The document discusses different types of digital file formats including raster graphics, vector graphics, and various file formats like JPEG, TIFF, GIF, BMP, PSD, AI, FLA, and WMF. It provides information on what each file format is used for, advantages and disadvantages of each format, methods of image capture, optimizing files to reduce size, factors affecting file size, naming conventions for assets, and using folders to organize assets.

1. Digital Graphics
File Formats
Kiran Crampton

2. Raster Graphics
• In computer graphics and files,
a raster graphics image is a data structure
representing a generally rectangular grid of a
set number of pixels, or points of colour,
viewable on a screen. Cant be resized or
quality will be lost and image becomes
pixelated as they have a fixed resolution.

3. Vector Graphics
• Made up of vectors called paths and strokes
and are made up of a start and end point that
have points between them. which can then
make a circle, triangle or curvy object. Can be
blown up to any size and stay high quality.

4. Raster Graphics

5. JPEG
Stands For Joint Photographic Experts Group
Used For/Example Photographs and web format pictures.
Most common used for Facebook and
other social networks.
Advantage Can use millions of colours and is the base
file for most digital cameras and can be
used on a wide range of products. Its also
a universal file and can be open pretty
much anywhere weather it’s a phone or a
computer.
Disadvantage Loses quality after lots of edits due to
compression each time edited and quality
of file. This means less pixels are saved
each time.

6. TIFF
Stands For Tagged image file format
Used For/Example Desktop publishing with things like graphic
design. Most common used for desktop
publishing, used in adobe InDesign.
Advantage Doesn’t lose any quality due to resizing or
compression and can be used to same
multiple layers. Many layer within the
same file which is why they are used in
InDesign, they also have lossless
compression which means they can be
saves multiple times.
Disadvantage Large file sizes, around 20mb for a 10
megapixel image, so larger storages
devices needed for long term archival use.
Cant be resized. Also require certain
programmes to run the files which limits
it.

7. GIF
Stands For Graphics interchange format
Used For/Example Short small animations, a series of images
which are played in a loop to create the
appearance of a video.
Advantage They are simple to make using an
animation program and a series of
images, If you have a series of images such
as frames from a film you can easily make
a GIF. They don’t need backgrounds so can
make a website look professional. They
can also have transparency and be good
quality.
Disadvantage They have a maximum colour depth of 256
bit, Other image and animation files and
have much larger bit depths but 265 bit is
normally well suited to a webpage. Cant
be resized.

8. BMP
Stands For Bitmap
Used For/Example Web files, graphics, photos. Similar to a
jpeg, can be used to save any pixel based
images.
Advantage No loss of quality due to compression and
can be high memory files providing a lot of
data. Used for high quality images.
Disadvantage They cannot be resized well. Shrinking an
image can change it, so can expanding the
image through pixel replication. large file
size for images.

9. Vector Graphics

10. PSD
Stands For Photoshop document
Used For/Example Photoshop files and edits. Magazine
covers and different layouts. Image
manipulation, page formatting and
swatches.
Advantage A format created just for Photoshop use, it
contains all the image and edit data,
layers, adjustments and image history.
Also images can be saved without a
background and with different
transparency.
Disadvantage Generally only recognised by Photoshop
software and certain other image
manipulation software.

11. AI
Stands For Adobe illustrator
Used For/Example Images and logos created in illustrator.
Advantage Wider compatibility for a native vector
format, most advanced vector format
available. Size and quality is not lost when
compressing the images.
Disadvantage Restrained on what you can run them on.
Can only be used in Adobe illustrator and a
few others. Needs specialized software.

12. FLA
Stands For flash
Used For/Example Used in animation, video and web design.
Advantage Can be used to create animations and
rollover button menus for web pages.
Create browser-based games. They are
high quality and have a low file size. Also a
flash file can include videos and sound.
Disadvantage Platform problems because the way
different browsers accept different files,
also they are other files that can do the
same as flash with less work.

13. WMF
Stands For Windows metafile
Used For/Example Logos, clipart
Advantage Can be resized to be big or small as they
contain vector and raster properties. They
can also be arranged easily making them
easy to create.
Disadvantage They can only be used on windows
products so cannot be sent elsewhere like
macs etc. Also as a lot of computer users
use macs this is a disadvantage for
windows.

14. File Format Capture
and Optimising

15. Compression
Definition When a file size is reduced due to the
amount of file data that is saved.
Advantage It can make image sizes smaller therefore
they take up less space and leaves more
room for other files.
Disadvantage The quality of the file can be reduced due
to less info being saved.

16. Image Capture
Method Scanner
How is it used for image capture of
graphics
The physical image is placed on to the
glass of the scanner and the image is then
scanned onto light sensitive photons that
convert light into data that is put into a
computer.
Method Camera
How is it used for image capture of
graphics
A shutter opens to a certain size and
exposes a light sensitive sensor that takes
in the light reading of where the lens is
pointing and makes it into electronic data.
Method Graphics Tablet
How is it used for image capture of
graphics
A way on manually designing an image on
a computer and saving it as a file.

17. Optimising
Why would you optimise? Large files will take much longer to load on
web pages etc.
How can you optimise? By making the file smaller through image
size of colour depth. Going to ‘image size’
in Photoshop.
Advantage to optimising Means files will load much faster when
there is less to load.
Disadvantage to optimising Quality can be lost due to less data being
used.

18. Storage

19. File Size
What could affect a Working Scale
(Photoshop) document file size?
Compression, optimisation, colour depth.
How could you reduce the file size of a
Working Scale document without
affecting quality?
Take away data that doesn’t affect quality
such as layers and history. Condense
merge layers and flatten.
What is an advantage of scaling up images
before exporting?
Images will be at the right file size to
render but not have a loss in quality.
What is a disadvantage of scaling up
images before exporting?
Some quality is always lost through this.

20. File Naming Conventions
What naming conventions could you use
when creating your video game assets?
Naming them by what the asset is what it
does or what number it is.
Why is it a good idea to accurately name
your assets?
Will help you keep track and close control
over your different assets to use when you
need to use them or want to make or save
one.

21. Asset Management
Why would you use folders when storing
your assets?
Organising assets can make them a lot
easier to find and use and save.
What folders would you create and what
would you save within them
Different folders for different category
of game asset e.g. Game 1, object,
terrain.