Chapter 6. Working with Images (Or, Bumpin' with Bitmaps)

In This Chapter

  • Understanding compatible file formats

  • Getting images ready for Flash

  • Working with image sequences

  • Tracing bitmaps

  • Editing images

  • Creating a bitmap fill

  • Swapping images

Images can make or break a Flash project. The size and quality of your images determine the file size and quality of the resulting Flash movie. If you or your client starts out with crisp images, you get good results. On the other hand, if your client presents you with a bunch of images that have already been severely compressed, you have no way to create a decent-looking Flash movie. In this chapter, we're letting Doug take the lead. He has published books on digital photography and knows Photoshop and Fireworks inside and out. In this chapter, Doug shows you how to create Flash movies with great-looking images.

Working with Images (Or, Bumpin' with Bitmaps)

Knowing Your File Formats

Flash supports the popular image file formats. Unfortunately, if you don't deal with images regularly, choosing the right image format for a Flash project can be daunting. The following list describes some characteristics about the image file formats supported by Flash.

  • PNG File: The PNG (PNG) file format is the native Fireworks file format. In Fireworks, the format supports layers and slices and all the other goodies you need in order to create image documents for the Web. Other applications can also export PNG files. ...

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