Graphics:
Nothing creates more visual impact in a Web site than graphics. Some sites are entirely graphics. This is usually to have as much control as possible over the appearance of the site. There is a cost however: download time. How long will your audience wait for your page to load? Some people who just wanted to drop in a get some information, get anxious quickly and decide the site is not worth waiting for and leave. Sites thin on graphics may appear too text heavy and scare away those who appreciate graphics' ability to make information more palatable. In either case, the right balance of graphics to text is an important consideration that the designer can help you with.

The file types used presently that can be seen on all image-capable browsers are JPEGs and GIFs. JPEGs are used when the image quality is most important, especially with photographic imagery. These files use "compression" to make the file size smaller. There are several levels of compression that can be used on a JPEG. A small amount of compression keeps the image at a higher quality as well as a larger file size. Large amounts of compression decrease the image's quality and file size. GIFs are used for images that are less important to keep the quality high such as graphics that have large amounts of flat areas of color, line work, and simple detail. Images that have gradations of color and a lot of subtle detail do not work well as a GIF.