Point taken, Blue Flare. I apologize if I made it sound like Photoshop was the best program for the job. It isn't. Illustrator and its kin are much better suited to complex vector work. I was simply pointing out that Photoshop can accomplish all but the most complicated vector effects. You have to weigh the cost of the program against the advantages. For me, buying Illustrator wouldn't be worth it because I wouldn't use it enough. But I do vector work from time to time, and I find Photoshop is up for the job.
You brought up the zoom issue. Yes, "true" vector programs allow you to zoom in and not lose resolution. Photoshop obviously does not do this, because the zoom function is NOT a vector operation. What you are looking at is an enlarged version of a raster preview. But scaling the image up achieves the same effect, without loss of quality. This makes working this way in Photoshop slightly slower, but not much. Simply work at a very large size--large enough to see all detail--and zoom in as necessary.
You also mentioned the path stroking issue. It's true that Illustrator and other programs have a wider variety of effects available. Often--certainly not always, but often--simple outlines are all that is required.
Yes, Photoshop has vector exporting issues. Point taken again.
Illustrator's gradient mesh feature is wonderful. It's a true pity that Photoshop doesn't have a similar function. For the serious vector artist who intends to use complex gradations and shading, Photoshop doesn't cut it. Again, point taken.
My main point is simply that Photoshop is perfectly capable of logo design, certain types of vector artwork, etc. It's not the best program for the job, but if buying Illustrator isn't an option, it'll usually do just fine. _________________ Interested in showcasing your special effects or learning some new ones from the masters? Check out PSFX!
I'm not sure I understand what you're trying to say...are you trying to prove that Photoshop has great PDF exportion, or prove that PSD files can't contain vector information, or that Photoshop's zoom function is terrible, or what? Don't quite understand where you're going with the picture. (By the way, that first statement is true, the second is false, and the third is merely an opinion.)
Keep in mind that Photoshop necessarily displays vector work as pixels. When you zoom in or out, Photoshop does NOT recalculate the pixels as many "true" vector programs do. It merely shows you the pixels already calculated. It DOES recalculate the pixels if you either apply a transformation or change the image size.
So in that image cbadland posted, the Photoshop must be a zoomed-in screenshot of the image--either that, or the image was flattened before upscaling it. Either way, the vector information is disregarded by Photoshop. If you do not flatten vector work and Image Size rather than the zoom tool, you will find that all Photoshop vectors are truly scalable and editable. These are the two key advantages to vector work. _________________ Interested in showcasing your special effects or learning some new ones from the masters? Check out PSFX!
Oh. I agree with you completely.
My point is (maybe poorly made) that one can’t necessarily assume that an image with vector information will be (and stay) pixilated as it looks when zoomed in to 1600%, as in BlueFlare’s example.
Vector info (when “exported”, so to speak, in this case to another Adobe product) is retained.
(and bonus points if you can tell me what movie I referenced.)
THanks very mcuh for explaining that "clipping path" thing. Let me relate a short story:
Last year I was part of my highschool's yearbook class, and I was doing much of the graphics, being the most experinced with photoshop. We had a guy from the publishing company who came in every week or so to help out. someone asked him if it was possible to make a round image and have text (in pagemaker) go around it. He said it was possible, and we should use a clipping path. I ignored him, and went ahed to create the image using a layer mask. Eventually, he got back to me about it and went on and on and on about clipping paths, and for the life of me I couldn't figure out what exactly he was talking about.
I'm glad it's cleared up now I can stop wondering. _________________ brush your hair and comb your teeth
Glad to hear yor confusion has evaporated! _________________ Interested in showcasing your special effects or learning some new ones from the masters? Check out PSFX!
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now I can stop wondering.
