How can I convert a JPEG image to a vector graphic?
Dear A. Pixel,
I created a JPEG image in Adobe Photoshop CS2. I want to print it on a T-shirt, but the guy at the T-shirt place told me he needs the image as a vector graphic. How can I convert the file? I have Adobe Creative Suite 2.
     —Teased by a tee

Dear A. Pixel,
We lay out our cooking magazine in Adobe InDesign CS2. Of course, recipes require fractions, but we haven’t found an efficient way to format them. Glyphs don’t work because they aren’t retained when we reuse the text in Microsoft Word. Switching fonts is not a viable option, and the fonts we use don’t have the numerator and denominator functionality that OpenType provides. Any suggestions?
     —Frustrated with fractions

 


Dear Teased,
It’s fun printing T-shirts from your own artwork. And, as your printer knows, whenever you’re screen printing fabric, simple vector designs work best. Your printer will probably also advise you to stick with spot colors and to convert text to outlines. For all these reasons, Illustrator CS2, part of Adobe Creative Suite 2, is a great tool for preparing T-shirt designs.

JPEG images are bitmaps, meaning that they are described as pixels, and their image quality depends upon their resolution, or how many pixels are described per inch. To convert a bitmap file to a vector file, which describes a graphic in paths and is not dependent on resolution, use the Live Trace feature in Illustrator CS2. You can resize vector graphics without worrying about resolution; the graphic will be just as sharp and clear at any size.

To convert your image:
1. Create a new document in Illustrator.

What is an efficient way to format fractions in InDesign?
2. Choose File > Place, and select your JPEG image.
3. With the JPEG image selected, click the triangle next to the Live Trace button in the Control palette. (If the Control palette isn’t open, choose Window > Control Palette.)
4. Choose the appropriate preset for your image. The preset you use determines how many paths will be created, how many colors will be used, and how other settings will affect the final graphic. Consult your printer to find out which preset will give you the best results for your project. When you’re satisfied with the quality of the graphic, save the file as an Illustrator EPS file, which you can send to your printer.

Live Trace creates vector paths that closely match the lines and shapes in your original image. First, Live Trace adjusts the tone, color, and resolution of the image to optimize it for tracing. Then, Live Trace draws the vector paths to create the vector graphic. The new traced object is linked to the original image so that you can make adjustments to the tracing options as you preview the results.

Dear Frustrated,
For most InDesign users, it’s easiest to use fraction glyphs or to format fractions using OpenType features. Since those options won’t work for you, we’ll have to find another way.

To manually format fractions, you probably apply superscript to the numerator and subscript to the denominator, and then format the slash between them. That’s a fair amount of work for each fraction.

If your fractions appear at the beginning of paragraphs, as in the ingredients lists in recipes, you can create a nested style that incorporates multiple character styles to apply the superscript, subscript, and slash styling for you. You’d probably need to create separate nested styles for paragraphs that begin with a fraction and paragraphs that begin with a whole number followed by a fraction. (That is, you’d use one paragraph style for lines like “½ cup milk” and another for lines like “3 ½ tbsp baking soda.”)

If all that still seems like too much work, consider using a script or a plug-in. Dan Rodney has created a script called Proper Fraction 1.0. After you’ve installed the script, you simply type the characters that make up the fraction, select the text, and double-click the script name in the Scripts palette. You can download the script from Rodney’s website or from Adobe Studio Exchange.

FractionsNPrices, a plug-in from Sansui software, automatically formats fractions. When the plug-in is installed, type the characters that make up the fraction, click within the text to be formatted, and then choose Type > Make Fraction.

Either of these options will have you formatting that text in a fraction of the time it takes you now.