Graphic Design Services

MSW Print provides full-service graphic designing, with focus primarily on creating vector-quality graphics for printing.

This might beg the question:

What IS a vector-quality graphic?

Vector files are constructed differently than raster images, which include the .jpg, .gif, & .png files most people are familiar with. About each:

Raster Images

Graphics saved as .jpg, .png, .gif, & .tiff are all raster files. Raster files are constructed with a fixed-sized grid of specific-colored dots or pixels, comparable to how a Lite Brite toy works, but on a larger scale. This fixed size makes raster files difficult to stretch or shrink--as pixels can grow into blocky squares when scaled up, or awkwardly merge when scaled down.

All photos, and most web images are raster files. The resolution-quality of a raster-file is often expressed as dpi, or "dots per inch". Web applications typically only require 72dpi, while quality printing requires 300-600, up to 1200dpi for the richest photos.

Vector Images

Rather than constructing themselves out of a fixed patchwork of specific-colored pixels, vector images are different. Where raster images can be compared to a Lite Brite pattern or Legos in their construction, vector images are more reminiscent of K'nex or a String Board:

They don't save image-pixels as blocks, but rather save each point's relative position in space, along with the lines connecting each of these points. That way, no matter what the display, or the print-resolution--a vector image will always use the pixels available to it to construct the clearest possible image. This means a vector can also be shrunk-down, or blown-up, to any size, and still maintain full clarity.

The most common file extensions we work with for vectors are .ai, .eps, & .pdf.