Digital Graphics

File Formats
Millie Casemore

Raster Graphics
Raster graphics are essentially an image
created/made up by bitmaps. Bitmaps are made
up of pixels which store a colour corresponding
to the image it makes up. They have a set
resolution, for example 300dpi. Therefore, a
disadvantage is when being resized they can
become distorted because the pixel are being
stretched (less pixels per inch). However an
advantage of Raster graphics is that they can
create complex, high quality images if they are
not resized.

Vector Graphics
Vector graphics are images made up by paths
and strokes through mathematical formulas.
They are made up of set start and end points
and are connected by lines (straight of curved).
The lines can have different thicknesses and
colour. An example of Vector graphics is clipart,
which are simple images created through
vector graphics. An advantage of this is when
being resized, no image quality is lost. Also
they have a small file size. However they are
not good for creating detailed images.

Resizing
RASTER
GRAPHICS

VECTOR
GRAPHICS

The image here,

after being
resized, has
clearly lost
quality and is not
as clear as the
image on the left.

Whereas here the

image, after being
resized, has lost no
quality and is still as
clear as the image
on the left.

Raster Graphics

JPEG
Stands For
Used For/Example

Advantage/s

Disadvantage/s

Joint Photographic Expert

Group
JPEG is a file format commonly
used for images often posted
online or to be saved to a
computer. Eg. Facebook
uploads.
Small file size
Colour depth of 8 bits (256
colours per channel)
Universally compatible

Has a lossy compression algorithm

meaning when it is compressed data
is deleted from the image.
However in comparison to RAW files,
they have a small colour depth (8
bits compared to 10/12 bit)

TIFF
Stands For
Used For/Example

Tag File Image Format

Commonly used in the
publishing/printing industry

Advantage

Option of lossless compression

algorithm meaning they loose
no data upon compression
Can store high quality images
without data being lost
Suitable to store the working
project without data being lost

Disadvantage

Large file size due to lossless

compression
Not suitable to store the
finished product
Not universally compatible/not
as widely accepted as JPEG

GIF
Stands For

Graphic Interchange Format

Used For/Example

Commonly used for short clips of

animations

Advantage

8 bit colour depth

Suitable for logos and images
with few different colours
Good for short animations
Lossless compression

Disadvantage

Low quality if high amounts of

colour are in the image

BMP
Stands For
Used For/Example

Advantage

Disadvantage

Bitmap Image File

Used to store images (bitmap
files) and is very similar to JPEG
and TIFF. Often used for printable
images.
Lossless compression so no
data is deleted
Produce high quality images

Large file which cannot be

compressed, particularly if
there is a lot of colours
Resizing the image usually
results in a distorted image due
to the bitmap/raster graphic file
format

Vector Graphics

PSD
Stands For

Photoshop Document

Used
For/Example

Used by magazine creators

and publicists to create
front covers, logos and to
manipulate photos

Advantage

Can save multiple layers

and page formatting
information
Good for working
products
Lossless compression
Supports transparent
images/backgrounds

Disadvantage

Not suitable for final

product
Large file size
Only compatible with
Adobe file
formats/programs
meaning not many

AI
Stands For

Adobe Illustrator
Art

Used
For/Example

Commonly used by
digital artists to
create for example
logos

Advantage

Uses vector so
images can be
scaled to be
either large or
small and no
image quality will
be lost

Disadvantage Not as widely

compatible
Specialist
software (like
adobe products)
is needed

FLA
Stands For

Flash File

Used For/Example

Used to create basic games and

animations, for example mini clip
flash games

Advantage

High quality images/animations

can be created
Ideal for the web due to small
file size
Can support video and sound

Disadvantage

Difficult to create and execute

Require specialist software

WMF
Stands For

Windows Metafile

Used For/Example

Used to create company logos by

digital artists and companies.
Similar to AI files

Advantage

Can contain both bitmap and

vector images
Images can be scaled large or
small with no definition lost
using vectors

Disadvantage

It is a low resolution image and

is will create poor quality image
is resized as a raster graphic
Limited to only Microsoft
programs to load up metafiles

File Format
Capture and
Optimising

Compression
Definition

Advantage

Lossy compression reduces the file

size significantly by deleting data
which is irrelevant therefore
compressing the image. Whereas
lossless compression reconstructs
the file making it smaller but not
deleting redundant data.
Reduces the file size so it takes up
less space on the hard drive and
means the image is more suitable
for the web.

Disadvantag Due to data being deleted image

e
quality is lost because pixels have
been removed/deleted. Each time
the file is opening more pixels are
removed and over a period of
time the image begins to become
pixelated.

Image Capture
Method
How is it used for image
capture of graphics

Scanner
A scanner shines light on an
image (photos, sketches, writing)
and digitises the image. The
digitised image is then saved on
the computer.

Method

Camera

How is it used for image

capture of graphics

Cameras are used to capture

images by light entering the
camera lens and the camera
saves the data of each pixel using
a sensor. Higher the megapixel,
the higher quality image.

Method

Graphics Tablet

How is it used for image

capture of graphics

Graphics tablets allow users to

directly draw onto the tablet or
they a pen and display the image
on a screen. This is a digital image
and saved onto the hard drive.

Optimising
Why would you optimise?

Images are optimised to make for

viewing on the web easier and to
reduce the file size so download
time is shorter.

How can you optimise?

Images can be optimised by

changing the image size in
Photoshop. This includes changing
the colour depth, resolution and
using lossy compression to delete
data.

Advantage to optimising

Images, when optimised, will have

smaller file sizes and reduce the
time to it takes download the
image.

Disadvantage to optimising

However when images are

optimised image quality is lost
because the resolution will be
lowered and various other
components which make the

Storage

File Size

What could affect a Working

Scale (Photoshop) document
file size?

Number of layers and whether

theyre merged
Resolution of file
Whether unnecessary parts of
layers are cropped or not
Rasterising smart objects
Amount of colour/colour depth

How could you reduce the file

size of a Working Scale
document without affecting
quality?

Using vector graphics so when

resizing no image quality is lost
Merge layers together
Delete excess data which is
redundant

What is an advantage of
scaling up images before
exporting?

Larger image for easier viewing

Consistent/same image quality
(no quality/data lost)

What is a disadvantage of
scaling up images before
exporting?

Larger file size which can affect

loading time on the internet
Although no data is lost, pixels
may be stretched because
theyre being manipulated

File Naming Conventions

What naming conventions
could you use when creating
your video game assets?

Dont use overcomplicated file

names, straight to the point
Use dates when the file was
created
Abbreviate the file content
Use hyphens to separate each
detail of the file (date, content)
Dont use spaces
If there is numerous file version,
number which version it is and
the date is was
created/modified

Why is it a good idea to

accurately name your assets?

It is a good idea to name your

assets so you can find certain files
easily and efficiently. You can do
this by searching for the file
name/what your need and, if
named correctly, you should find
the asset.

Asset Management
Why would you use folders
when storing your assets?

Using folders, when sorting

assets, increases efficiency when
finding particular files. This is
because you can save files in
folders and subfolders which are
named appropriately. For example
in your pictures folder you could
have a subfolder called
Photoshop so you can easily
access/find all your Photoshop
files. Also it means you can
directly search for specific files in
these folders.

What folders would you create In documents I would have a

and what would you save
folder named Media Coursework
within them
and within that folder Id have
folders named after each project.
Within each folder there are
subfolders containing each
different part of the project
(research, design, product). These