Digital Graphics File Formats

Calum Johnson

Raster GraphicsRaster graphics are made up of bitmaps, bitmaps are a records of information of graphic where pixels record the colour section of an image. Resizing can prove difficult as raster graphics have a set resolution of 3000 which means the image will appear distorted when resized.

Vector GraphicsVector graphics are made up of vectors, vectors are also known as paths or strokes. They are defined by a start and end point whichnd angles all between each point. Unlike Raster graphics Vectors can be resized and have no loss in resolution.

Raster Graphics

JPEGStands For

Used For/Example Is used to save photographical photos and for web browsing

Advantage Has a small file save

Disadvantage The image loses quality with each edit and every time the image is opened because it is compressed each time

TIFFStands For

Used For/Example Used for storing raster graphic images that and are used by photographers because of the lossless compression

Advantage Uncompressed image retains maximum amount of image data

Disadvantage Slow speeds when transferring to online galleries that do support TIFF files

GIFStands For

Used For/Example A GIF is multiple images that are played to give a slight animation.

Advantage Uses a lossless compression so no quality is lost in the process.

Disadvantage It can have a large file save and can take up a lot of space and time depending on the image size.

BMPStands For

Used For/Example Used for digital images graphics

Advantage It has no loss in quality because it has a small compression.

Disadvantage This file format also has quite a large file save and can take up space.

Vector Graphics

PSDStands For

Used For/Example Used when saving an image in Photoshop which allows all the layers and other changes to be kept.

Advantage Saving this way will retain adjustment layers, your masks, shapes, clipping paths, layer styles, blending modes.

Disadvantage The downsides to PSDs the large size and the compatibility

AIStands For

Used For/Example This file format can be used to save logos for a company using adobe art illustrator.

Advantage Because it is a vector it can be scaled to what ever size you want it to be and it will not lose any quality.

Disadvantage

FLAStands For

Used For/Example An FLA file is used to save animations that are made on Flash.

Advantage Relatively easy to learn, as it provides a designer-friendly authoring environment. However, it requires a good understanding of computer graphics.

Disadvantage it's possible to publish your first Flash video in less than an hour with no previous experience, you can do the same with other formats even faster

WMFStands For

Used For/Example Is used as a file extension for windows and contains both vector and bitmap images.

Advantage WMF is a Windows standard format that works well with Office.

Disadvantage Not compatible with non window devices

File Format Capture and Optimising

CompressionDefinition This is when something is squashed down

and becomes much smaller than it was before this includes a file save which might have large amount of data, it can then be compressed using a file format and depending on the format will not lose quality

Advantage It has a faster file transfer because of the compressed amount of data.

Disadvantage In some situations including compressing video and audio files, the file you are compressing cannot be made smaller, resulting in a compressed file that is larger in size than the original file.

Image CaptureMethod Scanner

How is it used for image capture of graphics

A scanner is a device which can be used to scan different objects and transfer the scanned picture onto the computer.

Method CameraHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsA camera can be used to take photos of subjects which can then be transferred onto the computer and be edited.

Method Graphics TabletHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsA graphics tablet can be used to draw detail from the tablet onto the piece of work on the computer.

OptimisingWhy would you optimise? You would optimise to allow an image to

be viewed easily when on the web

How can you optimise? Images can be optimised in may ways, this can be from lowering the resolution which will effect how the image looks another method could be to compress the image to make the file size smaller.

Advantage to optimising They can be compressed which allows for faster access and download because it will have a small file format.

Disadvantage to optimising Can lead to the image losing quality when it loses some resolution.

Storage

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

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

affecting quality?

What is an advantage of scaling up images before exporting?

What is a disadvantage of scaling up images before exporting?

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

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

Asset ManagementWhy would you use folders when storing

your assets?This will allow the assets to be organised which will be much easier to find the different assets

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

I would create each asset and name them after each piece of work format.