Graphic Creations With Software

[Florence Belushi]

A basic understanding of computers is all a person needs to create
their own graphics with today's design software. Even with just small
amount of design understanding, people can still use simple design
programs to build their own cartoons strips, holiday cards, flyers and
invitations. Your business and yourself can save money on special
occasions by using one of the several user friendly affordable
programs that are out there.
The number one choice for design software by both professionals and
amateurs is Adobe PhotoShop. By cropping, recoloring and adding
special effects, PhotoShop allows users to change photos anyway they
wish. Entirely new pictures can also be created by using special
drawing tools, or existing pictures can be modified anyway the user
desires. PhotoShop uses a system of "layers." By using layers,
separate pieces of a picture can be changed while keeping the changes
separate. For example, you can change the color on the bottom layer
without affecting the color on the top layer. If you wish to draw more
than creating full pictures, Adobe Illustrator may be the choice for
you.
PhotoShop is a pixel-based program while Adobe Illustrator is vector
based. What does this mean your probably asking yourself? When you
make a picture in PhotoShop, you must use a certain resolution. A
computer screen displays 72 pixels per inch for a clear picture, but
when you print a 72 dpi picture, it appears blocky and blurred. If you
are making a picture for printing in PhotoShop, you need to use 300
pixels per inch to get a nice, sharp image. Because Illustrator is
vector-based, it uses a system of paths rather than pixels. In simple
terms, it uses lines rather than colors. This means that everything
you create in Illustrator can be enlarged up to any size you wish
without ever becoming blurry or grainy. Designers often use
Illustrator software to build logos for a variety of advertisements.
The same picture or logo drawing can be used on a small business card
or enlarged to fill an entire billboard.
For those wishing to create simple greeting cards or party
invitations, there is a variety of user friendly software programs
made specifically for these purposes. Many offer templates for several
print sizes and folding options. For the more experienced user, the
software program Quark is an excellent print layout tool. Adobe
InDesign also offers professional quality layout options along with
many of the same tools used in Adobe PhotoShop and Illustrator. If you
are to use these two programs, you will easily be able to create
professional quality materials with InDesign.
There is a wide variety of file types used in graphic software
programs. Most have their own native formats that can only be read by
the parent programs. PhotoShop files have a .PSD extension, and
Illustrator files are AI, making them only accessible by PhotoShop.
When you are working with a work in progress, it is a good idea to
save files in these formats, as they offer you the greatest
flexibility in altering your creation. However, once you have
completed your work and are ready to print your materials, you can
save them in a variety of ways. Web pictures should saved as JPEGs,
GIF or TIFF files. Pictures ready for printing are best saved as EPS
files, to preserve color accuracy. If you plan to send graphics via e-
mail, PDF offers the greatest flexibility, as most computers have
Acrobat Reader, the program needed to read the PDF file type.
No matter what software fits your needs, making digital graphics can
be a enjoyable and simple hobby, or even a professional career. It can
take some time to get used to the terminology, but once you learn the
tools of digital art, you will be on your way to building functional
and decorative graphic masterpieces to share with the electronic
world.