Graphics editors allow users to manipulate images through raster or vector-based programs. Vector graphics create precise, clean images while raster graphics manipulate pixels for color and tone. These programs are used by graphic artists, photographers, and other visual arts professionals.
A graphics editor is a type of computer program that allows a user to edit and manipulate graphic images through a variety of methods. These types of editor programs are generally divided into two different types: raster graphics editors or vector graphics editors. The differences between these two types usually affect the types of applications the program is used for and how the final created images look on a screen or when printed. A graphics editor program can be a free download with only a few features or an expensive professional graphic arts software with dozens of tools and features.
Graphics editor programs are typically vector- or raster-based, depending on how the program allows a person to access and interact with computer graphics. Vector graphics editors are programs that are usually used for commercial illustration and produce clean edges that resist zooming and enlarging an image to a large size. These programs use mathematical calculations and geometric shapes such as lines, shapes, angles and curves to allow the user to create visual images through a graphical interface. Graphics editor programs that use vector graphics create crisp, clean images because the shapes and lines created through them are precise.
Raster graphics editor programs, on the other hand, don’t use mathematical or geometric measurements as a basis for creating artwork. Instead, a raster graphics program is pixel-based and allows an artist to work with an image by manipulating the basic elements of the image. A pixel, or picture element, is typically the smallest basic unit of an image. This can often be seen in the pointillism art style or newsprint which is often made up of hundreds of small dots rather than solid lines. On a computer screen, an image usually consists of small points of light called pixels, and these individual units of color and value are used to create larger images.
The use of raster-based graphics editor programs is usually limited to manipulating photographs and similar fields, as they allow the user to manipulate color and tone quite easily. Lines created in a raster program, however, usually aren’t sharp and clean when examined closely. Both types of programs are available from different software companies and can be found as downloadable freeware or expensive professional software that can cost hundreds of US dollars to purchase and use. These types of graphics editor software are typically used by graphic artists, photographers, and other visual arts professionals.
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