Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
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GIF
(Graphics Interchange Format) files are great for images with limited numbers of
colors, like corporate logos and headlines. Text looks much sharper in GIF format than it
does as a JPEG. And GIFs can include transparency.
▪
PNG
(Portable Network Graphic) format was created to overcome some of the disad-
vantages of JPEGs and GIFs. There's a lot to like about PNG files: They can include
transparent areas, and they reduce the file size of photographs without losing data, as
happens with JPEG files (see
About JPEGs
for more about that).
Elements makes it a breeze to save images in any of these formats using the Save For Web
dialog box, explained next.
Saving Images for the Web and Email
If you plan to email your photos or put them up on a website, you'll love the Save For Web
dialog box, a terrific feature that takes any open image and saves it in a web-friendly format.
It also gives you lots of options to help maintain maximum image quality while keeping file
size to a minimum. Save For Web aims to create as small a file as possible without com-
promising the image's onscreen quality.
Save For Web creates smaller JPEG files than you can get by using the Save As command
because it strips out the image's
EXIF data
, the information about your camera's settings
(see
Media View
)
. To get started with Save For Web, in the Editor, go to File→“Save for
pears.
TIP
If the Save For Web dialog box isn't big enough for you, you can make it larger by drag-
ging its lower-right corner.
The most important point to remember when saving images for the Web is that the resolution
(measured in pixels per inch, or ppi) is completely irrelevant. You only care about the im-
age's pixel dimensions, such as 400 x 600. If you're working with a photo that you've optim-
ized for print, you almost certainly want to downsize it; Save For Web makes that a snap.
