File Formats

There are a number of bitmap file formats used for savin files: TIFF for print images, JPEG for photographic Web images and GIF for flat colour Web images. Each format has its own special strengths that suit it for its particular role, but none is perfect.








PSD

PSD is Photoshop's own personal file format. PSD supports all available image modes such as Bitmap, Grayscale, Duotone, Indexed Color, RGB, CMYK, Lab, and Multichannel.

The PSD format is extremely useful as it can support duotones, clipping paths and channels. PSD also offers a unique feature, it supports layers while every other format must be flattened on export. Any program that supports PSDs directly can then use this layer information. Saving as layered images is quite handy as it allows to edit different parts of an image at a later date far easier.

JPEG

A JPEG is an image file and is a popular way to compress and store images for use on a web site page. JPEG is currently the most popular form of image compression used on the World Wide Web. The term JPEG is short for Joint Photographic Experts Group, created in 1986, it took until 1994 before they had issued and were granted an image standard.

Ai

Ai is a file format developed by Adobe to save single page vector based drawings in Adobe Illustrator .

Tiff

Tiff is a file format that is for images destined for print the fundamental requirement is good colour support. It is by providing this that the TIFF format, with its support for RGB, Lab and especially CMYK colour models, established itself.

Gif

The GIF format is one of the most popular formats on the Internet. Not only is the format excellent at compressing areas of images with large areas of the same color, but it is also the only option for putting animation online .