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Thread: Ideal smugmug size

  1. #1
    rpcrowe's Avatar
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    Ideal smugmug size

    What is the ideal size to post on a forum from smugmug.com? If I upload a full size JPEG image from my APSC Sony camera onto smugmug.com, I then have the following choices to post onto a forum from smugmug.com.

    From Tiny 100x100
    Ideal smugmug size

    To 5K 5120 x 3413
    Ideal smugmug size

    Obviously the 100 x 100 choice is too small and the 5K choice is unwieldy because of its size.

    I usually choose a size with about 1200 at the widest dimension - is that correct?
    X-2 1280x853 at 300 PPI
    Ideal smugmug size

    There doesn't seem to be a great deal of on my monitor viewing difference between choosing the X-2 and the 5K size from smugmug,,,

    Or, if I know that I will be posting the image to the internet, should I save it at a certain size before posting it to smugmug.com? If so, what size?

    Here is an image that I saved at 1200 x 800 at 72 PPI upladed to smugmug.com and posted at the original size which turned out to be 1288 x 859
    Ideal smugmug size

    Looking at the images that I have posted above, there doesn't seem to be any big differences between the last three. I am viewing the images on a 27-inch monitor...

    Also, would the correct size choice for CiC posting be correct for other internet postings?
    Last edited by rpcrowe; 31st May 2020 at 05:08 PM.

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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Richard,

    I post full-size images to Smugmug, with quality from Lightroom set to 87 or so. Higher than that increases file size a lot without increasing the quality of online images or small prints. I normally set public galleries to limit the display to XLarge to lessen the odds of people stealing the image. That size is fine for CiC. It will be downsized a modest amount automatically. If I want something to display considerably larger, I use X2Large for posting here.

    I have a nonpublic galleries, including the one from which I usually post here, that are set to allow any size copy up to and including the original. That allows people to whom I give the link to print, if they want to, but it's sort of pointless, as the way those people get prints is generally to ask me to print for them.

    Dan

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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Richard, I know nothing about Smugmug but I do have a horror of sites re-sampling my pictures using their unknown algorithms. In your shoes and if you are happy with ~1200px, I would continue with that and do all the editing on your computer at that size before uploading to anywhere.

    I am assuming that you use SmugMug for on-line display or cataloging of your image files, i.e. no need for full-size, not as your primary storage archive ...
    Last edited by xpatUSA; 31st May 2020 at 05:14 PM.

  4. #4
    rpcrowe's Avatar
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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Quote Originally Posted by xpatUSA View Post
    Richard, I know nothing about Smugmug but I do have a horror of other sites re-sampling my pictures using their unknown algorithms. In your shoes and if you are happy with ~1200px, I would continue with that and do all the editing on your computer at that size before uploading to anywhere.

    I am assuming that you use SmugMug for on-line display or cataloging of your image files, i.e. no need for full-size, not as your primary storage archive ...
    Very true... My primary storage is full size RAW files and a Master Image which is a full size PSD image with color and density correction but with no sharpening or cropping applied. I have these saved in several ways including external hard drives and a cloud storage system.

    Smugmug,com is used for cataloging my images and for posting on the Internet...

  5. #5
    Moderator Manfred M's Avatar
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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Richard - the main issue is load time for the viewers.

    Small image size loads more quickly than large and for those folks on a slower connection, that is important.

    I've tended to use anywhere between 1600 and 2048 pixels on the long edge. That give people who want a detailed view with enough data to zoom in using LightBox. That seems to be a decent trade-off between the quality and load time, in my experience.

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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Quote Originally Posted by rpcrowe View Post
    Very true... My primary storage is full size RAW files and a Master Image which is a full size PSD image with color and density correction but with no sharpening or cropping applied. I have these saved in several ways including external hard drives and a cloud storage system.

    Smugmug,com is used for cataloging my images and for posting on the Internet...
    Off topic, but may I ask what is "density correction"?

    It seems that everybody does it but nobody says what it is, per se:

    https://www.flatworldsolutions.com/d...n-services.php

    https://www.flatworldsolutions.com/d...correction.php

    https://www.smartphotoeditors.com/re...ge-editing.php

    Is there, like, a Photoshop 'Density' slider which - when pushed to the right - makes all the pixels scrunch up closer together?

    Pardon the levity but the term is actually new to me ...
    Last edited by xpatUSA; 31st May 2020 at 05:46 PM.

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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    I don't use Smugmug but Flickr. As anyone viewing these is going to be doing so on a monitor there is no need to upload anything larger than what the largest viewing screen is likely to be. My monitor is 1440 tall, so I process all my jpegs to this size. I post the same to Flickr.

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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Quote Originally Posted by pschlute View Post
    I don't use Smugmug but Flickr. As anyone viewing these is going to be doing so on a monitor there is no need to upload anything larger than what the largest viewing screen is likely to be. My monitor is 1440 tall, so I process all my jpegs to this size. I post the same to Flickr.
    At 16:9 aspect ratio, Peter?

    So, if someone posts a 1920x1080px do you zoom in and how does it look?

  9. #9
    pschlute's Avatar
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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Quote Originally Posted by xpatUSA View Post
    At 16:9 aspect ratio, Peter?
    No, I create jpegs for the most part at the same ratio as my camera's sensor output in landscape orientation.... 3:2. This is not the same as my screen which is 2560x1440 pixels. But by keeping 1440 pixels tall this means if I look at an image in 100% view it is displayed pixel for pixel on my screen ( with a black edge at either side).

    If someone else looks at my image on their screen which has a lower resolution their computer software will "downsize" the display

    If someone else looks at my image on their screen which has a higher resolution, they will see a smaller image, not a full screen one. if they want to see a full screen image they should ask me to send them a higher resolution image

    Quote Originally Posted by xpatUSA View Post
    So, if someone posts a 1920x1080px do you zoom in and how does it look?
    if I look at a 1920x 1080 image, the software (browser/picture viewer etc) should display the image at the pixel size specified. I would not wish to look at any image at greater than 100%, thus would never look at that sized image in full screen mode on my monitor. Doing so would display a pixelated image.
    Last edited by pschlute; 31st May 2020 at 08:39 PM.

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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Quote Originally Posted by pschlute View Post
    Originally Posted by xpatUSA Ideal smugmug size At 16:9 aspect ratio, Peter?
    No, I create jpegs for the most part at the same ratio as my camera's sensor output in landscape orientation.... 3:2. This is not the same as my screen which is 2560x1440 pixels. But by keeping 1440 pixels tall this means if I look at an image in 100% view it is displayed pixel for pixel on my screen ( with a black edge at either side).
    Ah, understood. 3:2 is 2160x1440px on your 16:9 screen.

    If someone else looks at my image on their screen which has a lower resolution their computer software will "downsize" the display. If someone else looks at my image on their screen which has a higher resolution, they will see a smaller image, not a full screen one.
    Indeed, like for example the so-called "4K" 3840x2160px.

    if they want to see a full screen image they should ask me to send them a higher resolution image
    LOL

    Originally Posted by xpatUSA Ideal smugmug size So, if someone posts a 1920x1080px do you zoom in and how does it look?
    If I look at a 1920x 1080px image, the software (browser/picture viewer etc) should display the image at the pixel size specified. I would not wish to look at any image at greater than 100%, thus would never look at that size image in full screen mode on my monitor. Doing so would display a pixelated image.
    Again, I understand and agree. Who knows what algorithm your browser uses to go from 1080 tall to 1440 tall - certainly would not be pretty in Nearest Neighbor!

    Thanks for the clarification!

  11. #11
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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Off topic, but may I ask what is "density correction"?
    It threw me for a loop as well. I don't recall ever seeing this before. I did some casual searching, and that suggested that it is a vestigal film term referring to the density variation in the image. If that's the case, it would seem to be what I always thought of as part of tonality adjustments.

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    pschlute's Avatar
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    Re: Ideal smugmug size

    Quote Originally Posted by DanK View Post
    It threw me for a loop as well. I don't recall ever seeing this before. I did some casual searching, and that suggested that it is a vestigal film term referring to the density variation in the image. If that's the case, it would seem to be what I always thought of as part of tonality adjustments.
    I think "density correction" is what I went through when I tried to understand colour management

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