Raster dpi? vs Vector

I am new to Illustrator, so this might be a simple answer. I designed a logo and business card in illustrator CC. When I try to export it says warning! my raster resolution is 72 dpi. I know I set up the document for 350dpi. I don't know which item on the design is raster or how to change it to 350dpi. I was not aware that I was making anything raster; I thought it would be a vector drawing (logo) and text boxes.

No. It's just made of basic shapes and text boxes. I set up the document as 300dpi before I started. I built the logo in one file and then copied it to my business card template file. Is that a problem? I'm trying to get it out of Illustrator in a format that meets the requirements for sending it to the online printer. I've tried several different ways (Illustrator, InDesign, Pages) to accomplish this. I'm just not skilled enough in any of them, I'm afraid. I can build it easily in Pages since that's all I had for years, but I can't export high enough quality out of there. They accept ai files, but I keep getting this warning about low resolution.

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Can Acrobat convert a scanned in raster pdf to vector pdf?

I scanned a paper electrical schematic into Adobe Acrobat X. I believe this copy is a raster copy. I'd like to know if Acrobat can convert the raster to a vector pdf?

I think that, to get a good result, you would/could put the raster image in one layer in Illustrator, re (vector) draw it and then delete the raster layer.
Dave Merchant wrote:
Illustrator can 'trace' a raster image but you won't get exact results.

Convert raster effect to vector

Is there a simple and easy way to convert a piece of art with a raster effect to vector? I have a rectangle with a gradient with the Graphic pen effect applied, but my client needs it all in vector to produce the piece (a belt buckle). The only thing I've come up with is to expand the appearance and then Live Trace it. Haven't been totally satisfied with the results, still playing with the trace options, but I wanted to see if anybody else had a better and more accurate way of going about it.

The belt buckle will probably be made from a mold or die. Any artwork can be used for a mold or die as long as the resolution is high enough. If the buckle will be made using a computer controlled router, then you'll need vector artwork to provide paths that direct the router.
Auototrace using Live paint. Play with the settings. And don't be surprised if the router operator balks at too many small paths or too rough an outline.

Raster image into vector circles

Is there a way of converting a raster image into circle vectors of various sizes so that it is similar with effect of pixelation.
I need to transfer the circles into autocad so i need it in vector format. Thanks.

See this thread:
James Talmage, "plugin for creating halftone/array of small objects to approximate an underlying object" #5, 26 Dec 2006 11:05 pm
JET

Tutorial on converting raster drawings to vector

I have a friend who does drawings on paper that he wants to get scalable. The high-level path appears to be scan the image and run autotrace in AI.
As I look at online articles, some suggest taking the raster into PS to erase the pencil marks and ink the image. My friend does the inking on the paper before the scan.
I have some experimenting to do with autotrace settings, but I can see right away that some of the lines on the image vary in width in both PS and AI. And, no matter how good his inking is, there is still quite a bit of "noise" along the lines. His inking also leaves quite a bit of variation in line width. What he wants is a constant width.
My question is: if you want a line to be of constant width and you have a scanned image to work with, which tool (PS, AI) and what technique is best to create the result.
One thought is, rather than try to clean up the line in either tool, the better approach might be to draw a new line using the scanned image as a guide. My concern is that the line won't be smooth if done by hand. Are their tools in either PS or AI that would help?
Thanks, and sorry this is a bit vague. I'm just starting to understand the issue.
Tom

You might want to use something like this

Raster texture on vector image?

I've drawn some images in Illustrator CS4, on which I want to put an overlayed raster texture on. But how do I do that?
Attempt 1:: If I just overlay it, I somehow need to clip the texture to match the outline of the image.
Attempt 2:: I've tried a opacity mask, but it makes my image semi-transparent.

Use the path as a clipping mask. Check the help files for instructions. Come back if you need further help.

Can't convert raster image to vector and save with a transparent ground.

I'm pretty sure I know all the right steps as far as Live Trace and Expand go, but it seems I can't detach the image from the white workspace background. I tried selecting the white in my image and deleting it, but Illustrator isn't even allowing me to select. I feel like something very simple and fundamental is wrong, I just can't figure out what it is.

Thanks, didn't see that option before. Tried it, but I still have the problem of the file including all of the workspace and being much larger than the original file. There has to be some trick to detaching the black from the background we're missing.

Need to convert to vector format.

I have a document with pictures. I need to convert it to vector format before sending to printer. Not sure how to do it. Using CS5. Is converting to outlines the same?

It must be difficult to convert from illustrator into a vector format since no one has a specific answer.
Soshagayle7,
There is no automagic "conversion" from a raster image to a vector graphic. The artwork represented by a raster image can be redrawn as vector artwork.
You can re-draw the artwork using the vector drawing tools in Illustrator or any similar program. You can even import the raster image and use it as a guide while "tracing" it with vector paths.
Or (and this is where the all-too-common misconception about "conversion" comes in)...
You can use the autotrace feature which exists in Illustrator or any similar program to try to automate the process of "tracing" the raster image with vector paths.
Either way, you end up with what would more accurately be called a "reinterpretation" of the subject, not a "conversion" of the raster image in the sense of "converting" one file format to another.
And that's the key. All that most current autotrace features (including the one in Illustrator) do is detect color differences between pixels of a raster image based upon a user-specified sensitivity setting, and then try to draw vector paths which follow along those detected differences. It's very much a garbage-in-garbage-out process.
And even when the "in" is not garbage, there is no real intelligence involved. The kind of autotrace algorithms in Illustrator and programs like it have no shape-recognition intelligence. For example, in the case of a human face, the autotrace feature doesn't know that the eyes' pupils are round; it just detects a region of similarly-colored pixels and tries to draw a path around them. Similarly, in the case of a geometric logo that obvously (to a human) is supposed to contain a perfect circle, the autotrace feature doesn't "see a circle"; it doesn't go and get the Ellipse tool and draw a circle that fits, as any human would do. Again, it just tries to follow around the regions of similarly-colored pixels.
But that sounds okay, right? Well think about it. Imagine turning the sensitivity of such an algorithm way up to the max. What's going to be the most accurate autotracing of a raster image? The mathematically "most accurate" result would be a perfect vector square for each and every pixel in the image. And the "vector advantage" of that would be absolutely nill. The resolution-independence reason for preferring vector paths would be rendered moot. Such a graphic would be entirely vector, but to absolutely no advantage regarding scaleability. (Thus my comment about the line drawn with a 1-pixel raster image.)
So the reason you haven't received an answer to the "how do I convert" question is because the same thing has been explained in this forum countless times, and to answer it correctly really requires a lengthy explanation (like this one) that tries to clear up the too-common misconception that autotracing is some kind of magic bullet for "converting" a raster image into a vector graphic in some kind of mathematically accurate way that then yields all the advantages of properly drawn vector graphics.
Autotracing is useful to those who understand when it's appropriate and why. But without seeing or at least knowing more about the actual raster image you are dealing with, advising whether it's appropriate in your case is nothing but a guess. Generally speaking, if the image in question is not already of high enough resolution at the size at which it will be printed, then it's probably also not of high enough resolution for good auto-tracing results. And if it is of sufficient resolution for the size at which it will be printed, then there's probably no reason it needs to be vector.
Bottom line: There's a good reason why vector graphics are preferred. But that means properly-drawn vector graphics. The best way to "convert" your raster image to a vector graphic is to re-draw it using the vector tools. The sometimes-acceptable but often sub-standard "cheat" for doing it is to import the graphic and apply the autotrace feature (called LiveTrace in Illustrator). It's use is explained in the online help.
Autotracing--the "conversoin" that such questions are almost always talking about--is not a lossless translation, like converting quarts to gallons or binary to hexidecimal. Entropy always rules. Anytime something is automatically "reprocessed" something is lost, not gained. You see that in everything from repainting a room over and over without removing the old paint, to taking photographs of photographs of photographs. Degradation occurs. You swap one kind of ugliness for another. That's autotracing when used inappropriately.
The drawing tools exist for a reason. If you really need vector paths, you should probably draw them.
JET

Change color of pixels in a raster (png) image

Hi,
I have just begun using Illustrator CS6. I have a very simple image (.png file) that I would like to annotate with some arrows and some text. This file is what I guess you would consider a raster image (no vector graphics) that has a very limited color range. It has less than ten basic colors plus a gradient fill (shades of gray) in a few places.
I want to use illustrator to annotate this image with some lines with arrows and some text, but first, there are a few stray lines that I would like to eliminate. For example, there is a black line that I would like to "erase" by replacing all the black pixels in this line with white pixels. I tried to do this by selecting the "Paint Brush" tool and then selecting white as both my fill and my stroke color. After doing this, I position the cursor over the pixels I want to change but the cursor appears as a circle with a line through it, and it doesn't do anything.
If anyone can tell me how I can do this, I would really appreciate it.
Thanks in advance,
Paul

Paul,
If you have access to Photoshop or a another application that actually works with raster images (the circle with the line through it shows that Illy has no clue what to do with it), you can change the image quite easily.
Edit: Hi John.

Do you remember old vector art conversion program, train logo?

In the early 2000s I used a raster art to vector art conversaion tool. I THOUGHT it was by Adobe, but I find no trace of it! It had a locomotive as its logo, and I think it was named "steam" or something similar. Required an activation key, wonderful little piece of software. Want to find it again because I back then could quickly convert simple line drawings to vector lines without having to use much system power (unlike, say, opening up Illustrator.)
Anyone recall this thing?

I know that opening Photoshop might sound as powerful as Illustrator, but here is how to do basic vectorization technique in Photoshop I co-developped: http://forums.adobe.com/thread/370971?tstart=0

Export Format In PDF Articles - Vector as default

I would like to request that 'Vector' be made the default (or an option allowed for users to change the default) for 'Export Format in PDF Artciles' in Slideshows and Scrollable Frames.
In my line of work - newspaper and magazine publishing - roughly 99.9% of Slideshows and precisely 100% of Scrollable Frames contain text and therefore *must* be set to Vector otherwise our pages look pants on a Retina display. It is troublesome and needlessly expensive for us to be changing Raster content to Vector over and over and over again. And over and over. And over and over.
We're finding that big scrolls and MSOs might be set to Vector in our templates but, after a bit of chopping, changing and copy-pasting on live pages by designers, they revert to Raster. Can you imagine how infuriating it would be if you applied a custom Swatch to an object, only to have it keep reverting to Black? Well, this is what it's like with the Raster business.
Alistair

I would like to request that 'Vector' be made the default (or an option allowed for users to change the default) for 'Export Format in PDF Artciles' in Slideshows and Scrollable Frames.
In my line of work - newspaper and magazine publishing - roughly 99.9% of Slideshows and precisely 100% of Scrollable Frames contain text and therefore *must* be set to Vector otherwise our pages look pants on a Retina display. It is troublesome and needlessly expensive for us to be changing Raster content to Vector over and over and over again. And over and over. And over and over.
We're finding that big scrolls and MSOs might be set to Vector in our templates but, after a bit of chopping, changing and copy-pasting on live pages by designers, they revert to Raster. Can you imagine how infuriating it would be if you applied a custom Swatch to an object, only to have it keep reverting to Black? Well, this is what it's like with the Raster business.
Alistair

Flattening vector-drawings for pdf-presentation

as an architecture firm, we are using lots of (heavy) vector drawings (eps or pdf) in indesign. when exported to a pdf-presentation (no printing purpose, only screen-presentations), the pages containing these vector drawings take often too much time to load on screen. what is the best way to reduce these vector-drawings (i.e. completely flatten them), without affecting the images on other pages of the presentation? thanks.

Are these drawings just for on-screen presentation? If so you might give this blog post a read - I think David in the first few comments hit the nail on the head.
http://indesignsecrets.com/creating-smaller-pdfs-from-a-vector-dense-book.php
If you need more detail on creating this flattener preset then do ask.
But you know it would decrease the quality of your images - so the PDF would be good for onscreen - but you wouldn't want to print with it.
It's either the vector data or the raster data - the vector being the better but slower redraw on your screen, like you're getting now.

Can I import drawings and photos into Illustrator to create a vector image?

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What I bring to the software is my background in studio arts 2D and 3D. Photography is a tool to support both of these activities. Over the years that skill has developed and I have many great photos. The photos make me a little nuts now that I focus on digital. In digitals photos I easily have over 60,000 photos. I have some experience with Photoshop. I won’t say I am a proficient but will say I have good skills in it. I created my first logo in Photoshop. Of course it is not vector and I know it should be vector. I did it at no charge for a nonprofit. They were very pleased. I would still like to create a vector form of the logo. Awhile back I purchased a book titled “Illustrator CS5 on demand”. It breaks it down in a way that Illustrator is less intimidating. It has renewed my interest in Illustrator. How do I more effectively merge all of these tools and skills? How do I bring what I know to Illustrator’s table? I know there are great possibilities here if I can learn to build vector graphics.

Spencer,
Basically, you have two ways to go from raster images to vector artwork, namely to Live/Auto Trace and to redraw/recreate.
The former is (only) suitable for certain kinds of artwork/intended appearances, such as photolike.
The latter is the way to get simple/clean/smooth/accurate artwork that is truly scalable. In some cases you can use basic kinds of shapes such as circles/ellipses, squares/rectangles, (other) polygons, stars, spirals, and so on. In other cases you can draw with the Pen/Line/Pencil/Brush Tool, the first being the main general tool. You may place (File>Place) the original raster artwork (maybe in its own layer) and lock it, then recreate on top (maybe in another layer) so you can follow the original.

Bitmap or vector based type?

In CS5, I have read conflicting info that describes type in CS5 as vector based, similar to how it is in Illustrator, and other info that describes it as being composed of bitmaps.
1. What is it? Vector or bitmap while it is inside a .PSD?
2. I remember way back in the early days of Photoshop, people would import their .PSD into Illustrator to add type. Is there any reason to still do that now?
Thanks.

There are important distinctions to consider.
As I understand things.....
Live type, is vector type, the same as Illustrator or Indesign. It contains all the vector data as well as hinting. Hinting is a technology which tells output devices not only what to draw but how to draw it, as in, draw this line fist starting from here. Hinting is exceptionally helpful when working with small type sizes (roughly 10pt or smaller). PSD layered files with Live Type will always print well because the type contains Hinting.
Files such as EPS or PDF can contain vector data, therefore if you save a Photoshop document as an EPS you get vector outlines of the type. However, vector outlines do not contain Hinting. So, if you have type smaller than 10pts, Photoshop may not be the best tool to use since small type benefits greatly from Hinting.
TIFF, JPG, BMP, etc, are raster formats without vector data. So, in these cases you get bitmap art which appears like type, not live type, or even vector outlines. The "type" is subject to pixelation just as any raster data is.
Based on the above, it's your choice what to use. Chances of the naked eye seeing the difference between 8pt type with hinting or without are slim, but it's there. As a general rule, I don't set type in Photoshop for print projects. That is, unless it's display type which is to be seen more as art than type.

PS CS5 PDF Large Format Printing Problem

I had to create a file for a sign (9 feet by 20 feet - 100 dpi) in PS CS5. Problem is I now need to send it to the sign printer. I need to make a PDF from the file but the save as makes the file size bigger than the PSD even with changing the compression settings. The other problem is I cannot print to PDF as when I try that the Acrobat X save as dialogue box never appears. The screen just goes back to the artwork. I have deleted the preferences, reinstalled Acrobat, etc. What can I do here?

To maintain vector output capability from Photoshop in PDF you can't output PDF by way of printing and using Acrobat Distiller. From the File Menu you choose Save As and then select Photoshop PDF from the list of file formats. It will retain vector data from embedded fonts and vector shape layers. I just tested it using Photoshop CS 5.5 64-bit and then viewing the results in Acrobat X.
That being said, Photoshop is a crude tool for passing along vector-based artwork. I don't like the vector shape layers feature very much at all because I find it very user un-friendly. I very much prefer to use Adobe Illustrator in conjunction with Photoshop. It's so much easier to control. I often paste AICB formatted paths into Photoshop's paths palette via the clipboard and then use the vectors as sources to create fills and other things. I'll manually create clipping paths on photos in Photoshop and save TIFF images with the clipping paths active to knock out the background when placing the TIFF in an InDesign or Illustrator layout. I'll create other vector objects in Photoshop to later export in .AI format to Illustrator. Ultimately the end result winds up in Illustrator as a single page layout or in InDesign as a multi-page layout. Both Illustrator and InDesign are far more capable than Photoshop at combining vector-based art and raster-based art together. When you save a PDF from InDesign or Illustrator there is no doubt your raster content and vector content will remain intact. Like the solution with Photoshop, in InDesign and Illustrator you simply choose to save the file in PDF format. No need for using the print to PPD and Acrobat Distiller post process step. Distiller comes in very handy for creating PDFs from lots of non-Adobe applications.

Raster dpi? vs Vector

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