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View Full Version : Smugmug sizing - I don't get it:::


stoogest
18-10-2009, 8:33am
Hi all,

I've recently signed up on Smugmug and have noticed something odd. The photo below is about 2.2MB on my hard drive. When uploading to Smugmug (using the windows plugin) it clearly states 2.2MB is being uploaded. But then when doing a link to the image in AP (using extra large size so that it is 1024 wide) it compresses the picture down to only 90kB.

Am I doing something wrong?? Is there something I should be doing differently in Smugmug??

http://strikis.smugmug.com/photos/661037292_vcGy7-XL-2.jpg

Cheers!
Andrew.
ricktas
18-10-2009, 8:39am
We have seen this on Photobucket too! We think they resize them for linking as a means of controlling their bandwidth usage. I asked PB in an email and they advised me in a roundabout sort of way that they do not resize them but optimise them for web loading... so I ended up thinking it was semantics and that they do compress the photos. PB also said they were working on providing links for the 'high quality' versions, again making me think they are doing something to them now.

So my view is that they do something to them to ensure bandwidth is kept to a minimum, whether you call that resizing or optimising ?!?!?
stoogest
18-10-2009, 8:50am
I guess in principle that's fair enough, but to shrink by that much is just nuts!! Comparing the original to what ends up on AP there's quite a lot of lost detail.

I guess with the new comp rules I won't have to worry about it though!
ricktas
18-10-2009, 9:08am
I guess in principle that's fair enough, but to shrink by that much is just nuts!! Comparing the original to what ends up on AP there's quite a lot of lost detail.

I guess with the new comp rules I won't have to worry about it though!

Nope, and neither will we:D. At present every entry is checked manually for size. Cat (Miaow) has taken on this role (thanks Cat)
stoogest
18-10-2009, 9:11am
'...has taken on...'

Is that code for, "Cat drew the short straw"? :)
ricktas
18-10-2009, 9:15am
'...has taken on...'

Is that code for, "Cat drew the short straw"? :)

Nah, meant she just started doing it off her own volition. Wasn't assigned to her at all.
stoogest
18-10-2009, 3:06pm
Link to them using the original size link

Which type of link in particular are you referring to Richard (it's just that there are a number of ways of doing it in SmugMug)?
stoogest
18-10-2009, 5:53pm
I agree darksome, the thing is, all my previous uploads of similar size were downscaled to somewhere around the 200-250kB mark. this is the first time it's gone as low as 90kB. i'll have a go at the X3 size when I get home tonight (the photo above was X2 which I thought was as large as I could go without breaching the pixel limit...but it sounds like I assumed incorrectly).

Thanks!
Andrew.
stoogest
18-10-2009, 7:23pm
Good point. It's the first time I have done it for a black and white.
awilliamsny
19-10-2009, 2:44am
Hi, I'm from SmugMug. We make 8 display copies for you, so your visitors will get fast delivery of your photos no matter how huge your Originals are. Of course you can link to the -O if you wish, just replace -L, -XL etc with -O.

http://www.smugmug.com/help/display-quality

write our Support Heroes (http://www.smugmug.com/help/emailreal) if you have any more questions, thanks!