Reader Comments — Copying an Image from a PDF File

I answered a question from reader Glenn Wilkes, who wanted to know how to capture images that were in a PDF file and copy them into a Microsoft Word word processing file. This week, several readers wrote about alternate ways to accomplish the same thing.

Longtime subscriber and frequent commenter Janusz Lukasiak wrote:

Hello Terry,

There is a simpler way:
In Adobe Reader click on the 'Select' tool and draw a frame around the image (or diagram, or text or...). The selected area will be highlighted. Then right click and select 'Copy image to clipboard' (that's the only option anyway). Now go to Word document and paste....

Kind regards
Janusz

Janusz has a great recommendation, which often works. However, sometimes, the author of the PDF file has set some of the copy-protection functions that Adobe Acrobat enables, and prevent the ability to copy words or images from the file. That's when we have to take a different route to accomplish our goal...

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Subscriber Ron Sherman also wrote another tip on how to grab an image from a PDF file:

Hi Terry,

I'm enjoying your newsletter, and thought I could add another method to your first item in this edition about how to copy an image from a PDF file. You can use the free Gadwin PrintScreen program ( www.gadwin.com/printscreen /) and save it to the format you select, then open your document and include the saved print screen file. Tres easy!

Thanks and regards,

Ron

Copyright © 2009 Terry A. Stockdale. All rights reserved.