Digital Dictionary

Compact Digital Dictionary:

Bevel

An effect that makes an image or text appear 3-D.

Clipping Path

A function that allows you to restrict image edits to only a part of the image without actually altering the image. When importing an image into another program, the clipping path allows you to easily change the color of the image's background.

Crop Tool

This involves removing the outside edges of a photograph to remove excessive or irrelevant background content of a photo. This technique is often used to create interesting framing for images. Note that this is not the same as resizing, which keeps the image intact.

Digital Kit (digi-kit)

A digital clipart kit with images/graphics downloaded from a Website or purchased on a CD.

Dingbat

Fonts that have images instead of letters. Often they have images and letters combined.

Drag and Drop

The action of clicking the left mouse button, holding it down and moving your mouse to where you want to drop an object.

Drop Shadow

A visual effect consisting of drawing what looks like the shadow of an object, adding dimension.

Feathering

To soften the edges around an image or text in your photo-editing program.

File Types:

• BMP - Bit Map Image: Bitmapped graphics, also known as raster graphics, are made up of bits, which are dots. These graphices do not size well and don't work well for web graphics or photos.


• GIF - Graphics Interchange Format: GIFs are used a lot on the Internet due to their smaller file size. GIFs only store 256 colors. They can also have transparent backgrounds.


• JPEG - Joint Photographic Experts Group: Most digital photos are JPEGs. To have a photo printed at a photo lab it will need to be in JPEG format. Every time you save a JPEG file it loses a little bit of its data. JPEGs can not have transparent areas.


• PDD - Photo Deluxe Document: Photo Deluxe is an Adobe program that was replaced by Photoshop Elements. PDDs were a type of Photoshop Document file supported by Photo Deluxe.


• PNG - Portable Network Graphic: PNGs are used to make decorative elements because they can have a transparent background.


• PSD - Photoshop Document: PDs store your image with color, grayscale, or black and white. They can have transparent backgrounds, layers, and channels. They can not be imported into other desktop publishing programs. To print them at a photo lab, you will need to save a copy as a JPEG.


• PSE - Photo Creation Format: This is a new file format that is essentially a folder with PSD files inside it. PSE files are created when you make a Photo Creation using the Create Menu such as Adobe's photo book.


• TIFF - Tagged Image File Format: TIFF files can be color, grayscale, or black and white. They can have transparent backgrounds, layers and channels. TIFF files do not lose any data when they are saved. TIFFs can be imported into other desktop publishing programs and retain their integrity. TIFFs are the preferred file type for many designers. To print them at a photo lab, you will need to save a copy as a JPEG.

Filter

A tool to add artistic touches to your images producing sutble or exaggerated changes. These can include blurring, painterly brushstrokes, or even rendering photos as charcoal sketches.

Graphics Tablet

A computer input device that allows you to hand draw images and graphics, mimicking how you would draw with a pencil and paper.

Layered Template

A digital canvas that allows you to add photos, journals and other embellishments to make a design; visual effects that can be applied to your layers. Basic styles include chrome and glass, drop shadows and bevels. Additional styles can be purchased.

Layers

Layouts are made by designing one layer on top of another. The bottom layer is your background up which elements - papers, photos, embellishments, and so forth - are added. Each layer is independently editable without affecting the other layers.

Linking

A way of joining two or more layers together to temporarily move them around as one. Any effect or filter will apply to all of the layers that are linked together.

Mask

A function that allows you to restrict image edits to only a part of the image.

Merge

This command permanently attaches your layers together so they can not be moved.

Opacity

This setting makes a lyer more or less transparent on a scale of 0-100 percent, with 100 being solid. Each layer can have its own opacity setting.

Overlay

Any design or element can be "laid over" another layer to make it appear patterned or textured. Multiple overlays can be layered together for a variety of effects.

Pixel

A measurement of digital increments, usually expressed as a number pre inch represented by dpi (dots per inch) or ppi (pixels per inch).

Resolution

The measure of the sharpness of an image. The more pixels per inch, the better the resolution. (The unit commonly used is dpi.)

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