The process of replicating raster images in vector format is known as vector conversion. Raster image file formats, such as jpg and png, are widely used on the internet. Vector graphics are less prevalent; yet, they are required for some operations such as engraving, signs, laser cutting, sandblasting, etching, speciality printing, stamping, and other techniques that duplicate an image on a physical product.
In this blog post, we will learn about the secret of vector conversion.
It is understandable why people would desire to go from raster to vector. When you vectorize an image, it becomes easy to alter at any scale. The simplest CAD technique to learn is raster-to-vector conversion: simply upload the file, press a button, and the flawless vector drawing appears. While it may appear to be straightforward at times, it is not a one-click operation. Before converting a raster image, it's normal to clean it up a little bit. Here are some steps you can follow:
1. Change the resolution of your raster image.
Lines should be 4-5 pixels thick as a rule of thumb. You can inspect your photograph by zooming in. A minimum image resolution of 300 dpi is recommended for optimum results. You can adjust the scale in Scan2CAD (by choosing Raster Effects > Scale) if your image has a low DPI.
2. Diminish the number of colours
In an ideal world, all of the photos you are vectorizing would be monochrome (black and white). This ensures that the background (usually white) and foreground (often black - these are the items you want to vectorize) are as distinct as possible.
However, even a black-and-white image can often be made up of hundreds of colours on the grayscale.
It is understandable if you want to preserve a variety of hues in your image (for example, maps containing several colors). Reducing the image to black and white is unlikely to be appropriate for these photographs; instead, you should reduce the image to as few colours as feasible while keeping maintaining the image's vital detail. Scan2CAD includes an automatic colour reduction feature that maps all of the colours in an image to a set of colours you specify. Learn more about raster colour editing here.
3. Remove any clutter from the background
In the same line as colour reduction, even though your background appears to be clear when zoomed out, you may need to clean it. If you have a white background image, for example, you may notice distortion bleeding into the white backdrop. You will convert these deformed areas to vectors if you do not delete them before vectorization. In these circumstances, lowering the colours is the quickest technique to clean up the image background.
4. Make the image negative.
If you have a negative image, you can use this raster effect (white lines on black). Because Scan2CAD believes that all photos are positive (black lines on white), the results after vectorization may be drastically different.
5. Make the lines thicker
When scanning pencil-drawn sketches or pale prints, gaps or broken lines are very common. Thickening the lines/pixels should be done with caution, as overuse of this tool might result in unwanted joined lines or contacting entities, lowering the vector's quality.
6. Get rid of the speckles
You may do this in two ways: with the Despeckle Tool or by manually deleting them with the Freehand Erase Tool. With the former, you may specify the size of the speckles (in pixels), and any marks that are this size or larger will be eliminated automatically.
7. Fill in the holes
There are gaps to fill in solid things, just as there are stray pixels to remove. When the scan is too dim, holes appear. Simply go to Raster Effects > Clean > Remove Holes to complete the process.
8. Make the image more fluid.
How near to the margins of your raster picture do you want to trace? The Smooth Raster Effect eliminates "hairs" on your image, which are typically caused by scanning at too high a resolution or scanning a pencil sketch. The scanner then identifies elements that are not visible to the naked eye. The conversion engine will create vectors at these loose ends if they are not smoothed.
9. Rearrange the image.
What seems as straight lines in the raster picture will not be turned into clean, straight lines in the vector if photos are scanned at a little angle. Scan2CAD has deskewing tools to help you fix these problems. However, excessive use of deskewing tools might degrade image quality, so if your image is extremely significantly skewed, it is best to rescan it (if possible) for the best results.
10. Adding a border
Vectorization engines are unable to vectorize shapes that are close to the image edge. Fortunately, this is a simple fix: go to the Raster Effects Menu > Border. Then, in pixels, add a reasonable border width. Of course, if your scanned image has a huge border or if you have created a border with an excessively high width, cropping the image will remove the border.
Conclusion
So, Vector conversion is by far the finest option for logo design or high-resolution graphics. The small elements of an image are preserved when converted to vector format, allowing you to generate sharp lines in huge prints. It takes time and attention to get precise vector conversions, but you do not have to spend that time painstakingly polishing each vector in Photoshop. We've handcrafted original artwork for photos at Clippingpaths.com in order to successfully reprint them for a variety of applications ranging from banners to billboards.