DPChallenge: A Digital Photography Contest You are not logged in. (log in or register) 
 

DPChallenge Forums >> Tips, Tricks, and Q&A >> Size of Pictures uploaded to a Portfolio
Pages:  
Showing posts 1 - 17 of 17, (reverse)
AuthorThread
 08/30/2006 11:45:30 AM · #1
How big/small do the images have to be to be uploaded into a Portfolio? Is it the same as the images we enter for the challenges? Apologies now if this question has been answered elsewhere - I just couldn't find it, Sorry.
08/30/2006 11:48:48 AM · #2
i have been wondering the same thing. Ive uploaded a few 800x600 but never tried anything larger. not sure about actual KB or MB Limit.
 08/30/2006 11:53:17 AM · #3
You can upload whatever size you want, but to save space, I upload the same filesize that I use for challenges. Otherwise you will fill your precious portfolio space before you know it.
08/30/2006 12:00:12 PM · #4
Announcement

Quote from the Forum Announcement: "In addition, all portfolios will now display images up to 800x800. "

I had misread this as you could only upload files up to 800x800.

Message edited by author 2006-08-30 12:11:43.
 08/30/2006 12:00:23 PM · #5
There are two different questions here: screen size and file size.

I don't know the screen size limits, but I do know that when I've uploaded a large file size (like 2MB), I see a box on the details page when I edit them that says the original file size and the current file size. That leads me to believe the system automatically does something like reducing JPG quality to reduce stored file sizes.

Seems like this is another thing to put in the FAQ. I'll go post that suggestion now.

Edited to add: Maryba, that announcement was about total space available in each portfolio. I didn't see anything about specific pictures. Did I miss it? If so, please post the specific info, and thanks. :)

Message edited by author 2006-08-30 12:02:06.
 08/30/2006 12:12:16 PM · #6
For images displayed on the web in the size we deal with here (mostly 640 pix on the longest dimension), 150K is more than enough to give excellent results. This has been debated to death in years of previous forum threads. Nobody has ever presented anything that convinced me that quality suffers in any noticeable way by limiting files sizes to 150K or under. For larger images (pixel dimensions up to 800 on the longest side, as members are now allowed in their portfolios), my belief is that 150K is still probably sufficient, but bumping that a bit probably doesn't hurt.

I'm not aware that the DPC site does any editing to uploaded images. If you try to upload an 800 pix image that is 2 megabytes in size, I think you're allowed to (levyj413, I'll be curious to see if you're right - where is that dialog that you saw?), but there is clearly no reason to do so for a picture that is intended to be viewed on computer monitors.
 08/30/2006 12:26:50 PM · #7
Originally posted by strangeghost:
For images displayed on the web in the size we deal with here (mostly 640 pix on the longest dimension), 150K is more than enough to give excellent results.


Couldn't agree more. And for challenges, I think those are dandy limits.

When I uploaded those larger files, it was out of sheer laziness. I was quickly tossing up some stuff to show friends and family, and didn't bother optimizing because I had the port space.

However, if I want to use my portfolio to pass along files that people can download and print (I mean, again, friends and family, not selling prints), it needs to be much bigger in screen dimension and file size.

Here's an example of what I'm talking about:


And here's the photo it references:
08/30/2006 12:31:35 PM · #8
I'm still not sure I understand what's happening here (I should just test it!). Was the original large file you uploaded limited to 800 pixels or was it bigger? If it was larger than 800 pixels, than I believe the DPC "filter" resampled it to 800 pixels and the resulting file size change (in K) is accounted for by that. If this is what the server is doing, than there's no point to using DPC as an intermediary to get a printable file to a family member.

08/30/2006 12:41:38 PM · #9
OK, I tested it. I uploaded a 1000 pixel wide image that was high quality jpg (about 90, was 792K). Once uploaded, it was resampled down to 800 pix and new file size was 174K.
 08/30/2006 12:47:42 PM · #10
As long as I'm running tests, here's another. Play along at home.

Here are three jpg images generated from the same original .psd file. The three images are resized for DPC to 800 pixels, but saved at very different jpg qualities (using PS CS save for web). The files are, in no particular order:

quality 100, 644K
quality 65, 200K
quality 22, 76K

Load them in three tabs, side by side, and carefully, visually, assess the quality. Can you tell the difference? Which one is which? I realize that any of you can simply look at the photo properties and tell instantly which is which, but play fair, and do a simple visual inspection. Post your guesses here.



The difference in quality IS noticeable on close inspection. The question is, is the difference in quality worth the additional disk space occupied, when the chief reason for the file is web viewing??

Message edited by author 2006-08-30 12:48:10.
 08/30/2006 12:54:00 PM · #11
Ok that proves that the file is reduced if uploaded over 800x800 but at one point does the server resample an image that was uploaded at 800x800 but lets say for example is 3MB in file size?

I personally wouldn't load anything bigger than 800 just for viewing anyway the average setting on most computers now days is 1024 or 800 so anything larger would require alot of people to scroll.

Originally posted by strangeghost:
OK, I tested it. I uploaded a 1000 pixel wide image that was high quality jpg (about 90, was 792K). Once uploaded, it was resampled down to 800 pix and new file size was 174K.

08/30/2006 01:15:32 PM · #12
Ahh ...

Now I get it.

800 x 800 is max. screen size. No limit on actual file size provided you keep to those dimensions.

Anything larger gets automatically reduced to 800 along one edge, and the size ends up at whatever it is after DPC's filter runs.

See how simple that is? Why couldn't it be in the FAQ?

As to what you SHOULD do, I agree completely that 800 x 800 is fine. In fact, it's too big on most monitors for people to see the whole thing without scrolling up and down. Even 640 pixel high images are too big many times, even on 1024 x 768 monitors.

The picture itself would fit, but you're usually looking at it in something other than full-screen. Browser menus and toolbars, and the operating system task bar take up quite a few pixels. And, unfortunately, that's the dimension that's normally the shorter one in our landscape-oriented monitors. Yes, people can move things around to some extent, but I'd bet 99.999%+ leave things in the default locations.

I often limit my portrait-oriented shots to 600 pixels vertically for that reason, even for challenges. I think pictures have maximum impact when you see them all at once.
 08/30/2006 01:22:24 PM · #13
To answer Bugzeye's challenge (I'm in a testin' mood), 800 pix files retain their original file size in K - DPC doesn't do anything to them.

But, they're still 72dpi low res shots, regardless of the JPG quality, and won't make real good prints.
 08/30/2006 03:40:13 PM · #14
Cool. Must be a boring day over there in Madtown?

Originally posted by strangeghost:
To answer Bugzeye's challenge (I'm in a testin' mood), 800 pix files retain their original file size in K - DPC doesn't do anything to them.

But, they're still 72dpi low res shots, regardless of the JPG quality, and won't make real good prints.

08/30/2006 03:46:04 PM · #15

quality 100, 644K
quality 22, 76K
quality 65, 200K

Am I right?


08/30/2006 04:04:00 PM · #16
Originally posted by cryingdragon:

Am I right?


Answer is in PM (or you could just check the properties).

Anyone else?
 08/31/2006 02:29:38 AM · #17
i got it wrong, I should have picked out the low quality one instead of trying to pick the best or even better i should have right clicked the photos and looked at the props. lol
Pages:  
Current Server Time: 09/04/2025 04:33:20 AM

Please log in or register to post to the forums.


Home - Challenges - Community - League - Photos - Cameras - Lenses - Learn - Help - Terms of Use - Privacy - Top ^
DPChallenge, and website content and design, Copyright © 2001-2025 Challenging Technologies, LLC.
All digital photo copyrights belong to the photographers and may not be used without permission.
Current Server Time: 09/04/2025 04:33:20 AM EDT.