Bitmap vs Vector in Printing
- Design
- September 14, 2017
Before we dive into what and where, let us assess exactly what these two are.
Bitmap
Bitmaps Become Pixilated when You Zoom In.Image Source: Wikimedia
A Bitmap image is made up of pixels that band together to form the entire image. When zooming in on Bitmap images, you’ll begin to notice that they become pixilated, as shown in the picture below.
Vector
A Vector Will Maintain Quality When Zooming In.Image Source: Wikimedia
Vector images consist of numerous shapes that are outlined from mathematical equations, resulting in a maintained fine quality upon zooming in.
Let the Battle Begin
Both Bitmaps and Vectors have Strengths and Weaknesses.Image Source: Wikimedia
Now that you have a basic understanding of the differences between the two file types, it’s time to dive right in there with the strengths and weaknesses of each one when it comes to their usage – predominantly in printing.
The Strengths of a Bitmap
In our big wide world, there are a ton of different things that Bitmap images can come in handy for, which also means there are some uses it isn’t so good for too. Let’s have a look into what some of these good uses might include.
Let’s say you’re an artist, a painter or a photographer – something like that – and you want to print off your work so that you can keep it in a collection, then a high resolution Bitmap image could be ideal for you.
Because of the way that Bitmaps are structured, they can be moulded, manipulated and editing in a whole host of varying ways. Photoshop is one of the main benefits here, because with Bitmap images, you can edit them in Photoshop much more efficiently than a Vector image.
The Strengths of a Vector
On the other end of the spectrum we have Vectors, who don’t use pixels as you already know. It’s because of this that Vectors are useful in other ways though, and here are a few of those uses.
So we’ve already thought about how Bitmap images are definitely ideal for photographers who are looking to create those beautiful, high-quality photographs, but Vectors are also useful for creating images in an artistic sense.
If a company wants to design a high-quality logo or if an artist wants to print out one of their intricately-designed, technologically-created pieces, the brilliant quality of Vector images will help these specific examples to shine.
Concluding Sentiments
In summary, the essential message here is that both Vectors and Bitmaps come in incredibly useful in the world of photographs and images. It’s just like a lot of things in life, there are many different types of things and options of things to suit specific purposes, and it’s exactly like that in this scenario too.
Bitmaps, as we said, tend to be optimal when creating images of a real-life nature, things like photographs and pictures, and they are also useful for basic forms of images too, like graphs and charts.
Vectors on the other hand, are best utilized when creating more intricate and detailed images, such as logos and highly-complex, digitally-created art pieces and pictures.
So there you have it, the basic differences between Vectors and Bitmaps and a few examples of where each of them can come in handy, now you’re finally ready to make those pesky decisions all on your own!
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