Supports InDesign 2024 and higher. For older versions of InDesign, please go here.
This tool allows you to convert placed color photos to grayscale without modifying the original color image.
It works best for JPEG and TIFF images. As far as we know, complex, multi-layered Photoshop images don’t always work – so you might want to stick to JPEG or TIFF.
Sometimes you want a particular picture to be output as a grayscale image, yet the original image is in color.
You could open the image in Adobe® Photoshop® and convert it to grayscale, but instead you can also use this plug-in. When using this tool, the original image is not changed and remains in color, yet it is output as a grayscale image.
When outputting in CMYK, the gray image is calculated using a fixed, built-in color-to-grayscale conversion in InDesign. The resulting conversion will only render on the black (K) plate.
Note: despite some comments to the contrary, the image is NOT obtained by simply stripping away the color plates. You can easily verify that by creating a CMY (no K) image in Photoshop, save as TIFF, then use Color2Gray: the image will properly render because it takes into account the CMY channels too.
Installing Color2Gray
You can try out Color2Gray for 20 days, free of charge: simply install it as per the instructions below.
If you decide Color2Gray works for you, and you want to purchase a license, see below for a clickable link that will add a bookmark for Color2Gray into PluginInstaller.
At some point into the future, PluginInstaller will also handle downloading and installing of all of our plug-ins, but for the time being, Color2Gray still needs to be installed through a manual process.
Downloads
To install Color2Gray, you first need to download three different items.
- Color2Gray. This download contains the Color2Gray plug-in.
- APID ToolAssistant. This download contains a shared software component called APID ToolAssistant. To make Color2Gray work, this plug-in needs to be installed.
Important note: you do NOT need to purchase a license for APID ToolAssistant to make Color2Gray work. - PluginInstaller. This item is a shared application which handles activation and purchasing of our software tools. Make sure you update to the latest version – re-download if in doubt.
1. Download link for Color2Gray
https://www.rorohiko.com/downloads/Color2Gray.2.0.16.zip
2. Download links for APID ToolAssistant
Pick the correct link, depending on your computer and version of InDesign:
2.1. Mac, InDesign 2024
https://www.rorohiko.com/downloads/apid/APIDToolAssistant_Mac_2024.1.0.73.zip
2.2. Mac, InDesign 2025
https://www.rorohiko.com/downloads/apid/APIDToolAssistant_Mac_2025.1.0.73.zip
2.3. Windows, InDesign 2024
https://www.rorohiko.com/downloads/apid/APIDToolAssistant_Win_2024.1.0.73.zip
2.4. Windows, InDesign 2025
https://www.rorohiko.com/downloads/apid/APIDToolAssistant_Win_2025.1.0.73.zip
3. PluginInstaller
Installing on a Mac
You need to have a user account with Admin privileges on your computer.
If you don’t have such an account, you need to talk to your I.T. department – they will need to help you install the plug-ins.
Make sure InDesign is not running.
Using the Finder, navigate to the InDesign Plug-Ins folder for your version of InDesign.
On most computers this will be on a path similar to /Applications/Adobe InDesign 202x/Plug-Ins
Create a folder called Rorohiko – this is not absolutely necessary, but if you also use plug-ins from other companies, it’s better to put them into separate folders, nested below the Plug-Ins folder. You will probably need to provide your computer login password in order to create this folder.
Decompress the APIDToolAssistant_Mac_20xx…zip file and move the contents into the Rorohiko folder. Once installed, it should look similar to the screenshot below:
Decompress the Color2Gray…zip file.
Inside you find a nested Macintosh.zip file.
Decompress Macintosh.zip.
Drill down into the folder that matches your platform and InDesign version.
Move the two plug-ins (Color2Gray.spln and Color2Gray…InDesignPlugin) into the Rorohiko folder inside the InDesign Plug-Ins folder.
You can now launch InDesign.
Now scroll further down, past the Installing on Windows section, to the Usage section.
Installing on Windows
On your computer, you need to have a user account with Admin privileges.
If you don’t have such an account, you need to talk to your I.T. department – they will need to help you install the plug-ins.
Make sure InDesign is not running.
Using the Explorer, navigate to the InDesign Plug-Ins folder for your version of InDesign.
On most computers this will be on a path similar to C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe InDesign 202x\Plug-Ins
Create a folder called Rorohiko – this is not absolutely necessary, but if you also use plug-ins from other companies, it’s better to put them into separate folders, nested below the Plug-Ins folder. You will probably need to provide your computer login password in order to create this folder.
Right-click the APIDToolAssistant_Win_20xx…zip file and select Extract All…
Move the two plug-in files and the two plug-in folders into the Rorohiko folder. Once installed, it should look similar to the screenshot below:
Right-click the Color2Gray…zip file and select Extract All…
Drill down into the Windows folder and find the version that matches your InDesign version.
Move three items into the InDesign Plug-Ins folder: two plug-ins (Color2Gray.spln and Color2Gray.pln) and the plug-in folder (Color2Gray Resources) into the Rorohiko folder inside the InDesign Plug-Ins folder.
You can now launch InDesign.
Usage
After you have installed the plug-ins, select one or more placed color images on some page.
Right-click or control-click the selection.
In the context menu there should be a menu item called API (shorthand for Active Page Item).
This menu item should contain an option Force Render as Gray which you can select to make the images render in grayscale.
Screenshot
After an image is converted to grayscale the context menu will change – you can convert back to a color image if so desired – the menu item changes to Render Normally.
Screenshot
There are currently two known limitations.
First, the conversion to grayscale is done by InDesign, and you have no control over the process.
InDesign does a pretty good job, and this will suffice for many people, but if you want more specialized conversions (e.g. switch off color management, fiddle with curves,…) then this plug-in won’t help you. In other words – it’s back to Photoshop, and create an edited grayscale copy there.
Second limitation: Color2Gray only handles simple bitmap images. It does not work on vector images (Illustrator, EPS,…), and we’ve also encountered complex Photoshop images (with multiple layers) that could not be handled by Color2Gray. Please test thoroughly and check the printed output before going live!
Purchasing a License
Color2Gray is free to try for 20 days. After the trial period, you need to purchase an activation code for US$29.00 per seat, per year (excluding tax) by way of PluginInstaller.
You will need to renew the license every year.
Start the PluginInstaller, which you downloaded in installation step 3 above.
Then go through the following steps.
Create an Account:
If this is your first time using PluginInstaller, you’ll need to create a new account and register it within PluginInstaller.
If you already have an account listed in the Accounts window, you can skip ahead.
Add a Color2Gray Bookmark:
Add a bookmark for Color2Gray into PluginInstaller by clicking the following link:
Add Color2Gray Bookmark into PluginInstaller
Alternatively, you can use the Browse the Store for Software window in PluginInstaller and find the Color2Gray entry in the Rorohiko Catalog, then click the link provided.
Purchase License
Once the bookmark is listed in the Installing and Ordering window, select it fill out the Ordering section at the bottom.
Adjust the seat count and add a reference if desired, then click Purchase.
Activation may take some time to process; keep an eye for updates in the Licenses, Activations, and Pending Orders window in PluginInstaller.
The status of the order in this window will change once the license has been approved.
Transporting Licenses Between Computers
For transporting licenses between computer (e.g. when using a multi-seat license), you can use the export/import buttons on the Licenses, Activations and Pending Orders window.