Customize PDFs

Last verified: 2026-08-21

Documentr separates report content (what was documented) from presentation (how the PDF looks). Customization lives in the web app under PDF settings (sidebar) and branding.

Layout, visibility, and format apply per template. Image quality is organization-wide — independent of the selected template.

Template & report type

Choose a built-in or custom template; the toggles below apply only to that template
Report types can get a preferred template (empty = organization default)
Check the live preview against an existing report before saving

Deeper markup: PDF templates.

Format

Per template:

Paper size (A4 / Letter) and orientation
PDF label language (DE/EN)

Dates in the PDF stay DD.MM.YYYY even if labels are English — see Date format & calendar week.

Image quality (download & archive)

Embedded raster images (artwork photos, detail photos, thumbnails) are scaled and re-encoded for the PDF only. Master files on the server stay unchanged — see image formats.

The setting applies to downloaded draft PDFs and archive PDFs. The Admin live preview stays on Standard (150 dpi / JPEG) so the page does not freeze.

Preset	Target DPI	Format	Typical use
Screen	96	JPEG	small files, on-screen
Standard	150	JPEG	default for most reports
Print	300	JPEG	higher print demand
Archive	300	PNG (lossless)	long-term archive, no JPEG artefacts

Under Advanced you can override preset values:

Target DPI: 72–300
Format: JPEG (lossy) or PNG (lossless)
JPEG quality: 40–95 (JPEG only)

Logos with transparency always stay PNG. The PDF version is 1.4 (Chromium) and is not configurable.

The mapping itself remains an SVG drawing — image quality applies to raster photos, not vector strokes.

Section visibility

Per template, including:

Logo, KPIs, thumbnail, author, report details, notes, status timeline
Artwork fields (title, artist, inventory number, medium, dimensions)
Dimensions appear as height × width; grouping, decimal mark, and cm/inch are organisation-wide (Measurements & number format)
Mapping page and legend
Damage catalog including detail photos, position map, metadata, optional coordinates and comparison badges
Size of detail photos and position thumbnails (¼ to full width)
Form pages (when forms are bound)
Signature / integrity page (relevant for archives)
Page numbers, draft watermark (text such as “DRAFT”), custom footer text

You can produce lean internal drafts or comprehensive archive PDFs from the same data.

Branding

Institution logo and accent colors feed into cover and layout (available on cloud plans from Trial/Starter). File names for PDF and SVG mapping can be controlled via naming templates.

What customization is not

Not a way to alter finalized archive content — after finalization the report is read-only
Not a rewrite of original photos — only the PDF embed is scaled
Not a substitute for tenant PDF templates (Handlebars) when you need deeper layout/markup control — see PDF templates

Typical flow

Choose a template, set sections and image quality in the web app
Check the live preview (layout) and download a draft PDF (actual image quality)
Adjust template or form PDF (formHbs) if needed
Finalize → archive PDF with integrity proof at the chosen image quality