Introduction

Manga Studio has the capability to create both raster and vector graphics. What are the differences between these two?

Raster images are images based on pixels—dots of light and color information interpreted by the computer to create a picture. A raster is a grid of x and y coordinates of a display space. Raster images are used on the Internet and for most digital art. If we zoom too close into a raster image, we'll see the squares of color used to make up the picture.

With a raster image, we can lose quality if we try too much resizing. Say we create a postcard-size image, but then decide to have it made into a huge billboard, logo, or banner for behind a convention table. If the raster image doesn't have enough resolution, we could end up with a pixelated, low-quality print.

Vector images, however, are made from points, lines, and curves that are based on mathematical expressions. Because these images are made from mathematical expressions instead of dots on a grid, they can...