Digital Graphics File FormatsYour name here

Raster Graphics• Raster graphics are images made up of bitmaps• Bitmaps are made up of tiny cells called pixels. • A Bitmap graphic is usually made up of pixels/bits of different colour information.

Because the images are made up of many pixels the image file size can be quite large as every single pixel needs storing to the computer make up the image.

• Bitmap images have a fixed resolution of 300 dpi (dots per inch). A problem with Bitmap files is that when you resize a Raster graphic it can tend to lose quality and cause distortion.

• In photographs image sizes are talked about in megapixels, this is the number of pixels/bits the picture is split into. 1 Mega pixel = 1,000,000 and because of the large quantities of information (pixels) used in pictures online images online can become pixelated because the image has been compressed into less megapixels

• Bitmap files are used for Photographs, short digital animations and Web formats and can be saved as JPEG files, Tiff Files, Giff Files & BMP Files.

Vector Graphics• Vector graphics are made up of vectors known as paths and strokes. • Vectors are defined by a start and end point with curves, points and angles

between them.• This means that the path can be a line, a triangle, a square or even a curvy

shape. • It is possible to edit each object separately, for example, change the shape,

colour, size and position.• Even if an object in a vector graphic is quite large, it doesn't need a lot of

computer memory. Therefore the file size of a vector graphic is often very small.

• Vector graphics are scalable - ie when you resize them, they do not lose quality. They are perfect for images that need to be both large and small ie Company Logo.

• Vector Graphics can be saved as PSD files, AI files, Flash Files and WMF files.

Note the difference betweenVector and Raster (Bitmap)Images when both scaled upand scaled down.

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Raster Graphics

JPEGStands For Joint Photographic Experts Group

Used For/Example Photographs and Web Formats –Used in Print industry.Most commonly used by digital camerasOne of the most popular formats for web designers

Advantage Easy to export and small in file size this means more images can be stored. Support for 24 bit colour information.All digital cameras have this option and JPEG is a universal file type so can be opened almost anywhere

Disadvantage Loses quality with multiple edits due to compression and recompression each time it is edited so the image loses quality & information each time it is saved.Layers cannot saved as image is only saved as one full image.

TIFFStands For Tagged Image File Format

Used For/Example Desktop publishing & Used In Graphic Design. It is accepted as a photograph file standard in the print industry

Advantage Adobe In Design docs saved as Tiffs can save multi page documents to a single file.Compatable with wide range of software applications.Don’t lose any quality due to compression as they have the option of Lossless compression.

Disadvantage Large File sizes which use large amounts of memory means that large storage device is needed to store images.Online websites don’t support TIFF files.

GIFStands For Graphics Interchange Format

Used For/Example Short animations on the internet andFacebook. Exchanging graphic files between computers.

Advantage Can produce a series of images in a loop which appear as a short video.Good for storing graphics with few colours like diagrams shapes & cartoon style images.Can be inserted into a power point.

Disadvantage They only animate in browsers that support animated gifs.Not good for detailed images as they tend to be pixelated.Usually very low Quality and only contain 256 colours and cannot be edited after saving.

BMPStands For Bitmap Image File

Used For/Example Photographs, graphic images, magazines & print media and other high quality images.Background images & wallpapers m/soft Paint Program

Advantage No quality loss in compression gives clear crisp images.Wide acceptance, simplicity and used in PC & Mac programs.

Disadvantage Large file sizes due to large amount of image information that cant be compressed, they take up a lot of storage space.

Vector Graphics

PSDStands For Photoshop Document

Used For/Example Image manipulation, magazine cover design, photo editing in Adobe Photoshop and other Adobe products.Used by Graphic Designers &Web Designer

Advantage Supports most imaging options including layers with transparency, masks, text, actions, filters and swatches, page formatting information and Swatches etc.

Disadvantage PSD files tend to be extremely large making them difficult to email or transferPurely for editing also needs large amounts of storage space.PSD files only compatible with Adobe products.

AIStands For Adobe Illustrator Art

Used For/Example Logo Creation and images that need to be scalable.Used by Graphic Designers to design scalable images like cartoons, logos and illustrations

Advantage The images are scalable so can be made big or small with no loss of quality Images do not become pixelated on resize.

Disadvantage To create images some amount of skill or training is require to master it.Need specialist software to open files

FLAStands For Flash File

Used For/Example Used to create very high quality animations and games.Games & Film industry

Advantage Can produce high quality files with a small file size.Can include sound and video but because of the small file size can be used on web sites without slowing down too much.

Disadvantage Compatibility problem viewing the animations on certain devices and files can be complex.Only limited software can run these files

WMFStands For Windows Metafile

Used For/Example Used for logos and storing vector and bitmap information can also be used when creating clipartsGraphic Designer use these

Advantage Can be scaled big and small as vectors have no loss in definition.Can contain BOTH vector and bitmap components

Disadvantage Few applications support direct editing of metafiles and WMF files are only available on Windows platforms

File Format Capture and Optimising

CompressionDefinition Compression is the way in which a files

size is reduced. By compressing files you can the way data is coded and as a result you can create more memory space.

Advantage The advantage of compressing a file size is that is smaller in size this means its takes up less memory and is easier to export and receive

Disadvantage Images become more pixelated as they are compressed as they save smaller amounts of pixels each time. This means the quality of the file is reduced.

Image CaptureMethod Scanner

How is it used for image capture of graphics

You can digitise physical images like hand drawn sketches, documents, photographs and mixed media images.

Method CameraHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsTaking pictures using a camera

Method Graphics Tablet

How is it used for image capture of graphics

This is is a piece of technology that controls the mouse like a pen allowing enhanced control of drawing, selection & digital handwriting.

OptimisingWhy would you optimise? To ensure easier viewing on the web.

Images load quicker when optimised as their file sizes are reduced this means the website can run faster.

How can you optimise? You can optimise an image by Reducing its image size, bit depth (colour of individual pixels) & resolution (amount of pixels within image).You can also optimise for the web buy changing “image size” in photoshop.

Advantage to optimising Smaller file sizemeans its faster to upload And images are easier to view online.

Disadvantage to optimising Images can not be more than 500 pixels wide. If you optimise an image pixels are lost and you cannot retrieve that information once lost

Storage

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

The size of the image and the detail within it such as colour information and layers.

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

affecting quality?

I would reduce the file size of the image using a lossless format.

What is an advantage of scaling up images before exporting?

The advantage of scaling up images before exporting is that when they receive the image and scale it down it will be less pixelated.

What is a disadvantage of scaling up images before exporting?

Large file size makes the image harder to sending.

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

• Name each file for each individual part of the game/character also set up separate files for separate sections.

• Add a date to help track when it was created and if it’s the most up to date version or searching for an original version when showing progress.

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

It is good to name files accurately and in an ordered so they can be re found with ease when needed and also filed correctly for future use of yourself and others.

Asset ManagementWhy would you use folders when storing

your assets?I would use files when storing assets to make assets fast and easy to find and organised.

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

I would create files for each large project then I would then divide these files into each section of the project ie research, development & final product these files would eventually be uploaded when submitting my work .I would also create files for music, characters and scenes, these files would be for my personal development purposes within a Folder named with the project title.