I am new to the laser scene and was wondering what the pros/cons are to etching material with vector files vs. raster image files. I know vectored PDFs basically have infinite resolution…is one easier to work with or get etched faster than the other? I have been taking raster images and converting them to vectors in Inkscape because YouTube told me to, but can someone tell me how/if this is beneficial? I am purely talking about file type comparison with regard to etching
the difference is basically tracing the edges vs scanning the dark vs light areas.
vector is usually for cutting all the way through an item but can be used to etch single lines
raster is used to draw an image using scan lines like your CRT used to do.
1 Like
If you’ve ever played arcade games… vector:
Raster:
One is done with only lines drawn on the screen and characters are all outlines. The other is done by drawing everything on the screen line by line starting at the top left of the screen and ending on the bottom right.
If you have an image with outlines then vector “etching” (i.e., a very light “cut” using over the vector paths) will give you a cleaner image than a raster file, and it will etch must faster.
A raster etch will scan back and forth across every “line” of the image, even if very little is etched. In comparison, the head will only traverse the exact vector path if you “etch” using vectors. Lots faster = less laser usage fees 
I laser etch vector text and other lines/“outlines” all the time.
If you have “filled” areas, then raster is the most effective way to go. If you are trying to etch a grey-scale photograph, then AFAIK raster is the only way to go.