Operation Manual

287
USING ILLUSTRATOR
Importing, exporting, and saving
Last updated 11/8/2011
Enhanced Metafile (EMF) Widely used by Windows applications as an interchange format for exporting vector
graphics data. Illustrator may rasterize some vector data when exporting artwork to EMF format.
JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) Commonly used to save photographs. JPEG format retains all color
information in an image but compresses file size by selectively discarding data. JPEG is a standard format for
displaying images over the web. For more information, see
“JPEG export options” on page 290. You can also save an
image as a JPEG file using the Save For Web & Devices command.
Note: Artifacts, such as wave-like patterns or blocky areas of banding, are added to a file each time you save the file as a
JPEG. Always save JPEG files from the original image, not from a previously saved JPEG.
Macintosh PICT Used with Mac OS graphics and page-layout applications to transfer images between applications.
PICT is especially effective at compressing images with large areas of solid color.
Flash (SWF) A vector-based graphics format for interactive, animated web graphics. You can export artwork to the
Flash (SWF) format for use in web design, and view the artwork in any browser equipped with the Flash Player plug-in.
For more information, see
“Flash export options” on page 288. You can also save an image as an SWF file using the
Save For Web & Devices command (see SWF optimization options (Illustrator)), and you can export text as Flash
Dynamic or Input text (see
“Tag text for export to Flash” on page 349). In addition to exporting artwork in Flash
format, you can copy Illustrator artwork and paste it into Flash. The fidelity of artwork is maintained across the
clipboard.
You can create vector artwork for Flex skins in Adobe Illustrator and export it using the Create Flex Skin script. Flex
skins and extensions for Illustrator are available from
www.adobe.com/go/flex_skinning_en. For more information
about Flex skins and Flex Builder, see the Flex documentation on Adobe.com.
Photoshop (PSD) The standard Photoshop format. If your artwork contains data that cannot be exported to
Photoshop format, Illustrator preserves the appearance of the artwork by merging the layers in the document or by
rasterizing the artwork. As a result, there may be times when layers, sublayers, compound shapes, and editable text are
not preserved in the Photoshop file, even though you selected the appropriate export option. For more information,
see
“Photoshop export options” on page 291.
PNG (Portable Network Graphics) Used for lossless compression and for display of images on the web. Unlike GIF,
PNG supports 24-bit images and produces background transparency without jagged edges; however, some web
browsers do not support PNG images. PNG preserves transparency in grayscale and RGB images. For more
information, see
“PNG export options” on page 292. You can also save an image as a PNG file using the Save For Web
& Devices command.
Targa (TGA) Designed for use on systems that use the Truevision® video board. You can specify a color model,
resolution, and anti-alias setting for rasterizing the artwork, as well as a bit depth to determine the total number of
colors (or shades of gray) that the image can contain.
Text Format (TXT) Used to export text in an illustration to a text file. (See “Export text to a text file” on page 349.)
TIFF (Tagged-Image File Format) Used to exchange files between applications and computer platforms. TIFF is a
flexible bitmap image format supported by most paint, image-editing, and page-layout applications. Most desktop
scanners can produce TIFF files. For more information, see
“TIFF export options” on page 292.
Windows Metafile (WMF) An intermediate exchange format for 16-bit Windows applications. WMF format is
supported by almost all Windows drawing and layout programs. However, it has limited vector graphics support, and
wherever possible, EMF format should be used in place of WMF format.
More Help topics
“About saving artwork” on page 280
“Export artwork” on page 286