Friday, October 6, 2017

terminology - Term for the process of converting a raster image into a vector - 'vectorization'?


I thought this would be the most appropriate SE.


Regularly I'm asked to convert clients logo's and various other images into vectors - for whatever reason they don't have the original files or cannot find the original designer to ask.


What is the term for this process? Is 'vectorization' a word?



Answer




Yes, it is. We sometimes use the term here.


Vectorization is a valid term, but it's often reserved for when talking about tools (like live trace in Adobe Illustrator) that approximate vectors from a raster image automatically.


It's not so often used for the process of adapting, re-creating, re-drawing or re-interpreting a raster image as vectors, since calling this 'vectorization' can give the misleading impression that it's a purely automatic, "hit a magic button" process, as if we just press live trace in illustrator then say job done. But it is sometimes used to mean this.


Here's what Wikipedia has to say:



Vectorization (computer graphics), the process of converting raster graphics into vector graphics.



And you'll see the article focuses wholly on the automatic side.


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