Digital Graphics
File Formats
Sjon Barnes
Raster Graphics
An image made up of bitmaps, which
represent each pixel for that image
file. Each pixel records the colour or
information for that small square of
that image. Bitmaps have a set
resolution like 300dpi on Photoshop.
This means changing the size of the
image can result in distortion.
Vector Graphics
Vector Files are made up of vectors
which are also known as paths and
strokes. These are made up with
curves and angles and take up little
space. This means you can resize a
vector and it will not become
pixelated, these are useful for
companies using shapes on logos
that can be resized for billboards and
business cards.
Raster Graphics
JPEG
Stands For
Joint Photographic Experts Group
Used For/Example
Photographs that are uploaded to
the internet like Facebook or
Instagram etc. This format would
be used by everyone who uploads
images onto the internet.
Advantage
Its the universal file format for
photos on the internet, so
everyone can see them without
having to convert the file format
to something different. Also JPEG
files are much smaller than some
of the other file formats, meaning
it can be used pretty much
anywhere like a tablet, phone or
computer.
Disadvantage
The image I compressed when
saved. So every time the image is
saved after editing that image, it
will be recompressed. This means
TIFF
Stands For
Used For/Example
Tagged Image File Format
PC publishing on Adobe InDesign
which is good for making
magazine covers and for desktop
publishing. Used by graphic
designers and anyone who saves
files after using InDesign.
Advantage
TIFF contains lossless compression
so the photo doesnt lose quality
during compression. TIFFs can
also save multiple pages into one
document which is why InDesign
documents are saved as TIFFs.
Disadvantage
The files are large for a standard
image due to the good quality of
TIFF files. TIFFs are a specialist file
format meaning it requires certain
programmes to run it, unlike JPEGs
which can be open almost
everywhere on the internet.
GIF
Stands For
Graphics Interchange Format
Used For/Example
Short animation images, like a
short video. Often found on the
internet. Like JPEGs they are used
by everyone on the internet. They
are now easier to upload since
Facebook Messenger had a GIF
search option.
Advantage
A GIF is usually only 5-10 seconds
long, so it was quicker to upload a
GIF rather than uploading a video
to the internet. GIFs have more
comedic value than a full video as
this is short and funny to repeat
many times.
Disadvantage
Bad quality series of images,
plays like a bad quality video. It
was set up like this because back
in the early days of the internet
videos took ages to upload so
BMP
Stands For
Bitmap Image File
Used For/Example
These are used to save Bitmap
digital images similar to the JPEG
and TIFF formats.
Advantage
No loss in compression, so it can
be sized anyway you want. The
images are also saved in very
high quality.
Disadvantage
Since the bitmap images are high
quality this can result in a large
file size which takes up a lot of
space on the PC.
Vector Graphics
PSD
Stands For
Used For/Example
Photoshop Document
Used in Adobe Photoshop for
image manipulation for
magazines, posters and many
different techniques for
illustration.
Advantage
Saves the image in layers, and it
supports transparency. So you
dont have to save each layer
individually and keep it all in one
document.
Disadvantage
Due to the image saving in layers
the file size can be large. Some
Photoshop can exceed 1GB
sometimes.
AI
Stands For
Adobe Illustrator Artwork
Used For/Example
Used to create logos for
companies by using vector based
drawings in EPS or the PDF
formats. This is only used in
Adobe Illustrator.
Advantage
The images can be scaled in
bigger or smaller than the normal
size as the image doesnt lose
definition.
Disadvantage
Not good for any person who cant
draw or do art, that wants a good
business logo. Like a TIFF file, AI
files are a specialist file format
meaning it can only be used on
certain programmes and in this
case its Adobe Illustrator Art.
FLA (SWF)
Stands For
Used For/Example
Flash File Format (Small Web
Format)
This is used for multimedia, vector
graphics and ActionScript. This
can contain animations and most
commonly browser games using
ActionScript.
Advantage
You can have a very high quality
file with a small file size which
includes sound and video.
Disadvantage
Like many other of these file
formats, the FLA file format can
only be open by specialist
software unlike JPEGs which are
universal.
WMF
Stands For
Used For/Example
Advantage
Disadvantage
Windows Metafile
Similar to AI, it makes logos or
Clipart. Originally designed for
Microsoft Windows in 1990 which
is 26 years ago.
The images that are saved in the
WMF file format can be scaled
bigger or smaller due and have no
loss in definition and this file can
both contain bitmap and vector
components.
The WMF is only available on
Windows specifically Microsoft
Word and PowerPoint.
File Format
Capture and
Optimising
Compression
Definition
Advantage
Disadvantage
Compression is where images
become more pixelated, the more
they are compressed, as there is
small amounts of coloured pixels
in the image
With vectors you can make the
image whatever size you want
without having compression
With Raster images, the picture
can become more pixelated
making it worse if you use a small
image and resize it to an A4 size
for a poster.
Image Capture
Method
How is it used for image
capture of graphics
Scanner
Scan physical drawings and
photos to use on the PC
Method
Camera
How is it used for image
capture of graphics
Takes an image of it which you
then use an SD card to put it onto
the PC
Method
Graphics Tablet
How is it used for image
capture of graphics
Allows you to control the mouse
like a pen, allowing for enhanced
control for digital sketches
Optimising
Why would you optimise?
You would optimise an image to
make the image a smaller size file
allowing for easy viewing on the
web
How can you optimise?
You can optimise on Photoshop by
changing the image size on the
menus. Images should be 500
pixels wide max with a resolution
of 300
Advantage to optimising
Disadvantage to optimising
The download of an image is
decreased to allow for easy
viewing on the internet
This can skew up a big image so
when someone sees it
Storage
File Size
What could affect a Working
Scale (Photoshop) document
file size?
If the file size is too big then the
file takes up too much space,
which can cause many problems
for if you want to create another
document. This is because of the
layer build up on the Photoshop
document
How could you reduce the file
size of a Working Scale
document without affecting
quality?
To keep it working scale, you could
use the bicubic sharper to keep
the image quality high during
scaling of the image
What is an advantage of
scaling up images before
exporting?
This allows the image to be
resized without losing quality after
exporting
What is a disadvantage of
scaling up images before
exporting?
Scaling up also allows for a large
file size which is harder to send
and publish
File Naming Conventions
What naming conventions
could you use when creating
your video game assets?
I could name the asset whatever
the video game is called to
remember what the file is on a
later date, rather than leaving the
document name as Untitled(1)
Why is it a good idea to
accurately name your assets?
Not accurately naming these
assets can cause a load of
unfindable documents, so when
you want to find a particular
document its extremely hard to
find.
Asset Management
Why would you use folders
when storing your assets?
I would use folders to store assets
that are similar to each other for
example my Photoshop
documents and Video Games are
separated into different folders
What folders would you create I would create folders for each
and what would you save
topic to not confuse myself with
within them
what topic this file is about
