Image editing and graphics programs

Almost all the present day publishing industry, with the exception of hand presses, is based on digital media. The key of the image processing is some kind of graphics program. We can split this category of applications in two main kinds: painting programs (also photographic edition programs) and drawing programs (also vectorial illustration programs.) This division is due to the way these programs create and handle the images. After this introductory article, check out the whole illustration and digital image section, and detailed articles about both kinds of programs: painting (bitmaps) and illustration (vectorial.)

Ideas for graphics programs

Evidently, these programs are meant to incorporate images to our printed documents or screen-based applications such as webpages. This can give a new life to these publications and provide a positive impact. It is easy to get ready made images (clipart) or to obtain them by scanning or digital camera. If it is necessary, we can create them from zero. The main problem of cheap clipart the one often included with programs— is that the images are not precisely refined or top quality; sometimes they are plain tacky. We must be careful when incorporating them in certain documents, since they can say very little in behalf of the designer, and indeed project an opposite image to which we wanted to. We have written up some recommendations on clipart elsewhere in this site.

To create visual, flat maps, schemes and diagrams cannot be simpler once you know the basic use of these applications. A few images and a sensible use of the colour can transform a poster, an announcement very positively...

With graphic programs we can add a special touch to the logos and fonts we use. It is possible to modify the images which we want to use but have some problem: leftover parts, imperfections, wrong colours...

Graphics programs

The painting programs are the same as the ones used for photographic adjustment and to make collages or image compositions. The image files are similar to a mosaic of very small points. Each point is rendered as a pixel or screen element, to which colours are assigned to form the image. Result: files which are apt for photographies, images with the look of a painting or natural drawing and, in general, for any image that must be seen or be printed in a given, constant, resolution.

Drawing or vector illustration programs (Draw: they create the shapes like geometric objects: a combination of straight and curved lines, open or closed, with a contour of a certain thickness and the colour we choose, and with filled or empty with colour or patterns. The drawing program objects have an order with respect to other objects. They can be grouped or stay independent. The result: graphics that hardly can be as realistic as bitmaps, but that can be scaled to any size without loss of quality. They keep their crispness no matter which resolution you want to print them. This makes vector drawings especially suitable for linear and streamlined illustrations, schemes, text and technical drawing.

These two categories are not absolutely separate: each program can carry out some functions typical of the other: for example, you may draw vectorial contours to select parts of a bitmap, or you can apply bitmaps like fill in a vectorial object. These last years some programs have appeared which are, in fact, a combination of both systems of graphics creation. These are essentialy programs focused to the graphical creation for the Web: innovating programs like Fireworks or Deneba Canvas. Finally, we must mention programs like Expression or RealDraw which still make the border between painting and drawing programs more diffuse, with its spectacular natural effects applied in a vectorial environment.

Free and unexpensive alternatives

Which graphics programs do we have without having to open the wallet, or nearly? Not many, to be true. Windows offers a very basic painting program, Paint (can be found in Programs|Accessories.) For simple graphics,even with added text, it can do. But if we have greater ambitions, other options exist. See the commentary in the Cheapware section about programs like The Gimp or PaintShop Pro. Sometimes you have to be aware of certain bargains. For example, Micrografx offered all its line of programs of graphics, included Picture Publisher, to a laughable price (it was even possible to buy it in newsstands.) The same has happened from time to time with other programs from Corel and Serif.

Regarding vectorial drawing programs, if you do not have CorelDraw, you can take advantage of the bargain price of the version previous to the current one. By about thirty dollars it has been possible to purchase a complete package of drawing and painting (Draw and PhotoPaint), of professional caliber, and with one ton of clipart and fonts. These additions musn’t be overlooked: there are a thousand fonts, many of them top quality from specialized foundries like ITC or Bitstream that would cost, if bought individually, as much as the complete package of Corel —each one. The program, then, includes for free hundreds of dollars in fonts. A similar, economic package, but not so good, is Micrografx Windows Draw or Designer.

As an alternative, if you have an interest only in basic vectorial forms, try for example the drawing program included in MS-Works (MS Draw) or the one in Star Office (StarDraw), which is quite good, actually. This last one is free, like all theStarOffice suite. Another very simple and free vector drawing program is Mayura Draw (it can be obtained from the Web of his manufacturer.) They offer the previous version free; it is possible to be obtain the most recent in tryout version, which offers a few new functions, like exporting SVG, the vector drawing standard of the www.

Professional choice

Some of the programs of image edition, with rather professional scope —and accordingly priced— are, within the painting programs, Adobe Photoshop, Corel PhotoPaint, MetaCreations Painter, Ulead PhotoImpact, or the same PaintShop Pro in its last versions (up from v.5). The best freeware photo-picture editing application is probably The Gimp, initially only in Linux version for, it was later ported to Windows.

With regards to the illustration programs, the most known are CorelDraw, Adobe Illustrator, Macromedia Freehand and Xara, all of them excellent and, in the case of the three first, with a fierce competition to place themselves like the tool of the professional designers (a spot which Illustrator seems to have conquered, recently.) Unlike in painting programs, where there is an option (Photoshop) which dominates very clearly, the three main illustration programs have enthusiasts and detractors and keep faithful following. The best featured freeware vector editing program is Inkscape, a project currently being still developed.