ImagesMagUK_December_2021

www.images-magazine.com DECEMBER 2021 images 27 TIPS & TECHNIQUES Quality results Converting low-resolution images to vectors to make them printable can be very helpful in many cases. If the file is suitable for conversion, this can be an easy way to turn low- resolution files into high-quality designs and deliver an excellent product that matches the quality that a DTG printer can – and should – deliver. www.dtgmerch.com Illustrator, then select ‘Image Trace’ and let the program do its work. The program will automatically analyse the design and convert it to a vector. There are a few settings you can and should play with to improve the quality of the output. Depending on the design, you may also need to adjust the colours. Once this process is complete and your file has been successfully converted into a decent vector, you can resize it however you like without losing quality. If you do not have access to expensive programs like Adobe Illustrator, you can also find free automatic converters on the internet. Just Google the terms ‘pixel to vector converter’. These freebies also tend to give good results, but often you are limited to just one colour per design. If your design has only one colour, you are good to go, but if your design has, for example, two colours, you may need to create two separate files: one with all the elements in the first colour, and the second with all the elements in the second colour. You can then convert them to vectors separately. Afterwards, load both files into a vector program, align them and save them as one image. to be enlarged to meet the requirements of the client. In this case, it would be very easy to vectorise the logo and ‘fix’ the design by converting it to a vector. Once this is done, it can be enlarged to any size without loss of quality. Many ‘non-printable’ raster designs can be converted to printable designs in this way, resulting in improved print quality and happy, satisfied customers. Converting images There are two options: manual or automatic tracing of the design. Manual tracing usually involves loading the design into the vector program of your choice (eg Adobe Illustrator, Affinity Designer) and tracing the edges of your design with the Pen tool. This method is time-consuming, but often the only option if the original design is of very poor quality. If your design is of an acceptable quality (for example, there are sharp edges at the original file size), you can also use the second option and automatically trace the design. To do this, load the design into software that has this feature, such as DTFTRANSFER.CO.UK TRADE PRICES GET A QUOTE OR ORDER ONLINE TODAY DELIVERY CHARGE £5.00* TRY BEFORE YOU BUY! FREE SAMPLE BOX * Big T-shirt prints are possible using vectorisation, even if the initial artwork [left] is low quality or low resolution