Downloading Artwork from the Web — What Should You Use?
.gif? .jpg? .tif? .eps?
When you need to download artwork from a Web site, selecting a format can be confusing. Here’s a quick guide to choosing one that will work best for your needs.
GIF (.gif — Graphics Interchange Format): Smallest file size, quickest to download, and most popular for Web and HTML usage. It also has the worst image quality. Use GIFs for Web use only, never for print.
JPEG (.jpg — Joint Photographic Experts Group): Most common format for photographic (or “continuous tone”) images on the Web, even print, depending on file size. JPEGs are smaller than EPS files by compressing selective digital data. The quality is much greater than GIFs. You can use decompressed JPEGs for print, but they must be the same size or smaller, and at least 200 dpi (“dots per inch”). 300 dpi is preferable for print.
EPS (.eps — Encapsulated PostScript): Ideal for vector graphics. Think of vector graphics as images made up of lines and curves instead of dots and subtle shade gradations. Fonts, and many logos, for example, are vector graphics. Unlike photographs, they can be enlarged dramatically without any loss of resolution. EPS files are generally large files that take longer to download from the Web. EPS files are excellent for print, but the printer must be a Postscript-enabled printer in order to output the image accurately.
Summary
GIF — fast download speed because of small file size, but relatively poor visual quality. For Web use only, never print.
JPEG — for photos in Web and print use.
NOTE: JPEGs must be used at the same physical size or smaller. Do not enlarge these pictures more than 15%, or they will “bitmap” (break up, distort, look fuzzy or jagged.) They should also have a final file resolution of at least 200 dpi. (300 dpi is the print industry standard.) Therefore it’s best to not enlarge images that are not initially 300 dpi.
EPS — for line art, logos with no subtle dot gradations, fonts, vector art. Yes, you can convert photos to EPS files, but the file size will be much larger than that of a JPEG. Most commercial print/design companies have the equipment and technology to work with EPS files.
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