Dover Clip Art

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sunshinejim
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Dover Clip Art

Post by sunshinejim »

What is the easiest way to convert Dover Clip Art files so they can be cut in VCP. I have tried the VCP convert a file with limited success

CLyon
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Raster to Vector conversion

Post by CLyon »

VCP has one of the best raster to vector converters I have found. I wonder if your disappointment is more a function of how difficult a process it is to translate some graphics to a meaningful black and white drawing.

The easiest conversions are black and white (or pen and ink) drawings. Dover publishes thousands of clips that convert very well. If you use their full color clips, the challenge is much greater. A perfect conversion is unlikely using any software.

A few things will make it easier. Process your photo/graphic to increase contrast. Use a graphics program (GIMP/Photoshop etc) to decrease the range of colors. For example, instead of 64000 shades, reduce it to 8. You will instantly see how much data is lost, and get some notion of the potential for adequate conversion.

Adjust the thresholds. Remember that you really want data reduction (simplification) and the task is to tweak the threshold to achieve the most meaningful rendition.

I spent hundreds of $, and months of effort trying almost every significant conversion program on the market. Inkscape (free) and VCP are clearly among the best.

Review the forum with a search for vector conversion for additional tips.

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BradyWatson
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Post by BradyWatson »

Define 'easy'...Easy as in a few clicks and it's wrapped or easy as in, clean vectors with the least number of nodes and jaggies? I prefer the latter for most intricate designs because no raster to vector conversion ever results in clean vectors. It's just the nature of the beast. Manually tracing seems like a daunting task to most, but it really isn't that bad...AND you get to control the quality of the cut by using your own new clean vectors.

Just using a trace utility has proven to be more trouble than it is worth if you want professional results. Simple logos etc are good for raster to vector conversion tools...but if you want the design to be clean, you gotta do some node editing and manual wrapping.

-B
High Definition 3D Laser Scanning www.IBILD.com

gregb
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Post by gregb »

I understand node editing. What is manual wrapping?

Thanks, Greg

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BradyWatson
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Post by BradyWatson »

Basically drawing a polyline around the bitmap and then node editing with bezier, arcs and lines to get a nice clean wrap with the minimum number of nodes.

-B
High Definition 3D Laser Scanning www.IBILD.com

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