ART DEPARTMENT

Raster VS. Vector Images

Before you send artwork to our Art Department, we'd like to take a moment to explain to you the differences between the two major file types usually associated with graphic files. This will help you understand why we require artwork to be in a specific format in order for your job to be completed with the best possible print on your garments.

The first graphic format we'll discuss is the Raster or Bitmap image which is commonly used today for website graphics or images of a photographic nature.

Raster images can be generated from a scanner, or created by an illustration program. Raster images can contain millions of different colors, each one represented by a single pixel. Consider the picture of the eagle below.

If you zoom in on just the tip of his beak, you can see that it is made up of thousands of tiny pixels. Having enough pixels to effectively reproduce the image is essential.

Raster images are best suited for '4-color-process' which is the process used for sublimation, near-photographic decals, and can be used for t-shirt images. We currently do not offer 4-color process printing.

Website graphics are NOT suitable for reproduction.

While they may look pretty on your screen, they do not contain enough pixels to reproduce with clarity. Although, this does not apply to those who post vector art on their website specifically for reproduction.

Raster images that are supplied for a single or multi-color design will have to be re-created into a vector image for proper color separation at the customers expense.

The next graphic format we will discuss is the Vector format.

Vector images differ from raster images in that they are object based rather than pixel based. Vector images are actually a compilation of mathematically defined areas that can be filled or outlined with color.

Vector images suit themselves well to spot color designs. Spot color designs are the type of designs we specialize in. Generally speaking, they are designs that have solid color areas and exact uniform color transitions or graduations.

Below is an example of a Spot color design.

There are definite areas of black, gold, white and blue. You can tell by looking at it that it
only contains 4 colors, as opposed to a raster that could contain millions of colors. A raster version may look the same to the eye, but digitally they are very different.

Vector images also have an advantage over raster images in that they can be infinitely scaled up or down with zero loss of image definition, and file sizes are a fraction of what raster images are.

We hope this helps you to understand why we require artwork to be supplied in a certain format. If you don't have a scanner or artwork that can be delivered via the computer, you can contact us to find out what the best way to deliver your artwork would be. Some programs that allow the creation of Vector based artwork are Corel Draw, Adobe Illustrator and Macromedia Freehand. Other programs such as Corel Paint, Adobe Photoshop and Photopaint are Raster based applications.