Welcome to Ian's Graphics Site!

Ian's Graphics Site

Having experimented with computer graphics since the very earliest days (40+ years ago), I consider myself a “Pixeltech”. This section gives some information and advice about computer graphics. Hopefully you can benefit from some of my years of accumulated wisdom.

Table of Contents

Computer Graphics History Computer Graphics History

A brief history of computer graphics, from the earliest text character images from non-graphic mainframe computers to the latest photographic quality images from high resolution personal computers.

Computer Graphics File Formats Computer Graphics File Formats

The main reason for the many computer graphics file formats is their different methods of compression. Find out how the file formats compare and how to choose the right format for the best results.

Optimizing graphics to be clear, small and fast Optimizing Graphics Files

It's important that all websites optimize their images – Google does, and so should you! This section details how to optimize web images so that they reproduce well, take minimal space and load as quickly as possible.

Scanning Graphic Images Scanning Graphics

The process of scanning graphic images has many pitfalls. Resolution? Color depth? OCR? This section will demystify some of the complexities of scanning and help you produce better scans without creating huge, unworkable files.

Photo Retouching Photo Retouching

Retouching is a technical term that refers to the process of editing an image, usually by computer. This can include anything from removing specks and blemishes, fixing damage, adjusting colours, merging images, or total edits. See some examples of my retouching plus a simple tutorial.

Computer Graphics Samples Computer Graphics Samples

This is a collection of various graphics that were particularly complex to produce, complete with explanations of the steps used in their creation. One example is my "World Zoom", which took over a week to create yet runs for just over 15 seconds.

Optical Illusions Optical Illusions

There are some age old optical illusions that are especially effective as computer images because of the bright contrasts displayable on screen. Take a look at some that I've collected and/or re-drawn.

Digital Camera Info Digital Camera Info

In the early days of digital cameras, family and friends often asked my advice about this emerging technology. Here's some now-obsolete technical info that you may nonetheless find interesting.

Google's New Logo in 305 Bytes Google's New Logo in 305 Bytes

In 2015, Google released a new, simplified logo. I wondered if it was possible to create a reasonably faithful version of this logo in SVG format in only 305 bytes.

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