Datasheet

original file (assuming you do not have a backup file) once you save your work because it
directly affects the pixels of the image.
Image Output
When you’re done with all your CG, you will probably want as many people to see your
work as possible. To accomplish this, you will need to render the scene out to image files
or a movie file. These files can be output and saved in many different ways. The kind of
file output you will use will be determined by a combination of disk space, personal pref-
erence, project needs, and output requirements.
Color Depth
An image file stores the color of each pixel as three values, representing red, green, and
blue. Image type depends on how much storage is allotted to each pixel (the color depth).
These are the color depths common to image files in CG production:
Grayscale The image is black and white with varying degrees (typically 256) of gray in
between. Grayscale images are good for rendering out black-and-white subjects because
no extraneous color information is stored in the image file.
Figure 1.4
A vector image of a girl at its original size (left) and blown up to a few hundred percent (right) shows no loss in quality.
The curves are not stepped or pixelated.
core concepts ■ 17
84943c01.qxd 12/4/07 3:21 PM Page 17