Getting Images Into Your Computer

Scanners enable the user to digitize hard-copy images such as photographs so they can be stored and edited in a computer.

Digital cameras are gaining popularity among professional and casual photographers. A digital camera stores images in its memory or on a disk until they can be loaded into a computer.

Clip art and electronic photographs are images that are already available in digital form. These images cover a wide range of subjects, from cartoons to business. Clip art can include sketches and drawings as well as high-quality photographs.

Graphics Software

Paint programs work with bitmap images and manage the individual pixels that make up an image. Paint programs include various tools and can be used to add special effects to an image.

Photo-manipulation programs work with bitmap images and are widely used to edit digitized photographs. You can use a photo-manipulation program to repair problems with an image, such as adjusting colors or hiding mistakes. Powerful photo-manipulation programs can produce sophisticated effects, such as combining multiple images into a seamless whole, hiding parts of an image, creating text, and more.

Draw programs work with vectors and give the designer a great deal of flexibility in editing an image. Objects created in a draw program can be altered easily and without loss of image quality. Draw programs work well with text.

Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software is used in technical design fields to create models of objects that will be built or manufactured. CAD software allows users to design objects in three dimensions (3-D), and can produce 3-D wireframe and solid models.

Three-dimensional (3-D) modeling programs are used to create spectacular visual effects.

Three-dimensional modeling programs work by creating objects via surface, solid, polygonal, or spline-based modeling.

Computers are used to create animation for use in various fields, including games and movies. Fly-bys and walk-throughs are basic types of computer animation. Character animation is the art of creating a character and making it move in a lifelike manner. Compositing tools allow game makers and filmmakers to add characters and objects to scenes that did not originally contain them.

The GIF and JPEG image formats are the most widely used formats on the World Wide Web. Animation can be added to a Web page by using simple animated GIF images or plug-in software such as Flash or Shockwave.