my photo

[baxter4312]

can you please help me with uploading my photo to you site.
i tried a while ago...nothing works.

pixel width 80 x 75
.jpg
rgb

says file is too large...

[james]

how large is it? (filesize kilobytes?)

that's likely your problem. the upload works just fine.

[c943]

hey james...I have been puzzled by this lately. I thought h x w pixel counts sets the file size. What else could?

[james]

depends on the type of image.

a jpeg (joint photo experts group) is a lossy format that can be saved in varying levels of compression (loss). Less compression, larger file sizes.

a gif (graphics interchange format) is a lossles format where the size of the file is determined by the height, width, and color depth chosen at it's creation.

Examples:
image (cropped) straight from my Nikon point and shoot Coolpix 2100 digital.

at 100% (least compression)
filesize: 135.8KB


same image at 40% compression
filesize: 23.7KB

same image at 0% (maximum) compression
filesize: 7.5KB

now as a gif, 256 colors
filesize: 125KB

and finally a gif base 16 colors
filesize: 37.4KB


These images illustrate that compression in Jpegs is very useful in reducing filesize considerably. 40% is a good level for web work. The 0% level shows quite a bit of what are called Jpeg artifacts.

The gifs are not as useful for photographic images. Even at 256 base colors, the gif (almost as large as the least compressed Jpeg) cannot match the color range of even the 40% Jpeg. Check the darkest parts of Precious' nose.

At 16 colors, the gif looks washed out and almost like a black and white image, yet the filesize is larger than the 40% Jpeg.

Why use gifs? They are better (sharper) for many types of non-photographic type images of limited color depth.

Here, we have a razor sharp, 1.64KB gif followed by a 3.7KB 40% Jpeg that looks pretty bad. The Jpeg would need to be much heavier (bigger filesize) to equal the lossless gif format.

[c943]

at what point were you able to set those varying jpeg compressions? yet you kept the same physical image size? The software my limited use has encountered only offer reducing file size by resizing. The density of the pic I thought was only adjustable at the time of the actual photo by utilizing the F-N=R settings for resolution right on the camera.

[denisea]

You may find the following info, which I posted on another thread earlier this year, helpful.

Photos that will be viewed online do not require nearly as many pixels as photos that will be printed. This is an instance where less is more and smaller is better. Too many pixels makes it difficult to view photos on a monitor and require viewers to scroll to see the entire image. Large file sizes make uploading, downloading and viewing photos online more time consuming --- the larger the file size the longer the transfer time.

Unfortunately, most photos taken with a digital camera are too large for posting on the Web. Simply cropping or reducing the size of the photo may not reduce the file size significantly enough for viewing online. The best way to reduce the file size of a photo is to lower it's resolution through the use of compression. Most photo viewing/editing software will have an option to save a file in a lower quality, smaller size or lower resolution. Below are three ways to reduce the file size of photos for viewing online:

1. Crop the photo.
   Remove any unnecessary portions of the photo.
   
   
2. Change the pixel dimensions of the photo.
   Newer monitors have a resolution of 1024x768 pixels, so photos used for online viewing should be no larger than this size. However, older computers have a lower monitor resolution of 800x600, so this size is actual a good average size to use for photos that will be used for online viewing. Of course, there's nothing wrong with reducing the file size even further to 640 by 480 or even 320 by 240. For viewing on PlayaInfo the width should be no more than 600 to make viewing easier on screen and to avoid having to scroll to view an entire image.
   
   Most photo viewing/editing software will have a command to change the pixel dimensions of an image --- i.e. "Image Size," "Resize," or "Resample."

   Image Size: This option will be present a dialog box where the exact pixels are enter.
   
   Resample: This option should be selected when reducing the size of an image because it enables the software to change the pixel dimensions.
   
   Constrain proportions or keep aspect ratio: This option should be selected when reducing the size of an image because It prevents the image from being stretched and distorted. When this option is enabled, you only need to enter one value--height or width--and the other value will adjust automatically.
   

3. Change the compression of the photo.
   Most cameras and scanners save in the JPEG format which uses file compression to keep the file size to a minimum. The JPEG format should be used for photos that will be viewed online . JPEG compression can be applied at various levels, with image quality and file size having an inverse relationship --- higher compression = smaller file = less quality.
   
   After re-sizing the photo, be sure to do a Save As --- you don't want to overwrite your original, high resolution file.

   Select JPEG file format with a compression level set in the medium to high quality range.

[RAM]

The first thing I need to do is compliment James for his excellent explanation concerning jpg vs btmp. It looks like he is in line to become the Kim Komando of PDC. Which reminds me, this week Kim Komando had an excellent tip on re-sizing photos and included a free download site for a program that really helps when sizing digital photos.

Now to my question: James, what am I doing wrong in trying to place my picture in my profile? It shows in the Profile. It's a 2.12 KB jpg @ 73 x 87, but doesn't show-up when I post. If necessary, place the dunce hat on me and have me sit in the corner for an hour. Thanks.

[geraldh]

here's a site that offers avatar sizing for free. I haven't tried it yet but looks interesting.

http://www.jql.co.uk/avatarsizer.htm