Digital Graphics File Formats

Georgia Lancashire

Raster GraphicsRaster Graphics are a type of digital graphic which uses lots of

small pixels to make a bitmap. Each pixel records information and because a single bitmap will contain many megapixels (14 megapixels being the equivalent of 14,000,000 pixels) the size of the file will be quite large. Each pixel also contains a different colour. When resized, the bitmap graphic will become pixelated as it has a limited number of pixels so after a while it becomes distorted. The bitmap graphic can also become distorted when uploaded to the internet (eg. Facebook, etc) because the pixels will be compressed into less megapixels therefore making the file smaller so it will load faster.

Each individual pixel is filled by a different colour.

Vector GraphicsVectors are a type of digital graphic made from vectors and paths.

They are defined by a starting point and an ending point with angles between them to form a shape (simple or more advanced) which the computer will fill with a colour. They are also scalable which means as the computer has filled the area with colour when the graphic is resized, it does not lose quality or definition. This makes it perfect for companies to use vectors for logo’s as they can be used on something as small as a letterhead on a piece of paper or on something as large as an advertising board. The computer will only have to save the vectors and paths so the file size will be significantly smaller than one of a Raster Graphic.

The computer fills the area between the starting point and finishing point.

Raster Graphics

JPEGStands For Joint Photographic Experts

Used For/Example Photographs and web formats.

Advantage •They are universal meaning they can be opened on almost anything.•They are used for webpages such as Facebook meaning most people have come across them and used them before.

Disadvantage •They can lose quality with multiple edits from compression and recompression each time the JPEG is edited.•They do not support transparency.•They are not as suitable for text.

TIFFStands For Tagged Image File Format

Used For/Example It’s popular with graphic designers for desktop publishing.

Advantage •Adobe InDesign documents saved as a TIFF can save multi-page documents to a single TIFF.•They have the option to not lose quality.•They can be opened in Photoshop.

Disadvantage •Not everything can open TIFF files.•The file size can be quite big, larger than JPEG mostly, as they have the option to not compress the files.

GIFStands For Graphic Interchange Format

Used For/Example They are used for short digital animation, usually on the internet.

Advantage •They are universal meaning they can be opened almost anywhere.•They have a smaller file size than videos so, when on the internet, they will load faster.•They support transparency.

Disadvantage •They are usually poor quality so it would be less likely to get used.•It is one of the oldest image formats.

BMPStands For Bitmap Image File

Used For/Example Photography or art files.

Advantage •They are mostly universal.•They have no loss in compression unlike a JPEG file.•If they have not been resized, they will have a very good photo quality.

Disadvantage •Much like a TIFF file, they are large in file size.•They are not scalable so they can become very pixelated if resized.

Vector Graphics

PSDStands For Photoshop Document

Used For/Example Image manipulation, and a good example of this is Front covers of magazines.

Advantage •It can save layers, page formatting information, swatches, etc.•It supports transparency which is good for designing logo’s for clothing.

Disadvantage •You need Photoshop to view them.•They have a big file size which could easily reach a gigabyte.•To upload them to the web you would have to save them as a TIFF or a JPEG which means if you were to reopen it in Photoshop you would have lost the layers.

AIStands For Adobe Illustrator Art

Used For/Example Used by artists and graphic designers to design logo’s and such.

Advantage •There’s no loss in definition if the image is resized so the image does not lose quality.

Disadvantage •They can only be viewed in Illustrator.•The file sizes can get quite big like those of a PSD.•To send or upload them to the internet they would have to be sent as a copy or sent/saved as a JPEG like a PSD.

FLAStands For Flash File

Used For/Example Used for animation and game production.

Advantage •It produces high quality files with small file size so it takes up less storage on the computer, or USB stick.•It can include sound and video.

Disadvantage •It often needs updating which can be a problem if it is needed but can not be used quick enough as it needs updating before it can be used.

WMFStands For Windows Metafile

Used For/Example It is used for designing logo’s.

Advantage •You can rescale them which is good for logo’s as companies can use them wherever without causing the image to be distorted.•They contain both Vector and Bitmap components.

Disadvantage •It’s very simple which means no complex files can be made unlike a PSD.

File Format Capture and Optimising

CompressionDefinition Lossy compression means that when you

save an image, it will lessen the amount of megapixels in the file.

Advantage •It makes the file smaller so it would take up less storage than what it would if it was not compressed.

Disadvantage •It will cause the image to become pixelated and to look distorted which means the image will lose quality and less likely to be used for it’s purpose.

Image CaptureMethod Scanner

How is it used for image capture of graphics

If you use the scanner to scan a sketch, a photo, or a mixed media product, and etc it will digitalise them and transfer them into a JPEG file on the computer.

Method CameraHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsThe camera will capture a moment and digitalise it so there is a still life of it which can then be printed or transferred into a JPEG file.

Method Graphics TabletHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsA graphics tablet allows someone to draw or write on the tablet which will transfer through to a document on the computer which can be saved as a number of files.

OptimisingWhy would you optimise? By optimising an image it will give it a smaller

loading file and therefore take less time to download which is better for images on the internet as the webpage will load faster.

How can you optimise? You can optimise a lot of ways. For example, you can reduce the image size or compress the image. You can also reduce the bit depth or reduce the resolution (the amount of pixels in the image.)

Advantage to optimising •Images on the internet are optimised for easy viewing as they load faster due to the small loading file.•Images uploaded to social media are optimised automatically so they will load faster and people are not sat waiting for images and videos to load for a long period of time.

Disadvantage to optimising •By optimising images, they are losing quality as they are being compressed.•They are also losing quality by being resized which could make them become pixelated and distorted.

Storage

File SizeWhat could affect a Working Scale (Photoshop) document file size?

The amount of layers and effects you have on your PSD will affect the file size greatly as the more you have, the bigger the file size will be.

How could you reduce the file size of a Working Scale document without

affecting quality?

One thing you could do is group multiple layers together so they make one layer rather than a few. Another thing you could is making sure you only keep essential parts of the image like for example, if you were rota scoping over an image, that when you are finished, you should delete the original image to reduce file space. You could also rasterize some aspects of the PSD.

What is an advantage of scaling up images before exporting?

Scaling up the image in raster graphics will produce a less pixelated and more of a softer image.

What is a disadvantage of scaling up images before exporting?

It will greatly increase the fie size of the document.

File Naming ConventionsWhat naming conventions could you use

when creating your assets?• You would name each file with a name

relevant to their purpose so each file is recognisable and can be distinguished from one and other.

• You would also name each layer in a PSD (for example, Hair, nose, eyes, etc,) so you know which layer is the right layer.

Why is it a good idea to accurately name your assets?

So you know which specific assets are which straight away without having to check each of them until you find the one you are looking for.

Asset ManagementWhy would you use folders when storing

your assets?To keep all your assets organised so you can assess the one you need quicker instead of scrolling through many different files searching for the one you need.

What folders would you create and what would you save within them

• ‘Personal photos’ where you would keep your photographs from your holiday or a day out, etc.

• ‘College’ where you would keep all your files for your college work.

• ‘Photoshop’ where you would keep all your PSD files.

• ‘Admin’ where you could keep all your financial documents.