Understanding the Role of Images in Graphic Design

One of the most common mysteries of graphic design is the use of white. In everything else in life, white is a color — painting, furnishing, and even beauty products. In the design world, however, it’s a space. In other words, it’s the absence of color, and it doesn’t necessarily need to look white. We’ve put together some of the terms related to the use of color and images for marketers who don’t necessarily deal with these issues on a daily basis. These tips will help you understand more clearly the next time you’re discussing colors for marketing collateral with your graphic designer in Raleigh.

Understanding Image Types

In the early days of the internet, it wasn’t at all unusual to see images published that were blurry and pixelated beyond recognition. Most users have managed by now to get to grips with the causes of this, which is usually image resolution-related, but it’s also important to use the correct type of image.

Most image files are either raster files and vector files, and each has its own particular uses. Some formats contain components of both types. When you’re thinking about what format to use for your project, here’s what you need to know.

The image types or formats that graphic design professionals use most often include:

· Jpeg

· Png

· Gif

· Tiff

· PSD

· AI

· EPS

The raster image types (jpeg, png, gif, tiff, psd) are all composed of dots called pixels. Each of these dots represents a color, and is a fixed size. When you enlarge an image, you’re “stretching” the dots too thin, which makes them show up blurry and badly defined.

Vector files (eps, ai) are digitally-created artwork based on math equations, and these are independent of the image resolution problem because they don’t lose detail when they change size.

Resolving the Resolution Problem

Choosing the right image resolution for a graphic design project depends on a number of factors, as well as the images you have available for use. Resolution is measured in terms of the number of pixels per square inch contained in an image, listed by height x width. The more pixels there are per inch, the more dense the image is and the higher the resolution.

The drawback of this is that to get a high-resolution image, you have to include more pixels per inch, which makes the image much more dense and then the electronic document is larger. And the larger it is, the more complex it is to work with and to transport digitally. Large files slow down computers and networks, block up email traffic lanes and are sometimes so slow to download that they get corrupted mid-way. None of these help you to achieve your business branding goals.

A Legit Learning Curve

All these are legitimate issues a graphic design professional has to learn to manage. Clients don’t want a fuzzy logo, or a blurry picture of themselves on an otherwise effective website design. And of course, anything designed for print production has to have much, much higher image resolution than most digital materials, or the final result will be less than perfect.

Long before you get to the fonts, leading, or widows and orphans, it’s vital to choose imagery that lends itself to the type of project you want to have designed. To do this well, it’s in your best interest to use a qualified designer with suitable credentials, such as those you’ll find at our marketing agency in Raleigh.

For more information or to discuss the graphic design project you have in mind, please contact us at 919–460–7978.