Saving and compressing images for website

[BigFuzzy]

Ok... so here's my dilemma. I want to re-design parts of my website. I want to use large images (for example, 1200px or more on a landscape image, smaller for portrait of course) and am looking for what you all think is the best solution/method/technique for saving the images so as to make them as good a combination of image size vs file size so that I affect my load times as little as possible.

I've used various 3rd party 'compression' tools in the past but I'm looking for what you all do as I'm looking for new/better ways.

Thanks!

PS I have both LR3 and PS CS5. I'm open to buying more software if it's worth it.

[OsmosisStudios]

CS5: Save for Web. It'll strip EXIF, but it makes images a LOT smaller.

[LeeR]

Have you used the "Save for Web" tool in PS. It allows you to adjust the size of the image file with a slider so you can see the impact it is having on your image. I am always surprised at how small I can shrink the image before it begins to show signs of degradation.The system will also tell you how long it will take for your image to download at different Internet speeds. I can also set the image to "Progressive" which allows it to slowly materialize on the website rather than only showing a blank box until the image is fully downloaded.
You may also want to try FastStone Image Viewer 4.3 which has many of the same features plus it allows you to convert images in bulk; which is great when doing website work.

[BigFuzzy]

Ok, I guess the "save for web" option seems to be the best people know of. I just assumed there might be some other method or program that really squeezed the most out of the image as possible.

I guess the one thing I've not really done is try to lower the quality much to see it's effects..

Thanks fellas.

[wulf]

EXIF data will only be a relatively small part of the overall image, although it may be worth stripping out if you are trying to optimise everything you can. Image compression is where you can bring things down - a tiny change is often imperceptible to the eye but makes a big difference to file size.

From a wider perspective, don't have too many large images on any given page. People might be able to enjoy one large picture but the second one is going to slow page loading but won't benefit them until they scroll. Also, don't forget that an increasing number of people are using mobile devices to interact with the web, which takes us back to smaller screens, slower connection speeds and costs associated with downloading too much data. You might want a hefty area for artistic reasons but don't put it right at the front door.

Wulf

[BigFuzzy]

Good points Wulf, thanks!

Any suggestions/recommendations on compression tools/methods/programs? I figured compression is where I'd gain something, but not sure what route to go to get best quality vs size gain.

[wulf]

I use The Gimp and eyeballing it. You can get a preview and, if you wanted to be more rigourous, could save several copes. The only caveat is to make sure you save each version from the same master copy as each generation of JPEG image is successively more lossy (JPEG is still the most efficient common format for photographs on the web).

What you can't do is pick a magic number. Some images compress much better than others because of the way the algorithms work (see here for a very thorough discussion).

Wulf

[BigFuzzy]

Thank you sir!

[autofocus]

Al, we're restricted on image size on our website to no larger than 72ppi, no taller than 440 high, and no wider than 560 pixels. I make all those more exact changes in photoshop's image size option. Are there size restrictions on your website?

Vinnie

[BuddhaPi]

Originally Posted by autofocus

Al, we're restricted on image size on our website to no larger than 72ppi, no taller than 440 high, and no wider than 560 pixels. I make all those more exact changes in photoshop's image size option. Are there size restrictions on your website?

Vinnie

You're only restricted because the sizez are hard coded into the flash, and without the original .swf files you can't change them, I believe Al is running wordpress, no flash or restrictions whatsoever..