Digital Graphics File Formats

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Raster Graphics• Raster graphics are made up of bitmaps.

Bitmaps are graphics which are made up of pixels. A pixel has a fixed resolution so when these are resized they can become distorted. For example photoshop is usually set to 300dpi so when this is made bigger it becomes blurred and looks distorted.

Vector Graphics

• Vector graphics are made up of vectors, which are also know are strokes or paths. These paths have a starting and an end point, from this it them takes that information to join the two up. Because of this it means that they can be resized with out loosing and definition.

Raster Graphics

JPEGStands For Joint photographic Experts Group

Used For/Example JPEGs are used mainly on web formats and in photographs. It is the most used format on Digital cameras.

Advantage JPEGs are very easy to use as they are compatible on most devises, for example macs and pcs. The are also able to store full colour images.

Disadvantage Quality is lost when edited multiple times. As the layers are compressed each time it is edited causing it too lose quality.

TIFFStands For Tagged Image File Format

Used For/Example Desktop publishing uses it alot, for example graphic designers.

Advantage They have multiple pages so it mean it doesn't loose its quality as there is the option of no lossless compression.

Disadvantage As it is compressed differently in a way that it keeps the images at a good quality, this means that the files size is very large.

GIFStands For Graphics Interchange Format

Used For/Example Mainly used for short digital animations for internet use.

Advantage GIFs are useful as they can show the movement and action where as a normal still image can not.

Disadvantage GIFs are not usually great in quality and tend to look pixelated, once they have been saved they can not be edited either so any mistakes cant be changed, this is why they are not a preferred file type.

BMPStands For Bitmap Image File

Used For/Example Used to store bitmap Digital images.

Advantage There is no loss in quality when compressed. It is able to be shared easily as compatible with all software.

Disadvantage Due to the no loss in quality it causes it to be a large file size.

Vector Graphics

PSDStands For Photoshop document

Used For/Example It is used for editing and manipulating images, for example images used in magazines.

Advantage PSD’s are useful as they are able to save all individual layers meaning it can be re-edited easily.

Disadvantage As it is not compressed it means the file size is very large which takes up alot of space. It is also not compatible with other programs, which limits how it can be shared.

AIStands For Adobe illustrator art

Used For/Example Mainly used for the making of logos for companies, for example the M for macdonalds.

Advantage It can be resized easily with no loss in definition as it is made from vectors. The file size is small so it can be sent to other easily.

Disadvantage Cant be shared as easily as can only be viewed on certain software.

FLAStands For Flash file

Used For/Example The flash files are mainly used to create games and animations.

Advantage Flash files can produce high quality work but with a small files size. The can also include video and sound which most others dont.

Disadvantage These files dont work on many programs so they are hard to share.

WMFStands For Windows metafile

Used For/Example Very much like AL files, as they make graphics and logos, but they are used primarily for clip art.

Advantage WMF files can contain both bitmap and vector graphics, so they can be made bigger with no loss of quality or definition.

Disadvantage They are hard to share with others as they are only compatible with windows.

File Format Capture and Optimising

CompressionDefinition Lossy compression is how the file

size is made to be smaller, this is done by reducing the amount of information that is being stored.

Advantage Compression is useful as it can dramatically reduce the file size, this mean it is able to be shared more easily.

Disadvantage The images can become very pixelated when they become compressed this is due to the fact the save a small amount of the colour squares/pixels each time.

Image CaptureMethod Scanner

How is it used for image capture of graphics

Enables you to take physical things like a drawing for example and will email it to you so it is able to be used in things like photoshop.

Method CameraHow is it used for image capture of

graphics

Method Graphics TabletHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsThis turns your mouse in to a pen for example, this can be useful if something is wanted to look like it has been hand written

OptimisingWhy would you optimise? Smaller files are easier to access as

large files types take time to download, so by optimising a file it becomes more accessible on the internet.

How can you optimise? Optimising is when the files size is reduced by removing some information from the file.

Advantage to optimising Makes the images more accessible to people through the internet. The smaller files size wont take as long to download.

Disadvantage to optimising The images will loose some of its quality and become more pixelated

Storage

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

The more layers and editing that has taken place on the images, means that the file size will be storing alot more information

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

affecting quality?

By reducing the depth of the image

What is an advantage of scaling up images before exporting?

it will make the image alot easier to view once exported

What is a disadvantage of scaling up images before exporting?

This can cause the images to lose quality and becoming pixelated. Also when saved as a JGEP for example it wll be harder to go back and make further edits.

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

assets?

• When making my video game file names i could name them regarding what is in them, for example when making the characters i would name the file after the characters name. Also do the sam with any props which is have made. I think this is a simple but effective way of knowing what is what.

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

It is a good idea to do this as if you have 10 different videos you can know which is which instantly with an effect file name instead of having to spend 5 mins watching through them all to see which is which.

Asset ManagementWhy would you use folders when

storing your assets?Creating folders is a good way of keeping your work easy to access and understandable. If folders are not used it can be very difficult to find which file your looking for quickly.

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

• I would create 1 media folder, and within that 4 for each topic i am doing. Then within each one i will add which folders are relevant for each topic. For example in photography i had a folder for proformas, one for my photos, one for my 8 final images and another for juat a few other things i had done which didn’t fit in to the other folders.