Please help! I need to convert these tiny icons into vector images?!

[discreetthinker]

I'm having trouble using live trace and converting these icons into vector images. They are of such low resolution and I am even having trouble tracing them in illustrator. Could someone help me out?? I tried it on livetrace, but it doesnt seem to give me the result I need...The pentool is painful to use on such tiny images...

 

[heehee]

Learn the pen tool, it's not that hard. If you have a hard time seen, zoom in.

 

[discreetthinker]

*sigh* I know how to use the pen tool, and I know I can do that but when I zoom in, it is WAYYY too pixelated and it does not help at all. I really need to figure out how to do this soon...it is also too pixelated/tiny for the live trace to even work.

 

[Jookbox]

Unfortunately those icons look too small to do any type of trace bitmap. I would just redraw them with the pen tool in Illustrator, they look simple enough.

 

[Apple OC]

just because they are pixelated should not be a big problem to trace with the pen tool ... time to get creative

 

[heehee]

The first and second one you don't even need the pen tool. Just make a box 800 x 800, use lines and boxes to make it. It's not that hard, it can be done in less than 2 minutes. Seems like you just want someone to make them for you, being pixelated has nothing to do with it..

The middle one, make

| |-| |

make it all different stroke weight and done.

 

[discreetthinker]

Thanks. I just redid them by hand and found a better vector icon for the graduation hat to use as reference.
I was just curious to know if there was a quick technique to just make tiny images into vector ones.

 

[BJMRamage]

quickest way... from scratch. they weren't complicated.

 

[ezekielrage_99]

Smashing Magazine has a similar set on their site, otherwise Illustrator is your friend you should be able to recreate those is Illustrator far faster.

Then if you value you your time iStockPhoto could be an option

 

[discreetthinker]

Thank you everyone or your help!!

 

[THX1139]

For future reference, this is how I would have done them if they needed to be replicated close to to the original. I would have enlarged them in size by 300%, then printed them. They would be pixelated and look like crap, but you only need them as a reference. Next, I would lay a sheet of tracing paper over them and redraw them with a sharpie or other fine point black pen. Then I would scan them back into the computer at 300dpi. From there, I would drop them into Illustrator and drawn vectors with the pen tool using them as a template. Seems like a lot of work, but not if you know what your doing. That would give you the best quality and close to the original design.

By the way, live trace is usually crap and should only be used in emergencies and only if your willing to spend time cleaning up the points. Just saying...

 

[NeverhadaPC]

1. prcess the images to smooth out pixelation, or
2. redraw using the amazing EazyDraw