Vector vs. Raster Graphics Flash is a graphics-oriented format. Although you can import artwork created in other programs, you will likely do a good amount of editing using Flash's drawing tools. Before you start exploring these tools, it's helpful to understand the distinction between vector and raster graphics. Raster graphics describe images as a grid of pixels , each pixel having its own color value. Depending on the number of pixels and the number of possible colors per pixel, raster graphics range from simple icons or logos to high-quality digital photographs.
Vector graphics describe images as outlines with filled regions of color.
The outlines are represented as mathematical curves joining a few key points. Because of this representation, vector image files are much smaller than similar raster images, and are not locked into a specific size as raster images are, so they can be scaled to any size without loss of clarity. In this regard, Flash is more similar to other vector-based programs like Illustrator than it is to Photoshop. Lines and Fills Flash graphics consists solely of outlines and color fills. As we'll see, the two elements behave very differently yet are closely related.