Have you ever been on a design project and you intend to use a specific image for that design but unfortunately it isn’t in the format that you want it to be? you have searched the internet and haven’t seen a relevant answer on how to convert jpg to vector in adobe illustrator.
Well, worry no more because I’m going to walk you through how to convert a jpeg file to a vector file adobe illustrator in a jiffy.
1.Upload ‘jpeg’ file to adobe illustrator.
Firstly, you upload your desired jpeg file to illustrator by going to [File> Open> select the jpg file from your computer directory and select open at the bottom right of the screen.
2.Open the ‘image trace’ window
Go to the menu tab located at the top area of the screen and select [window > image trace. and immediately the image trace tab will be added to your tab layout.
3.Select image with section tool
Make sure you click on the image with the ‘selection tool. only then will the image trace options become live on its window.
4.Select image trace options
In the image trace window options, you can find arrays of settings, basically, you need just a tweak on a few of these settings. but most times you just go with the default which looks great with the result.
Preset: you can find already made settings from the illustrator software, these settings are what you probably need to get going with your image tracing.
View: this is how you want the image trace result to appear.
Mode: color mode used for image tracing
You can also find various options in the tab that you can play with to enable you to get the specific results you want to get. the image trace feature in adobe illustrator has really made it easy for illustrator users to quickly turn that jpg file into a vector file right inside the middle of a graphic design project.
rather than quitting or suspending the software to go look for vector files on the internet which really slows down the workflow.
convert jpg to vector in illustrator
Today I’m going to walk you through the steps on how you can convert jpg to vector in illustrator. Let’s admit it, a time will come when you will require your image to be in vector base format and not jpeg format just for the sake of maintaining an indefinite pixel resolution that won’t deteriorate as you scale or zoom in.
This is essential when creating high-resolution images that will be used for the purpose of digital or print display which requires a high amount of visual detail.
What is a vector image
A vector image or graphics is created based on mathematically calculated lines and polygons to create shapes and images by vector-based software like Adobe Illustrator. The vector elements created are immune to losing their resolution as a result of these mathematically created lines and shapes, you can scale or transform the elements however you want and still retain a high-quality image.
This way it is the preferred method for a graphic designer for creating logos and billboards that will be used on large print. it’s easier and safer to make edits and still maintain high-resolution designs.
What is a raster image
This is the opposite of vector images, raster images are images built with tiny squares that are referred to as bitmaps which hold colors, these maps or squares are found in very large amounts that determine how low or high the resolution of an image would appear.
This type of file arent flexible when adjusted- they easily lose resolution when scaled or transformed. Individual images are limited to their various pixel, when a high-resolution image is scaled down, its pexels reduces or gets pixelated eventually.
Unlike the vector image file which withstands scalability and always maintains its high-resolution quality no matter how much your scale or transformation is done.
What is vector image best for
A vector image is best for making high-resolution designs that will be used both on a digital screen and on print. Though, it doesn’t only come in handy when you want to convert jpg to vector in illustrator but also for logo design, poster design, and billboard design.
Is vector better for logos
Creating a logo requires vector base design software like Adobe illustrator. Vector is better because it uses mathematically calculated lines, curves, and polygons to create colors and shapes that are resistant to losing resolution when scaled or transformed. This way your design will retain quality when scaled or transformed. Vector is the best option for logo designs because logos are required to be in different sizes, and high resolution is paramount.
What is the advantage of a vector image
Endless resolution
Vectors are made with mathematically calculated polygons, lines, and shapes which are used to create shapes and illustrations that always have high resolution and never get distorted or pixelated no matter how much you scale them. In contrast, a raster image is made up of a high amount of pixels that contain various shades of colors.
Raster images only retain their resolution in a fitted position but begin losing their resolution and become pixelated when you begin scaling or stretching in.
Lighter file size
Raster images are made up of millions of pixels which contributes to its heavy file size, but the vector file image doesn’t, infact the vector image uses a calculative approach to optimize smaller file sizes.
This could also be noticed when you want to convert a jpg to vector in illustrator, the computer slows down during the conversion process.
Converting raster to vector requires a large amount of computing power to convert jpg to vector in illustrator successfully. The more processing power your computer has, the faster the process.
More edit features
Vector graphics allow you to make custom edits with its highly sophisticated tools with amazing edit features. Vector graphics give you full control over how you manipulate elements to fit your style.
For example, you can create a square shape using the shaper tool or the rectangle tool on adobe illustrator, the square shape can have a stroke effect with stylized color, and the stroke can be styled with dotted or dashed lines with customizable proximity.
It can also be filled with color, and patterns which give the square elements a customized touch.
You can further edit the square shape entirely if you intend to make the shape look different. Vector graphics enable you to do this using anchor points.
Anchor points are the points at the end of every path, this gives the designer the ability to control the curvature and direction of the path. With a square shape, we have just four anchor points. However, more anchor points can be added as much as you want to enable more fluent customization.
What is the disadvantage of a vector image
Compatibility issue
Vector images are only compatible to work with vector-based programs like adobe illustrator which only allow you to make edits. Working with a raster-based software program for creating or editing vector illustrations seems almost impossible because you miss out on all the features and edit-ability
Bad choice for complex photo
While vector images are best for creating indefinite-resolution graphics with calculated colors, lines, and shapes, unfortunately, it is not a good option for editing or creating images with a lot of drama going on with pixels.
Raster(jpg) images are the best because they use pixels which is advantageous in terms of color flexibility, pixels work greatly in large amounts because of this, colors are easily manipulated to create more photorealistic visuals.
What is the difference between raster and vector file
Resolution
When working with raster or vector images in a graphic design project, it is worth considering how their resolution is affected when changes are made. Raster images are made up of bitmaps or pixels that have a limited amount of scale. This means when a rater image is scaled, transformed, or skewed it begins to pixelate or get blurry thereby losing its resolution quality.
On the other hand, the vector image is immune to this flaw, vector image or graphic is made up of accurately calculated lines, curves, and colors that are always recalculated the colors, lines, and curves when transformed or scaled.
For this reason, vector images maintain their high-quality resolution no matter how many adjustments you make to them, as a result, vector images become the perfect choice of graphics that are needed in high resolution with various sizes – logos, posters, pdf, and fonts.
File extension
The raster image has various file extension that distinguishes it from its cousin, this is one way to find if an image is a raster or vector and also this comes in handy when you convert an image to vector illustrator, the file extension changes from raster to vector or vice versa.
Vector and raster images are made up if various file extensions respectively and they can be identified below
Vector images extension
Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) (.svg)
Encapsulated PostScript File (EPS) (.eps).
Adobe Illustrator File (AI) (.ai)
Collaborative Design Activity (COLLADA) (.dae)
PostScript (PS) (.ps)
Enhanced MetaFile (EMF) (.emf)
Raster images extension
Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) (.jpg)
Portable Network Graphics (PNG) (.png)
Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) (.gif)
Bitmap Image File (BMP) (.bmp)
Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) (.tiff)
Adobe Photoshop File (PSD) (.psd)
File size
Another way to spot the differences between vector and raster images is the size of the image, the vector image saves the file images in a mathematically calculated pattern, and it uses a hyper-optimized system of saving files to make sure files are lightweight.
While raster images are processed in bitmaps which appear in form of square boxes that carry color and permit multi-color shading which as a result creates a photo-realistic image. The raster images contain millions if not billions of pixels that determine the file size, the higher the image resolution, the bigger the file size.
Software compatibility
Vector base files are only compatible with vector programs. They are only fully editable when they are executed or opened in vector-based programs like adobe illustrator, Inkscape, CorelDRAW, etc.
On the other hand, the raster images only support raster-based programs like Photoshop, Gimp, Pixelmator, and Affinity photo. Etc. this raster-based software support jpg, gif, and png.