How to prepare an image to upload

Software

There are various applications for processing images. Adobe Photoshop, Krita, GIMP are very powerful but comparatively complex and are more suitable for advanced users. But there are also relatively simple ones that are convenient for a wide range of users. Among them there are both paid (like ACDSee) and free (XnView, IrfanView, and many others). Search for them on the Internet and choose what you like!

It is extremely NOT RECOMMENDED TO USE Microsoft software like Microsoft Photo Editor, Microsoft Office Picture Manager or, God forbid, Paint.

Problem

The main problem that arises when preparing photos for uploading to the site is that the size ("weight") of the files is too large. In other words, the source files take up too much space on the computer's hard drive and take too long to download from the server.

The source of this problem is the high resolution of images taken with modern cameras. A high resolution increases the quality of the picture, but as a result, the original file is too "heavy". Meanwhile, for photos uploaded to "Plantarium" are set limits in 1400 px (pixels, screen pixels) in width and 1400 px in height, and the "weight" of files should not exceed 600 Kb (kilobyte)..

Recommendations

If you do not have sufficient experience in digital photo processing, we recommend the following procedure for processing images.

Remember to adjust your monitor settings before starting to work so that your photos do not appear too dark or too light on other displays.

1. Cropping

Cut out a fragment of the desired shape from the original photo, capturing the part of the image of interest to us.

If your picture is not a landscape, then you can safely crop the "empty" parts of the picture. So the plant itself will looks larger.

2. Correcting highlights and shadows

Very often, increasing the brightness in the shadows, and darkening the light areas significantly improves the photo: previously indistinguishable details and texture features appear on it (for example, veins on the petals, etc.). This can be done in different ways, but in the most popular programs for correcting highlights and shadows there is a special tool "Shadow/Highlight".

3. Scaling

If the width of the "horizontal" image is greater than 1400 pixels (or the height of the "vertical" image is greater than 1400 pixels), then the image must be reduced. When decreasing, you need to make sure that the photo is reduced proportionally in height and width.

It is not necessary to make the side of the size 1400 px. Such large size is required mainly for photographs with whole plant appearance. If your photo shows a small fragment of a plant, the largest side of the image may be smaller.

Making pictures too small is also not good, because the details of the structure of plants are poorly distinguishable on them. Therefore, the site has the following restrictions:

• minimal width of "vertical" images is 550 px;
• minimal width of other images is 800 px (700 px when an aspect ratio is 16:9 and wider, 600 px when an aspect ratio is 2:1 and wider).

4. Sharpening

As a rule, when an image is compressed, its details are blurred, and sharpness must be restored. This is done using a tool commonly called "Sharpening" or "Sharpness" in programs.

The degree of sharpening is selected for each image individually. When adjusting the sharpness, you need to be careful not to distort the contours (sharp edges) in the form of "steps", "saws" or white stripes. This tool should not be overused. If sharpening is excessive, the picture will be too speckled. Additionally the increase in sharpness is accompanied by an increase in the "weight" of the file.

5. Saving

Save the processed image as a copy (the original may still come in handy). When saving in JPEG format, pay attention to the file compression settings. These settings are usually located in a separate dialog opened by clicking on the "Options" button.

The compression ratio affects not only the size, but also the quality of the image. The more the compression, the more detail will be lost in the processed image. However, the highest quality files (without compression) are too "weight". Therefore, you have to choose a quality level at which the file size with your photo does not exceed 600  Kb.

You can take the level 85 as a basis, but if after saving it turns out that the "weight" of the file is too large, repeat the save, lowering the quality level to 80 or 70. If this does not help, start processing the photo from the beginning and make the linear dimensions of the image smaller when scaling (you should not reduce the quality level of the JPEG file below 70, because the image quality will decline significantly).