Digital Graphics File Formats

Ethan Payne

Raster Graphics• Also known as bitmap graphics, raster graphics are bitmaps

made up of pixels. These pixels represent the colour information of that particular area of the image. Images that are bitmapped have a specific set resolution which can cause distortion if resized after being downloaded.

The best use for raster graphics is small web icons or logos. This is because on websites the icons and logo usually stay the same sale so there is no need to increase or decrease the size therefore resulting

in no lack of quality or distortion.

Vector Graphics• Vector graphics is the creation of digital images through the

form of two-dimensional or three-dimensional shapes. Vector graphics are not made up of a grid of pixels, unlike raster graphics such as JPEGs, GIFs and BMP images. Unlike ‘Raster Graphics’, vector graphics is a shape from point A to point B, it is a path consisting of a start point and an end point, along with other points, curves and angles throughout.

Vector graphics are good fro businesses. They can be decreased in size to be put on a small business card or can be dramatically increased in size and be put onto billboards etc. and through all of this

change the image would not loose its quality.

Raster Graphics

JPEGStands For Joint Photographic Experts Group

Used For/Example Files saved from cameras, photographs viewed/downloaded online.

Advantage User independently selects quality/ file size.Format is well-suited and is displayed correctly in all browsers. Picture quality is high with small degree of compression.

Disadvantage Possibility of the image ‘falling apart’, causing smooth colour transitions to become harsh. JPEG is less suitable for working with text with clear boundaries.

TIFFStands For Tagged Image File Format

Used For/Example Desktop PublishingAdobe InDesign – save multiple documents to 1 Tiff file.

Advantage They can be edited with the most popular image editing software.TIFF files do not use compression, resulting in no loss of image details.

Disadvantage Tiff file sizes a usually very large taking up to 100 megabytes. If the Tiff file is too large they cannot be sent through emails.

GIFStands For Graphic Interchange Format

Used For/Example Used for short digital animations

Advantage Require a relatively small file sizeGif files support transparent backgrounds which helps to maintain confident and professional looksLoad quickly which keeps quality.

Disadvantage Low quality on occasionGif files have a minimum colour palette which is how they result in poorer qualityOnce coded, gif files cannot be changed

BMPStands For Bitmap Image File

Used For/Example Similar to JPEG and TIFF filesUsed to store Bitmap Digital Images

Advantage Compression and Recompression causes no loss in quality of the photoBitmap files render well to printers.

Disadvantage Similar to TIFF files, Bitmap files can be very large taking up a lot of storage space.Bitmap files are not good for enlarging images due to dramatic loss of quality in the image.

Vector Graphics

PSDStands For Photoshop Document

Used For/Example Image manipulationFront cover images for magazinesSaving as PSD commonly used by photographers to go back to their work

Advantage PSD files support transparent backgroundsCan handle simple vector layers resulting in easy importing and exporting data such as Adobe illustrator

Disadvantage File size is extremely large due to compress having no effect on loss in quality PSD files are not usually compatible with other programmes

AIStands For Adobe Illustrator File

Used For/Example Logo creation Used by companies to save and transport logos

Advantage Images can be scale very large or very small as vectors have no loss in definition resulting in this file being very useful for large scale images.

Disadvantage If a user does not own Adobe or Photoshop they cannot use this file as it can only be used and viewed on this specific programme.

FLAStands For Flash File

Used For/Example Creating animation and games for websites

Advantage FLA files can produce very high quality files with a small file size resulting in not much use of storage spaceFile also included video and sound making them more useful

Disadvantage Can be hard to use as it is not commonly used on home computersLacking in the correct software can prevent you from watching flash files online

WMFStands For Windows Meta File

Used For/Example Can be used in windows (similar to AL files)Used for logos

Advantage This file can be scaled large and small with no loss in quality due to vector graphicsCan contain both vector and bitmap components

Disadvantage WMF files can only be used for video, audio and animation systems which makes it a useless file for editing photos. Photographers cannot use it

File Format Capture and Optimising

CompressionDefinition Compression is where you reduce the file

size resulting in the file being flexible to be stored and transmitted. Reducing file sizes and reducing the amount of information in the file itself is also knows as ‘Lossy Compression’.

Advantage File size if reduced resulting in less storage space used and can be easily transported onto portable storage devices such as flash drive etc.

Disadvantage As the pixels are compressed the image becomes more pixelated due to having smaller amounts of colour square pixels.

Image CaptureMethod Scanner

How is it used for image capture of graphics

A lamp lights up the image using several mirrors and lenses to pull over an image using a belt. Several mirrors reflect the image into the lens of the scanner which focuses and detects the image through CDD filters. Then save the document as a JPEG file.

Method CameraHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsA camera captures a photograph through light and lenses and is saved into an SD card. This photo file type can be transferred from the card onto any editing software.

Method Graphics Tablet

How is it used for image capture of graphics

Graphic tablets can be used for design by hand or even by an especially designed pen for the tablet to help you draw. As your hand or pen touches the screen the tablet detects your movement and produces a line, curve or shape depending on what you have selected.

OptimisingWhy would you optimise? You would optimize because images that

have not been optimized correctly have a large file size resulting in a lot of storage space being used.

How can you optimise? You can reduce the size of the file so it takes up less storage space. This can be done my removing images or large amounts of information from the file.

Advantage to optimising Because of the large file size, the images are of better quality and there is a maximum colour pallet resulting in a better look overall.

Disadvantage to optimising Large file size which results in more storage space being used.

Storage

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

The aspects saved in the document such as images and shapes to edit the image will effect the file size.

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

affecting quality?

Reducing the images bit depth optimizes the image which results in reduction of the file size.

What is an advantage of scaling up images before exporting?

Scaling up an image before exporting is an advantage as the file can be easily viewed if saved as a JPEG.

What is a disadvantage of scaling up images before exporting?

Distortion and pixelated images is a disadvantage of scaling up an image. If saved as a JPEG there is a high chance that this cannot be changed.

File Naming ConventionsWhat naming conventions could you use when creating your video game assets?

Clearly naming your files is something that can be done to ensure that you can easily and quickly find what you are looking for. For example if making perfume packaging you could name each file (front, back, lid etc.) This allows your work to become more structured and organised.

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

This is a good idea because clearing naming every file reduces the risk of loosing your work. Saving them with clear titles under designated files makes you more organised and structured and it can even come out in making your actual work better.

Asset ManagementWhy would you use folders when storing

your assets?Using folders when structuring and organising your work helps to make things easier to find giving you more time to make progress on actual work.

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

When making folders I like to create a folder for each section of the topic. This helps to separate work into different sections and stop work from different topics and modules getting mixed up and causing you to get confused. Once again this makes it easier to find certain work and to reduce the risk of loosing work and having to do it again.