Hints on Image Formats

Although its often possible to extract the images from a Word document, this does not always produce good results so, if at all possible, please send us the original image files.

We need to convert all images into bitmap format (usually PNG or JPEG) for display online. Where possible, we provide three versions: high resolution (150-300dpi) for printing, medium (for best results on-screen) and a thumbnail.

In general, please try and supply images at the highest quality you have - we can then generate versions at appropriate resolutions for on-screen and print viewing. Please send larger files in separate emails. If the individual files are much bigger than 4MB then contact Daniel to arrange for facilities to upload large files.

Please don't be daunted by the notes below - if all else fails, send whatever you have and we'll let you know if there is a problem.

JPEG (.jpg) Files

One common mistake: JPEG format is only intended for use with photographs and will blur or distort text, diagrams and line art. Anything that is not a photo should be saved as TIFF (with LZW compression to reduce size) or PNG. If you are getting huge files, try converting to monochrome/bitmap mode or reducing the dpi.

Diagrams

If you have used the drawing tools in MS Word to produce diagrams, we can usually convert them into bitmaps - however, there are sometimes problems so if you can include a .PDF file showing what it is supposed to look like, that will help.

If they have been produced in other software, then try (in order of preference):

Adobe Illustrator or Xara format
Export as PDF
Export as TIFF, Photoshop or PNG format at actual size and 300dpi - use bitmap/monochrome format for black and white line art.
Scan as TIFF or PNG format at 300dpi

If the diagram relies on non-standard fonts then either use the "convert text to paths" feature in the drawing package (if it has it) or send a bitmap version.

PDF Files

If you have an illustration in an awkward format then a PDF version is useful as it gives us a fairly faithful idea of what the image is supposed to look like and we can usually load the PDF directly into Photoshop. Mac and Linux users have built-in facilities to create PDF files; PC users who don't fancy paying for Adobe Acrobat can find various free options here: http://www.thefreecountry.com/utilities/free-pdf-converters-drivers.shtml.

Scanning Text and Line Art

There's no "right" way to do this as it depends on the source material.

For true black-and-white material (no shading or colour) use the "Bitmap", "Text" or "Line art" setting on the scanner and scan at 300dpi or higher. The result may look "ragged" on-screen but should print out clearly - and we can then process it to get a good on-screen version.
If there is shading, scan as "greyscale", if there is colour, scan as "24-bit colour" and (for large scans) reduce the resolution to 150dpi.

Unfortunately, printed material with "halftone" shading is difficult to scan without getting strange patterns.

Save scans as TIFF (to reduce file size you can select "LZW compression" - also make sure the number of colours matches the scanner settings you used).

Scanning Photographs

For photos, scan as 24 bit colour at 150dpi (or 300dpi if there is a lot of fine, high-contrast detail) and save as JPEG, high quality.

Digital Photographs

The JPEG files output from most modern digital cameras is more than adequate for our purposes. If you want to cut down on file size, reduce to about 6"/15cm wide at 150 dpi (or 300dpi if there is a lot of fine, high-contrast detail) and save as JPEG, high quality.

Screen Shots

These work best when they can be reproduced as "actual size" on the reader's screen - if the software you want to capture runs in a resizable window, reduce this to the smallest acceptable size; for full-screen software, set the screen to the lowest resolution compatible with the software (800x600 if possible). Then:

Windows:: Press Alt-PrtScr to capture the current window, or just the PrtScr key to capture the whole screen.
Switch to Microsoft Paint and choose File->Paste.
Choose File->Save As and save as "PNG".
Mac:: Run the "Preview" application and choose File->Grab - then save the resulting document as PNG format (alternatively, the "grab" utility will do the same thing, or you can try and remember what the key shortcuts are).