Is it advisable to scale a raster image in Photoshop to the final size before embedding it in Illustrator or does Illustrator use the same bicubic algorithm as Photoshop when (up)scaling pixel images?
Answer
Photoshop interpolates pixels. This means when you scale in Photoshop, Photoshop uses mathematical algorithms to determine either the best pixels to remove (if reducing) or the best color pixels to add (if enlarging). When you scale a raster image in Photoshop you alter the pixels of the image itself.
Illustrator does not interpolate pixels. Illustrator simply alters the outer dimensions of a raster image to fit the desired size. This will either condense pixels (if reducing) or stretch pixels (if enlarging). Illustrator does not alter raster images at the pixel level.
Both methods can be both useful and detrimental depending upon the project. However, it is exceptionally unwise to enlarge raster images beyond 100% within Illustrator if you are concerned about image quality. You should always use Photoshop to enlarge a raster image, never Illustrator.
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