF Export Issues

[BrettFrahm]

I'd like to discuss the new export raster as single tile feature when exporting PDF layouts in ArcGIS Pro 3.5 and the issues surrounding raster content. There have be conversations about this in the past but I thought I'd start a new one now because 3.5 is out and my issue is specifically talking about Blend Mode. Here is the most active thread I have read through.

• Look through my notes and let me know if you've experienced the same issue
• I would love to hear from someone at ESRI about this behavior and the expected results.

For reference here is what the release notes it states about the Export raster content as single tile setting:

 "You can use the Export raster content as a single tile option to avoid thin line artifacts between tiles of transparent raster, rasterized, and vector tile layers. These artifacts appear in some viewing applications for PDF and SVG exports."

Original Issue:

The original issue I was hoping this new setting would fix is the boundary of our raster poorly blending into our layers. We use Multiply blend mode with a hillshade raster that purposely only goes to the border of our parks so they pop-out in contrast to the surrounding neighborhood and other parks that our park district does not operate. Pdf attached with "_335" in the title shows this.

The workaround to change Adobe Viewer settings that I've seen mentioned is not something that we can do as the maps are for public consumption. There are some other workarounds we've played around with such as using a line layer that goes on top of the blend layer that is the exact shape of the hillshade using raster domain.

New Issue:

 Using Pro 3.5 I have just tried out the new export setting with the same layout and the result is rather strange and does not resolve "Original Issue" I mentioned earlier. The new issue is that the coloration is completely off from what it shows in ArcGIS Pro, that makes it unusable. See attached pdf with _35_rastersingletile" in the title to see this.

[RTPL_AU]

Hi @BrettFrahm 

For a while now, if I use anything on a raster layer, I will  add the raster to a group. Any required transparency will be applied to the group, not the raster. That fixed the lines that showed in pdfs. 

If no transparency is required I may still set the transparency at 1% or so and that seems to fix some of the other raster rendering issues. 

Make 100% sure all the settings for pdf exports are as you expect. There seems to be some undocumented bugs features in the latest Pro release. Maybe start with one of the defaults and reconfigure as required?

I've not had the major colour change you are showing - that looks like a blend or raster function setting difference between the two.  Do they look 100% the same in the layout before export? (you still have a 3.4/3.3 machine available to fall back on? Right?)

[Melissa_B · Accepted solution]

Brett,

I think I've identified a work around for your issue.  Using your park basemap and hillshade layers, you can select the hillshade layer, go to symbology, select the "Mask" tab, and then change Nodata to be white.  That should allow it to export to PDF without those grey edges. The attached screen shot was of the exported PDF opened in Google Chrome.  Let me know if that doesn't help on your end and I can double check the export settings I used.

[BrettFrahm]

Thank you for commenting! I've tried both of your suggestions without success unfortunately.

@RTPL_AU,

It seems that adding the hillshade to a group and setting the group to do the blending instead of the layer did not work, although maybe if we went with the route of transparency instead of blending we could get something useable.

@Melissa_B,

We were already using the Mask setting in symbology with NoData being set to no color(so not being colored), but I did mess with setting it to a color but as you can see in the attached image everything besides the raster is considered NoData so it is not going to work for us with blend mode etc.

[Melissa_B]

Brett,

Set noData to white and do the multiply blend mode - white is treated as "1" so it doesn't have any impact in the multiply blend mode.

Also, I applied the "Multiply" to the hillshade layer so it's multiplied with the basemap. Using a grey color scale and noData set to white, it should apply as if it is a complete raster.

[BrettFrahm]

Oh yep you are right, that fixed it. I'll mark your original reply as the solution. I had hesitated earlier because when I first set it to white Pro showed essentially the whole area as white. The second time I tried it, Pro showed it as you described as did the PDF.

Thank you!