Digital Graphics File Formats

Emily Shaw

Raster Graphics

• Raster graphics is one of the main types of digital graphics and are made up of bitmaps.

• Bitmaps are graphics are made up of pixels, each pixel records the colour information for that section of the image.

Vector Graphics

• Give a definition of Vector Graphics• Vector graphics are made up of Vectors/Paths.

They are the creation of digital images based upon mathematical expressions which represent images. Vector graphics mainly describe 2D graphic objects.

• Vector/paths are defined by a start and an end points, with curves, points and angles between them.

Raster Graphics

JPEGStands For Joint Photographic Experts Group

Used For/Example JPEG’s are used for photograph and web formats. For example photographs on Facebook are saved as JPEG.

Advantage -Small file size-This Format is compatible in any browsers, and many other programmes for text and image, on all computers, tablets and mobile devices

Disadvantage -Loses quality with multiple edits due to compression and recompression each time the file is edited.

TIFFStands For Tagged Image File Format

Used For/Example It is used for desktop publishing and is used by many graphic designers. Is useful when making covers or magazines etc.

Advantage -InDesign documents saved as TIFFs can save multi-page documents to a single file.-Uncompressed images keep the maximum amount of image data from the camera.

Disadvantage -Tiff are large file sizes so larger storage devices are needed.-The majority of online galleries and websites do not support TIFF.

GIFStands For Graphics Interchange Format

Used For/Example They are used for short digital animations and are often used on the internet. A GIF is a series of images played after each other in a loop to create the look of a video.

Advantage -GIF have a quite small file size-They can also have a transparent background and therefore give a professional look on a website

Disadvantage -GIFs have a maximum colour pallet which restricts the image from being high quality-They can look pixelated because of the restricted colour scheme-Need an internet connection to be able to work

BMPStands For Bitmap Image File

Used For/Example BMP are similar to TIFF and JPEG files and is used for storing high quality images. They are produced by digital cameras and scanners.

Advantage -There is no loss in compression of the image-They produce medium quality images

Disadvantage -Large file size-BMP files do not format well

Vector Graphics

PSDStands For Photoshop Document

Used For/Example It can be used for image manipulation and magazine covers. Within Photoshop document, you can save layers and format information.

Advantage -PSD saves layers, formatting information and swatches-Also PSD supports transparency -Quick editing-Improves quality of the images

Disadvantage -Only recognised by Photoshop and various other photo manipulating software.-The prices-Hard to get to know how to use

AIStands For Adobe Illustrator Art

Used For/Example It can be used for logo creation and helps to create graphics which represent a company.Can be used for creating, editing and printing vector artwork.

Advantage -Can be scaled to any size as the vectors don’t lose the definition.-They have relatively small file sizes, which make it more useful.- It’s the most advanced vector format available

Disadvantage -The files are difficult to store-The files take up a lot of storage -When newer versions of the file type often have compatibility issues.

FLAStands For Flash File

Used For/Example This is used to create animations and games and mobile apps.

Advantage -An advantage of this is you can create a high quality file and have a small file size-Another benefit of this file is that it can include sound and video-Also these files don’t take long to load

Disadvantage -Only specific software's can open these files as FLA files are specialist files. -It takes time to gain the skills used in the software as it is specialist.

WMFStands For Windows Metafile

Used For/Example WMF can be used for creating logos and designing. Windows metafile is used mainly for clip art documents.

Advantage -Can be scaled bigger and not lose any definition -WMF can contain both vector and bitmap components-These files can be scaled multiple times and have no loss in definition.

Disadvantage -The file is only available on windows software's which limits its use.-Clip art doesn't’t look professional and the quality can look bad as it uses bitmaps.

File Format Capture and Optimising

CompressionDefinition Compression is used to reduce the file

size of a file. When a file is compressed it takes up less space then the original file.

Advantage -An advantage of compression is that it saves space on your computer

Disadvantage -Compression decreases the quality of the image and the image becomes more pixelated because each till the file is changed it loses pixels

Image CaptureMethod Scanner

How is it used for image capture of graphics

Scanners are useful as they convert text and images on paper into a digital copy that can be used on a computer.

Method CameraHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsCameras are used to capture graphics as when you take a photo the aperture opens and lets light into the lens, from this point the information is changed into coloured pixels which create the image

Method Graphics TabletHow is it used for image capture of

graphicsWith a graphics tablets the stylus acts like a pen and allows the drawings made to transfer onto a computer

OptimisingWhy would you optimise? Images uploaded on the internet are

optimised to make sure there are easy viewings on the web.

How can you optimise? You can optimize images by altering the web size in photoshop, this can be done by changing the bit depth, resolution and also by compressing images.

Advantage to optimising -Optimising reduces the file size-Also optimising helps the file download faster.

Disadvantage to optimising -Optimising reduces image quality as it reduces the pixel information and the amount of pixels there are.

Storage

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

-Colour depth-Optimisation -Compression

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

affecting quality?

Remove date that isn't need as much such as history and layers things that do not affect the quality of the image

What is an advantage of scaling up images before exporting?

The files will be the correct size without altering much of the quality

What is a disadvantage of scaling up images before exporting?

It can slightly affect the quality of an image

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

• Naming the file by the asset of what it does or what number it is

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

By doing this it helps make it easier to know where the assets are and keep more control over them. It also makes it easier when file made need changing slightly.

Asset ManagementWhy would you use folders when storing

your assets?By organising them it makes them easier use and save.

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

• Different folders• Different categories of assets in games

(object or terrain)