GIF Challenge: Washington Monument

GIF Assignment: Part B

GIF Assignment: Part A

Juxtaposition

Understanding File Formats

The PNG-24 format rendered the best quality images, however (at 129KB and 53KB) the file size is many times larger than the rest of the files. The smallest files are in JPG Low, but the quality of the image suffers. The worst quality images are those in GIF, as pictures with contiguous pixels (such as these) should not be saved in this format; their file size is also high for the bad quality of the picture. The JPG High files deliver a high quality picture and low file size, so this file type seems to be the best balance between the two for these types of images. 

 PNG 24                                

 PNG-8-128-Dithered            

JPG High                              

GIF 128-Dithered                  

GIF-128-No-Dither                

GIF 64-Dithered                    

GIF 64-No-Dither                  

JPG-Medium                          

GIF 32-Dithered                    

JPG-Low                              

GIF 32-No-Dither                  

GIF-Restrictive                      

Graphic File Formats Notes

Graphic File Formats

·      All documents/files are packaged in a different format; much of the time it is determined by the software of the file’s origin (i.e. PS, ID).

·      File size can be reduced with compressions, but this can potentially affect the look of the file.

·      Lossy Compression: Image data is “lost” to reduce file size and can cause poor quality (results in compression artifacts – pixilation) – vs. – Lossless Compression: Retains all data resulting in a large file with a higher quality.

·      TIF (best for printing), JPG, and GIF are the most common formats for common actions (printing, scanning, web). PNG is a common web format that has high quality as well as an alpha (transparency) channel.

TIF – Tagged Image Format

·      Common format for desktop publishing, print, photo, graphic design.

·      Lossless file format: retains image data and original quality.

·      Large file size that is not internet-friendly/browser-compatible

JPG – Joint Photographers Expert Group

·      Created for digital photography and is best used for photos.

·      Lossy file format, however can reduce file size by 10:1 without showing significant artifacts. Level of compression is adjustable.

·      Continuously resaving (and thus compressing) JPGs results in loss of quality. Try not to recompress files; instead, return to the original.

·      “Banding” occurs with contiguously changing colors.

GIF – Graphics Interchange Format

·      Best format for graphics that have flat color or tone (i.e. cartoons).

·      Reduces image size by “indexing” color from channels to 1.  Is adjustable by changing color bit levels from 1 to 8.

·      Contains no DPI (dots per inch) data for printing.

·      Can contain movement.

·      Cinemographs

For best quality – TIF or PNG (lossless compression and no JPG artifacts)

Smallest file size – JPG with a higher quality factor  for photographic images and TIFLZW or GIF or PNG for graphics.

Pixels

·      TIF and JPG are best for images that blend, called contiguous pixels.

·      GIF is best for images with flat, even tones, or non-contiguous pixels.

Alias vs. Anti-Aliase

·      Aliased images have hard, jagged images. Anti-aliasing smooths out edge pixels to create a smooth transition.

·      Can be seen in Photoshop when zooming in and fixed with various tools.

·      Aliased art (i.e. pixel art) is also used. 

Using Photoshop Layers

Line Art

Mario Pixel Art

Iron Man Icon Art

Box to Car - Adobe Illustrator