A PNG is made of tiny colored squares called pixels. A vector image stores the lines and shapes of the drawing instead. That lets you enlarge those shapes without turning their edges into bigger pixels.
Why does a printer ask for a vector logo?
A logo that looks fine on a phone may look blurry on a large sign. The printer may ask for a vector file so they can resize it or adjust its shapes. First ask the person who made the logo for the original SVG, AI, EPS or PDF. That is usually better than converting a small PNG.
The file name is not enough to check this: a PDF or SVG can still contain an ordinary image. Open it in a drawing app such as Inkscape or Illustrator and see whether you can select and edit individual shapes.
What are “paths”?
A path is a line or outline you can edit. For example, a circle can be described by a smooth curve instead of hundreds of colored squares. A vector file can store many of these shapes, each with its own color.
Turning a PNG into paths is called tracing or vectorizing. The software works out where the edges are from the image. It can get them wrong, especially around tiny letters or blurry details.
Compare these two files
Open the original image and the converted SVG below. Zoom in on the heron’s beak, the tips of the white feathers and the gaps between leaves. Then open the SVG in a vector editor and try changing one shape's color. The result is the converter's output, with no manual corrections.
If you only have a PNG
- Use the largest, clearest copy you have. Avoid a screenshot of the logo on a wall, website or business card.
- Convert it, then compare letters, corners and small gaps with the original.
- Open the SVG in the app that will use it. Check both a large view and the final display size.
- For printing, ask the printer which format and physical size they need.
Changing the file name from .png to .svg does not convert the picture. And converting a photo into thousands of shapes rarely makes it more useful: photos usually work better as image files.
