Understanding Graphic Formats

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Understanding Graphic Formats

Graphics formats can be divided into two types - vector and bitmap. It's important to understand the difference between these two basic formats.

Vector Graphics: Graphics that are composed of objects such as lines, circles, polygons, curves and text. Vector graphics are fully editable, resolution-independent and scalable, which means that no matter how large or small you make them, they remain in proportion and are visually sharp. They can also be "ungrouped" and edited in a drawing program - objects can be deleted, stretched, resized, etc. The vector format is suitable for any graphic that is composed of objects. Vector graphics are edited using Drawing or Presentation programs such as Adobe Illustrator, PowerPoint and CorelDraw. Examples are line art, illustrations, CAD drawings, schematics, business charts and plots.

Bitmap images: Graphics that are composed of "pixels" or "dots". Bitmap images have an absolute resolution (e.g. 300 dots per inch/300dpi) and can not be resized without distortion. Bitmap images are edited by using Paint programs such as Adobe PhotoShop. Examples are scanned images, photos and screen captures.

Tip
Most vector graphic formats support the inclusion of bitmap images as objects. These will not share the scalable features of the vector contents of the file. In files which contain vector and image information, all objects are preserved during the conversion to the specified vector formats.

For more information go to: raster and vector formats