RESIZING A PHOTO FILE

Reducing the size of photos (JPEG files) can be useful if you need to send a bunch of pictures in an email or upload them to a website. Resizing almost always means reducing the size. Reducing an image will always reduce the quality slightly, and enlarging an image beyond its original size will always make it look blocky. You can resize images using free websites or the free image editing program on your computer.

The first thing you need to know is the original size of your photo so you can verify after the resizing that it works. Move or copy your photo to your computer and right click on it. You will see “Get Info” or ‘Preferences’ that will tell you the size.

(The difference between a kilobyte, which is KB, a megabyte which is MB, a gigabyte which is GB is size and nothing more. A kilobyte, KB, is a 1000 bytes. 1000 KB = a Megabyte, 1000 MB = a Gigabyte.)

Here I will explain how to resize a JPEG (also referred to as JPG) file using an Image Resizing Website, using PAINT in Windows (standard application that comes with your computer) and PREVIEW on a MAC (also comes with the MAC).

1. Image Resizing Website There are several website that can resize your JPG file: ◦ picresize.com ◦ resizeyourimage.com ◦ resizeimage.net

These websites are used on your computer, not your mobile device. You will move or copy your photo file to your computer’s hard drive. Then go to the website of your choice where you will upload or browse to upload your photo file in the website. upload your photo file to the website and follow the user friendly directions. Each website has a different set of controls to adjust the image size. You may be able to click and drag a box, or use sliders to adjust the final size. You may also be able to enter the exact dimensions you want the resized image to be.

Once you have resized your photo, download the file to your hard drive. When downloading a resized image, make sure you don't overwrite the original. This will allow you to go back and make changes if you aren't happy with the outcome.

2. Using PAINT in Windows

Make a copy of your original photo in case you want to use it later. Right-click on the image file and select "Edit" to open it in PAINT.

Click the "Select" button in the Home tab and choose "Select all." You'll see a dashed line appear around the edge of the image.

Click the "Resize" button. You can find this in the Home tab, or you can press Ctrl+W. This will open the "Resize and Skew" window.

Use the "Resize" fields to change the size of the image. You can choose to resize by percentage or by pixels. If you select "Pixels," you can enter the exact size that you want the resized image to be. You can enter percentages larger than "100" to make the image bigger than the original. Click OK to resize the file. Click and drag the boxes around the edges of the canvas to resize it accordingly and remove excess white space. SAVE your resized file. Use a different name than the original file name.

3. Using PREVIEW in MAC OS X

Make a copy of your file before you start and give it a new name in case you need to use it for another purpose.

Open the image in the Preview application. Usually this will open by default when you double-click the file. If the image opens in something else, you can right-click the file and select "Open With" and then “Preview."

Click the Tools menu and select "Adjust Size.”

Click the drop-down menu to select the units you want to use. You can select "Pixels," "Percentage," and several other units to scale the image by. Selecting "Pixels" will allow you to determine the exact size of the resized image. You'll be able to see what the new file size will be at the bottom of the window before you apply your changes. Click OK to apply changes. Save the file.