After over a decade of experimenting, I have found that unless you're making pictures directly in LaTeX itself (which is cool too), there are only two image formats I should ever use in a LateX document:
high-res compressed JPG/JPEG and PDF. Whenever possible, stick to vector graphics
(PDF) because they are smaller and scale perfectly to any dimension. This will let folks zoom into your papers and also you can reuse them in posters.
To use either of these formats, just include
\usepackage{graphicx} in your LateX code and
\usepackage{subfigure} if you want sub-figures.
Most readers will know or figure out how to make a high-resolution compressed JPG. I will focus on creating high-quality PDF vector graphics. First of all, I suggest using
PowerPoint. It has tons of tools for drawing circles, arrows, text, graphs where you can drag around nodes etc! It's very easy to use.
If you want to include formulas or symbols (from your paper) in your PowerPoint pictures, get this very useful tool:
Windows users should make sure to install all the stuff from
this page first. There are free alternatives available but they don't produce vector graphics. Rather than "Texifying" text, use TexPoint to just create add Tex as a picture. You can use all your favorite packages and it will create a vector graphic with a transparent background. There are existing free tools - but they do not create vector graphics. TexPoint is worth it, trust me.
Now that you have a nice picture in PowerPoint with LateX symbols and equations, you want to turn it into a PDF! When you save it as a PDF, it will obviously save as a slide with totally the wrong dimensions. Luckily there is a free cross-platform program that will easily let you crop out the area you want from a PDF:
All you do is crop out the area you want and you have a beautiful PDF vector graphic to use in your paper. If you get lucky, your paper will be published and you'll be asked to do a presentation. Remember, the pictures you made for your paper are already in PowerPoint!
