MATLAB: Using ‘painters’ for saving a file to EPS format does not give me the transparency I saw in the FIG file.

epsMATLABpainterspostscriptprinttransparency

I have a figure with transparency. I try to save it into EPS format by using 'print' and setting the 'renderer' as '-painters', as mentioned in the documentation link for 'print'. However, my EPS file does not give the transparency I saw in the FIG file. Why does this happen?

Best Answer

Postscript does not support transparency. Therefore, using '-painters' to generate an EPS figure using 'print' does not work.

A workaround is to use '-opengl', instead of '-painters'. Opengl creates an image of the onscreen figure. So, it is going to generate the 'eps' figure which will be the same as the FIG file.

A second workaround, depending on the workflow, is to export with PDF. 'Painters' supports transparency with 'pdf'.

It won't be identical to EPS, but to get a similarly sized output the user can try setting the figure's PaperSize to be the same as the figure's PaperPosition width and height.

Related Solutions

MATLAB: How to make MATLAB print in WYSIWYG mode

There are several ways to ensure that your objects maintain a consistent look when printing. With MATLAB you can do the following:

1) Set the PaperPositionMode of the figure to 'auto'. The following command forces the figure's size and location on the printed page to directly reflect the figure's size on the screen:

      set(gcf,'PaperPositionMode','auto')

2) Set the figure's screen position to the same dimensions as the figure's PaperPosition.

      ppos = get(gcf,'PaperPosition');
      su = get(gcf,'Units');
      pu = get(gcf,'PaperUnits');  
      set(gcf,'Units',pu);
      spos = get(gcf,'Position');
      set(gcf,'Position',[spos(1) spos(2) ppos(3) ppos(4)])
      set(gcf,'Units',su)

MATLAB: How to get transparent PNG file from FIG file

1. Download the "export_fig" functions from the File Exchange link:

https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/23629-export_fig

Note that this is a 3rd party File Exchange function, and not officially supported (or tested) by MathWorks.

2. Set the 'Color' property of both figure and axes objects to 'none':

>> plot(1:10)
>> f = gcf;
>> a = gca;
>> f.Color = 'none';
>> a.Color = 'none';

3. Use the "export_fig" function with -transparent' flag to generate the PNG file:

>> export_fig -transparent

Best Answer

Related Solutions

MATLAB: How to make MATLAB print in WYSIWYG mode

MATLAB: How to get transparent PNG file from FIG file

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