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What Are File Extensions and Why Do They Matter?
Have you ever wondered what the letters after the dot on your file’s name (e.g., “yourphoto.jpg”) mean? Those letters at the end of a file name are the suffix
— or file extension — that indicates what format the file is. Understanding file extensions and knowing the best format for saving your artwork can make a huge difference in the end result of your project.For our purposes in this article, we are focusing on saving images. You have many format choices for saving your images. Which one is best for your artwork? It depends on a few factors: compression, color, and application. Is it an image that is being printed or going on a website? Is it low-resolution or high-resolution artwork?
Different extensions have different sets of rules. Each one has a certain way of handling compression — cutting down the file size by removing pixels. Sometimes, it is desirable to NOT remove data or colors from an image because you need to preserve the detailed, colorful artwork at a very high resolution. Yet other images need to stay as small as possible so they do not take up too much space on a disk or website. Other extensions have limitations on color space — some only save as RGB, which is suitable for the web but not for print. (RGB stands for the Red, Green, Blue color model for displaying images electronically.)
The most commonly used file extensions include jpg, tif, gif, png, eps, and pdf. These file extensions are compatible with most (but not all) software programs on any computer platform. Note that certain files with extensions like “psd” (Photoshop document) or “ai” (Adobe Illustrator) are extensions for that software program only and may not be compatible with other programs.
JPG (or .jpeg) stands for “Joint Photographics Expert Group,” and is the most commonly used extension for saving image files. JPGs are best for photographs, and work well for print and web. Compression can be adjusted from very low to very high. However this is not the best way to save scanned or high-resolution art.
TIFF (or .tif) stands for “Tagged Image File Format” and works best for scanning and saving artwork and photos. A TIFF file can be saved with no compression at all, which results in very large file sizes. TIFF files are not compatible with the web.GIF stands for “Graphics Interchange Format,” and works best for low-resolution art, black and white, or limited (RGB) color images. It is suitable for web, but not for print as it cannot support CMYK color space. (CMYK stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black, and is the standard color model for four-color process printing.)
PNG stands for “Portable Network Graphics” and is similar to GIF, as it can only save colors as black and white or RGB. It works well for web but not for print.
EPS means “Encapsulated PostScript” files that may contain vector graphics, bitmapped images, transparency, or text (such as a logo design). Not all programs can open EPS files. An EPS file would need to be saved as another extension before uploading to the web.
PDF means “Portable Document Format.” While this is not considered an extension for images, it is relevant as it contains images and text in a compressed format that is compatible with most programs. Images can be saved as PDFs to ensure compatibility when emailing, printing, or uploading to the web.
Once you have an idea of what file format is appropriate for saving and utilizing your images, the easier it will be to complete your projects and be satisfied with the end result. We can help you with any questions you might have on image saving. Please feel free to contact us.
