What
is the difference between TIFF, GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, and a BMP file?
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computer Tips
Sometimes it can get confusing when dealing image file formats. Which file
format to use for what picture or graphic? Its all too technical for me so I
have tried to explain the difference between them all in my own easy way.
Each image file format has its own unique features.
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BMP - Bitmap. This was probably the
first type of digital image format that I can remember. Every picture on a
computer seemed to be a BMP. In Windows XP the Paint program saves its
images automatically in BMP, however now in Windows Vista images are saved
to JPEG. BMP is the basis platform for many other file types.
JPG, JPEG - (Joint Photographic Experts Group) Jpeg format is used
for colour photographs, or any pictures with many blends or gradients. It is
not good with sharp edges and tends to blur them a bit. This format
became popular with the invention of the digital camera. Most, if not all,
digital cameras download photos to your computer as a Jpeg file. Obviously
the digital camera manufacturers see the value in high quality images that
ultimately take up less space.
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GIF- (Graphics Interchange Format) Gif format is best
used for text, line drawings, screenshots, cartoons, and animations. Gif is
limited to a total number of 256 colours or less. It is commonly used for
fast loading web pages. It also makes a great banner or logo for your
webpage. Animated pictures are also saved in GIF format. For example, a
flashing banner would be saved as a Gif file.
PNG - (Portable Networks Graphic) Apparently this is one of the best
image formats, however it was not always compatible with all web browsers or
image software. Now days it is the best image format to use for website. I
use .png for logo's and screenshots.
TIFF- (
Tagged Image File Format) This file format has not been updated since 1992
and is now owned by Adobe. It can store an image and data (tag) in the one
file. TIFF also stores files with virtually no compression and therefore is
good for storing images that need to be edited and
resaved without suffering a compression loss. This
file is commonly used for scanning, faxing, word
processing, and so on. It is no longer a common file
format to use with your digital photos as a jpeg is great quality and takes
up less space.
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