Graphics File Formats

There are two categories of graphics files.

Bitmap files are scanned images, or the images normally created by paint programs such as Photo Shop and Paint Shop Pro. These files are created using a map of pixels (dots) of different colors. This is the ideal way to represent a photograph, or complex image. Bitmap or raster files are saved in a number of file formats, including: .jpg, .gif, .bmp, .tif, .iff, and others.

Vector Files are a set of coordinates which represent lines, arcs, geometric shapes, and a special type of curve (bezier curve). This method of defining an image is best suited for engineering drawings, illustrations, most logos, and business graphics. Illustration programs such as Corel Draw, Illustrator, and Free Hand normally create these types of vector files. Vector files are saved in a number of file formats, including: .eps, .ai, .emf, .wmf, .dxf, and others. Vinyl sign cutters, Plotters, and CNC routers require a vector file to define where the pen should draw, the blade should cut, or the bit should route. This set of instructions is called a tool path, and many other types of machinery is driven from these kinds of files. Just a few days before I wrote this, I was asked by one of our customers to provide their logo to a local embroidery shop. My customer asked me to phone the shop and work out the details. I knew that their process of guiding the embroidery machinery would need a vector file. After calling the shop, we provided an Adobe Illustrator file to the embroiderer, and the customer's jacket looks great.