"vector-izing" a picture
 

Does anyone know how to convert a bitmapped image to vector art? I need to turn a logo into vector art for a T-shirt, and I can't think of any way to do that.

There isn't anyway per se to directly convert pixels into vector based drawing. A pixel image usually has thousands of different colors, while a vector image has only a few, which makes a vector image more look like a drawing than an actual image. Trust me if there was a way, somebody would be a millionaire about now. The best way, that I know of is to import the picture into Adobe Illustrator or whatever you have and re-trace it. Its a pain, but that’s the only good way that know of.
However there is an alternative, but it is not a good one. If you have Macromedia Flash or FreeHand
1. import the picture as a Bitmap
2. Go to Modify-->Trace Bitmap
3. In the dialogue box it asks you for a color threshold. For the most colors put 1.
4. And put the minimum area to the most you can (I think)
and viola you have a pixel image that is now a vector image.

Results for doing this are usually mixed to poor - at least, in the experiences I've had.

If you don't get good results with vectorizing an image through software, it may also be in your best interest to scan it or take a digital original and trace it by hand in your favorite vector software package (Freehand, Illustrator...even Fireworks, works.) That's worked well for me in the past.

Remember, of course, that t-shirt printers may not be able to handle neat things like color gradients.

Good luck!

never used it before, but i've heard that Adobe Streamline does that for you. I might be wrong, though.

It does. Do they still make Streamline? I haven't used anything newer than Ver. 4, which is quite old.

With that, I also had little success.