How to Choose the Right Image File Format for Print

[Syed Zaeem Hosain (Syed.Hosain@aeris.net)]

Fei Min said:

> but the TIFF figures were all fuzzy and the PNG ones weren't 

This _may_ be due to the fact that your screen capture program that outputs the TIFF does not place a good "thumb-nail" inside the file. The actual printed output may be just fine, but displays (particularly when editing in FrameMaker) would not look good at all.

My general observations:

1. JPG is fine for pictures, but terrible for graphics and line-art. Don't edit and save a JPG (multiple generations) and expect it to maintain quality each time you save! 

2. PNG is fine for line-art and graphics - particularly when viewed on-screen. Loss-less and can also be used for pictures too.

Since most of my "images" are drawings and business graphics, PNG suits me best.

Z