Users are often annoyed by slow loading web pages. To speed up the process, site owners resize images. Compressing images allows you to save space on the server and reduce traffic consumption. The smaller the image, the better for the service.

Is it possible to compress images without losing quality? The result depends on the graphic source. Some photos can only be reduced by 100 bytes. It is recommended to compress ordinary images from the Internet by 40%.

The pictures should not lose quality. Image compression must be done in special applications. IN this review The best programs for reducing images will be discussed.

AdvanceCOMP

This is a legacy command line application. The utility is unlikely to appeal to users accustomed to working with a graphical interface. Reference information No. Compressing images is carried out by entering a simple line for %a in (path to the image file) do advpng -z -4 "%a. If the user has already worked with the command line, then it will be easier for him to master the program.

After the image compression process is completed, the finished files will replace the original images. The quality of the pictures will remain the same. The compression result may disappoint the user. The size of the PNG image will be reduced by only 14.2%. The program can be used in combination with other utilities to optimize images.

Caesium

A simple open source application used to compress images in PNG, JPG and BMP formats. The program interface is simple and intuitive. To add the required images, click on the Add button. In the window that opens, you need to select pictures and specify a folder to save the results.

Then you need to click on the Compress button. The program will compress images for the site in a few seconds. The developers did not provide features without loss of quality. The utility simply transcodes files using user-specified parameters.

When working with the program, the user will encounter some restrictions. The application allows you to receive only 24-bit files. When using other formats, the weight of the image increases. The image size is reduced by only 1.2%. If the user is not satisfied with the result, he can refuse to save the file.

FILEminimizer Pictures

The program uses a radical approach to image optimization. The user has access to options for changing formats, scaling photographs, removing metadata, recoding JPEG files, taking into account the need to change the weight of the picture. The application is built in a familiar format. After selecting the source file and destination folder, all that remains is one click. The program compresses images very quickly.

The result depends on The user can compress the weight of the JPG image by up to 40%. Optimizing a PNG file gives no more than 28.8%. When compressing GIF, it is possible to reduce the weight of the image by only 16.5%.

FileOptimizer

The application optimizes images, executable files, archives, MS Office documents, PDF and many others. The program has one of the simplest and most intuitive interfaces. The user just needs to drag the pictures into the utility window and right-click computer mouse and select “optimize”. The original files will be replaced with new ones. The original versions of the images are moved to the trash.

If necessary, the user can restore files. FileOptimizer application is best program to compress images in PNG format. Images can be reduced by 42.2%. Optimizing images in and GIF gives no more than 17.7% and 15.9%, respectively. The user can also compress other files on their site.

ImageOptim

The program was created for computers running Mac OS. The application compresses pictures and also acts as a wrapper for other utilities. The program allows you to remove descriptions and color profiles. The quality of images after compression remains the same. Files are not re-encoded.

In order to optimize an image, you should drag it into the utility window. The image compression program does not work as fast as we would like. This will not be a problem for users who upload only 5-10 photos to the application.

GIF and PNG files can be compressed by 17.8%. JPG images can be reduced by 18.3%. The application is suitable for users who need a stable and simple tool.

jStrip

The program allows you to remove all unnecessary information: thumbnails, descriptions, color profile, unnecessary bytes at the beginning of files, etc. You cannot count on significant image compression. Since no re-encoding is performed, the quality of the images remains the same.

High-resolution photos can only be compressed by 1%. Small pictures can be reduced by 16.1%. The application cannot be called perfect. The program replaces the original pictures with new images.

OptiPNG

Compression Wordpress images performed using the command line. The detailed instructions describe all the functions of the utility. PNG images can be reduced by 32.2%. It is recommended to combine the tool with other programs.

PNGGauntlet

The application has a simple graphical interface. The program can serve as a wrapper for other utilities. During compression, three tools are used simultaneously. Therefore, the image optimization process may take a long time. 25 images per high resolution processed for 1 hour.

The application gives excellent compression results. The utility reduced 50 PNG files by 41.3%. However, is the result worth such a long wait? Everyone decides for themselves. Users who need a tool for high-quality optimization of PNG files will definitely include the program in the list of utilities they use.

RIOT

This is the only thing free application, prompting you to install unnecessary modules. If advertised by developers software is not interesting to the user, then he can uncheck the corresponding items. The application has a clear interface. A multi-threaded process allows you to process several images at once. If necessary, you can compare the results with the originals.

The program reduces the number of colors in photos and recodes JPEG into a low-quality image. After processing, some files may become larger in size. Therefore, you need to check the results. It is worth noting that the application works well with GIF files. Animated pictures can be compressed by 42.8%.

PNGOptimizer

The application size is 146 KB. The program has a primitive interface. The utility compresses images in PNG format. The app removes interlacing, replaces background color, and removes text. The program imports GIF, BMP and TGA files and saves them as PNG images.

The application is inferior in efficiency to other utilities. PNG images can be compressed by only 3.6%. Ordinary pictures from the Internet can be reduced by 40%. For users looking for a small and simple solution To work with PNG files, it is recommended to pay attention to this application.

JPEGmini Lite

The program compresses images in two stages. First, the application determines how much of the image can be reduced without losing quality. In this case, a complex processing algorithm is used. The JPEG encoder then compresses the image. The picture quality remains almost the same.

To start the process, drag photos into the utility window. The original images will be replaced with the new images. IN free version You are allowed to compress no more than 20 images daily.

Results vary depending on source photos. High-resolution images can be compressed by 71.3% without significant loss of quality. Simple JPG images can be reduced by only 8.2%. The larger the image size, the better the compression quality.

ScriptPNG

This is a command line tool. The program optimizes files in PNG format. To compress an image, you need to drag it onto the utility file itself. will appear command line. The user will be asked to choose one of nine compression methods.

Here you need to indicate the appropriate option. The application will close. File processing will begin. The original photos will be replaced with new photos. When running the program, problems may arise with the installer, so error messages will have to be closed manually.

PNG images can be reduced by 40.1%. If the user wants to add other options, he can edit the script file himself.

conclusions

The FileOptimizer program gives the best results. With its help you can achieve 42.2% compression of PNG images. The app also works great with JPG and GIF files. If the user is not satisfied with this option, then he can take a closer look at the ScriptPNG utility. ImageOptim shows good results when working with images in JPEG and GIF format.

The main thing is to indicate the image on your computer or phone, specify the quality from 1 to 100, and click OK at the bottom of the page. The rest of the settings are set to default. How more indicated " quality» in settings (80-100), themes the size will be larger file. And vice versa, lower quality(50-75) will give smaller size JPEG file. If necessary, you can find out the level of quality (compression) with which the jpeg file was created.

If, after compression, the size of the jpeg file has become, on the contrary, larger than the original, then you need to lower the quality level from 80 to a lower number, for example, set 60. The sizes in pixels and megabytes before and after compression can be seen after processing or pressing the OK button. If, at a quality level of 40-50, the size is still larger than the original, then there is no point in compressing the image - it was already well compressed. You can only try to remove the metadata embedded in the jpg file or remove exif + make the jpg progressive without losing quality.

In the settings, you can select the type of subsampling (decimation), which allows you to achieve greater compression of the jpg file with minimal losses. Subsampling 1x1 gives the best image quality, bright color transitions are preserved, mainly suitable for high-quality previews or small preview images. 2x1 subsampling is the most common method, used in almost all digital cameras, compression of sharp color transitions occurs horizontally, allows you to achieve smaller size file without much loss, great for large images. 1x2- the same as 2x1, but only the averaging of sharp color transitions will be vertical. Subsampling 2x2 averages sharp color transitions horizontally and vertically, allows you to achieve the smallest file size, and is suitable for blurry pictures.

The original image is not changed in any way. You will be provided with another processed image in jpg format.

The photos of "Red Pepper After the Rain" show the JPEG quality level for comparison:

The dimensions of this jpg image depending on the quality level (Q is quality, KB is the size in kilobytes):
Q 10 = 2 KB; Q 15 = 2.7 KB; Q 30 = 4.3 KB; Q 50 = 5.9 KB; Q 60 = 6.7 KB; Q 70 = 7.9 KB; Q 80 = 9.8 KB; Q 90 = 14.1 KB; Q 100 = 46.5 KB.

From the above examples it can be concluded that best ratio size-quality can be a quality level from 75 to 95. And in order for the picture to occupy the smallest size and at the same time be more or less normal, a quality of 60-70 is suitable. If quality does not matter, but you need a small file size, then a quality percentage of 30 to 50 is suitable.

Please note that the file size of a progressive JPEG image is usually 2-3% smaller than a standard one with the same image quality, and it will also open beautifully when loaded into an Internet browser, as is usually done in films! An example of a standard and progressive JPEG image can be viewed.

It's no secret that page loading speed is one of the key success factors. This is important not so much for raising search rankings as for the convenience of users, especially those who use mobile devices.

Therefore, no matter who creates the graphics for your site, you should be sure that they are optimized for web resources without loss of quality to reduce site loading time. In fact, if you rely more on mobile traffic, you need to approach the graphic component correctly - not many photos, and compress what is needed as best as possible.

I offer you several free image compression services.

This is a multifunctional service! It will not only allow you to compress an image with ease, but also additional functions: cropping an image, adding borders, adjusting brightness levels, contrast and saturation, monochrome effect, and much more. There's no need to install anything—just upload an image, compress it, and edit it to your liking.

This is a free optimizer with a simple intuitive interface. As in the previous case, you just need to upload the image and select the desired compression level without loss of quality in the drop-down menu. Compression options range from aggressive to light compression.

This program is also free and, like the previous one, has an easy-to-use interface. Pung PNG works with PNG, JPEG, and GIF formats, and compresses them without losing quality (so they claim). Our tests confirm the fact that this service provides amazing results. Try it yourself.

Click on the "Try it now" button and on the next page upload your photo using the "Upload your foto" button.

There are no settings in this program. Immediately after downloading, the program itself changes the photo. Below the photo you can see the original size of the photo, the changed size of the photo and how many times the compression was done. The program itself sets how many times the photo will be compressed. You can save photos only in JPEG format. As you can see, the program is not very functional and in most cases it is not suitable for compressing photos without losing quality online.

An excellent program to compress photos without losing quality online, quite functional. The program is completely in Russian and you can figure it out yourself. The program does an excellent job of compressing photos without losing quality online.

A simple and understandable program in which you can compress photos without losing quality online. All you need to do here is upload a photo and set the desired size in width or height.

Are you sure that all the graphics used on your pages are optimized for the web? Before you compress a photo, you probably already selected the appropriate format for each image, and also tried to reduce their size as much as possible.

The main problem is that it doesn't matter how carefully you optimize your image, since graphic editor Most often they are saved in the most suitable version for publication on the Internet. And if you don’t run these images through special compression tools, their size can significantly affect page loading speed.

Testing

In this article we have collected 18 the best tools to compress a photo online and locally. Most of the programs presented are designed for Windows and can reduce the size of images with virtually no loss of quality. In addition, we have not forgotten about programs for Mac, as well as web services, so everyone can find a suitable option.

We tried compressing the same set of GIF, PNG, and JPG images using each of the tools described below, and the images were already optimized for the web, but we were still able to reduce their size. The results turned out to be quite interesting! Let's see what we managed to find out.

Programs

01. AdvanceCOMP 1.20

Platform: Windows

An ancient command line tool with no instructions provided. AdvanceCOMP is unlikely to appeal to the average PC user. If you are not afraid of batch files, then it will be easier for you to cope with this tool.

A simple line like: for %a in (“C:PNG FileFolder*.png”) do advpng -z -4 “%a” will apply a lossless compression algorithm to each file located in the specified directory. Once the photo size is compressed, the finished files will replace the original ones.

But the final result of compressing the PNG image disappointed us, as the size decreased by only 14.2% ( only this tool gave such a low result).

Of course, it's better than nothing. And if you plan to combine several tools together, then AdvanceCOMP will definitely play its part in optimizing PNG images.

02. Caesium 1.7.0

Platform: Windows

Caesium is a simple tool with open source code, which is useful for compressing images in PNG, JPG and BMP formats. The program is easy to use. Click the button Add» (Add), select the images you want, then specify a folder to place the results ( Output folder), click “Compress” (Compress), and in just a few seconds the task will be completed.

BMP compression was not interesting to us, and there is nothing new presented here in JPG compression technology. There is no lossless compression option here, as the program simply re-encodes the file using the quality settings you specify.

Caesium can compress PNG graphics, however, you will encounter certain limitations here too. Before you compress photos for sending, you should know that the tool only allows you to receive 24-bit files, so if you use other formats, the images will most likely just gain weight.

This is what the testing results showed, as most of our test PNG images began to weigh even more. Fortunately, if you are not satisfied with the result, you can simply not save the resulting file. Overall, we were only able to achieve 1.2% compression, so it's clear that many users will abandon this program.

03. FILEminimizer Pictures

Platform: Windows

FILEminimizer Pictures, unlike most of the tools presented in this article, takes a more radical approach to image compression. By default, it can change formats, scale images, re-encode JPEG data to reduce file weight, and remove metadata, which also affects the weight of images.

Before compressing a photo for the Internet, users can change all these settings. The program is built in a familiar format. Once you have selected the source file, specified the destination folder, and changed the option values, there is only one click left, after which optimization will begin. This process happens very quickly.

How good is the result? It all depends on the image format. When compressing PNG, we managed to get up to 26.8%. GIF compression gave no more than 16.5%, but as for JPG format, then here we compressed the weight of the files to almost 40%.

04. FileOptimizer

Platform: Windows

This program allows you not only to compress JPG, GIF and PNG, but also to work with executable files, archives, Microsoft documents Office, PDF and many others.

What’s surprising is that the increased functionality doesn’t compromise usability at all. This program has one of the clearest interfaces: simply drag images into FileOptimizer, right-click and select " Optimize"(Optimize).

But keep in mind that the program replaces the original files with new ones. The sources are moved to the trash can and can be restored if necessary.

How to compress many photos at once? Use this tool, because FileOptimizer showed very good results in terms of compression level. The PNG image was compressed by 42.2%, which is the best figure. JPEG and GIF were reduced by 17.7% and 15.9%, respectively. In addition, FileOptimizer boasts other advantages, including the ability to optimize other files on your site.

05. ImageOptim 1.6.1

Platform: Mac

It is a tool that optimizes GIF, JPEG and PNG images, and acts as an interface to other applications, including PNGOUT, AdvPNG, Pngcrush, extended OptiPNG, JpegOptim, jpegrescan, jpegtran and Gifsicle.

The program is aimed at compression without loss of quality: it allows you to remove comments, color profiles, etc. However, it does not recode the image or reduce the number of colors. As a result, you are unlikely to be able to significantly reduce the weight of your files, but you don’t have to worry about losing image quality.

To start the compression process, you need to drag the desired element into the program window. This app isn't the fastest, but unless you start uploading thousands of high-resolution photos to it, it's unlikely to be a problem.

The result was good, but not quite what we expected. GIF graphics were compressed by 17.8%, PNG – by 17.8%, JPG images were reduced by 18.3%. You can get better results with other tools, but if you need a stable and simple tool on hand, then ImageOptim is definitely worth a look.

06. JPEGmini Lite

Platform: Mac/Windows

An interesting application in which JPEG images are compressed in two stages. First, a sophisticated algorithm is used to determine which part of the image can be compressed without losing quality. And then the program uses its own JPEG encoder, which generates the most compressed image without significant loss of quality.

To start the process, drag the images into the program window ( The free version allows you to compress up to 20 images daily), and it will replace the original images with new compressed versions.

It is worth noting that results may vary significantly. For example, we were able to compress JPG files by only 8.2%, but when we loaded 25 very high-resolution photos into the program, they were able to compress them by a whopping 71.3% without any visible loss of quality.

With simple web graphics, you can't expect much from JPEGmini. However, the compression quality increases significantly when working with large images. This is something to consider before compressing your photo folder.

07. jStrip 3.3

Platform: Windows

A tool for compressing JPEG files without losing quality, which allows you to remove all unnecessary information: thumbnail, comments, color profile, extra bytes at the beginning and end of the file, etc.

There will be little compression as there is no re-encoding. We realized this when we tried to compress several high-resolution JPG images and ended up with a file that was only 1% “lighter” than the original.

If you compress small files, the result will be more noticeable. For example, when we tried to reduce a JPEG file prepared for use on a web page, we received a compression of 16.1%.

The program itself can hardly be called ideal. By default it replaces original files compressed versions, so you will have to work with copies.

08. OptiPNG 0.7.5

Platform: Windows

A popular command line-based tool for compressing PNG images, often used in other applications. For example, PNGGauntlet, which we'll talk about later.

The program is supplied detailed instructions, which explains all possible options and functions. As for the results, even with the default settings we were able to compress the PNG image by 32.2%.

If you need something simpler, then PNGGauntlet has a simple GUI (and the program itself generally gave good compression results). But if you want to combine multiple command line tools, then we recommend including OptiPNG in the list.

09. PNGGauntlet 3.1.2

Platform: Windows

A tool that can be used as an interface to three other open-source programs ( PNGOUT, OptiPNG, DeflOpt). At the same time, the application allows you to effectively compress graphic files.

In use, PNGGauntlet is similar to other programs. But in this application, the compression process will take a little longer due to the combination of three tools at once. It took us about an hour to compress 25 high-resolution photos into PNG format.

The result impressed us. When compressing PNG, PNGGauntlet reduced the size of 50 images by 41.3%.

Before you compress several photos at once using this application, think about whether it's worth the long wait? But if you need a tool for high-quality compression of PNG images, then PNGGauntlet will definitely fit into your arsenal.

10. PNGOptimizer 2.4.2

Platform: Windows

Considering its size (146 KB), PNGOptimizer is the smallest program of all, so it is not surprising that its interface is so primitive. It is focused on working with PNG files.

But the range of compression options is impressive. PNGOptimizer can remove interlacing, replace background color, remove text, and much more.

Besides this program is able to import GIF, BMP or TGA files, and save them in PNG format in accordance with the specified parameters.

At the same time, PNGOptimizer is clearly inferior to its competitors in terms of efficiency, since we were able to compress high-quality PNG images by only 3.6%.

With web graphics things are much better, and we were able to achieve almost 40% compression. If you need a small and simple solution for working with PNG, then PNGOptimizer is an option!

11. PNGOUTWin 1.5.0

Platform: Windows

One of the best image compression tools. Unfortunately, it is inconvenient to use, since it is a command line and does not support batch processing. If all this is a problem for you, then you can use the paid PNGOUTWin interface.

The program has many settings. You can use PNGOUTWin to overwrite the original images, or create compressed copies in a separate folder.

To start the process, drag necessary files into the program window, and the compression process will immediately start. Moreover, compression is performed in several threads, which means that the program is capable of processing several images simultaneously.

We were also amazed by the result: PNG web graphics were compressed by 40.5%. But now you can find many services for compressing photo size online.

12. PUNYpng

Platform: Web service

The service is capable of compressing, without loss of quality, not only PNG files, but also GIF/JPG. You can register in this service absolutely free, but it has some limitations: you can upload up to 15 images at a time, and each of them can “weigh” no more than 150 kb.

This isn't a big problem considering the ease of use. After going to the service, click the button " Upload Images" and then wait until all images are optimized during the upload process. After this, a report on the work done will be presented, as well as the opportunity to download a set of processed images in the form of a ZIP archive.

A free account only allows for lossless compression. PUNYpng gives a fairly good result, and in tests we were able to get from 16% to 32% compression of various formats. For a small fee ($2 per month) you can get a PRO account, which allows for lossy compression. In this case, it is possible to upload many larger files.

If you just need a web service and you are not bothered by limitations, then PUNYpng can rightfully be considered an effective and easy-to-use option.

13. RIOT 0.5.2

Platform: Windows

Although RIOT is free, it is perhaps the only image compression program that will try to suggest additional software during the installation process. Don't forget to uncheck the corresponding box if you are not interested in this offer.

The neat and clear interface allows you to compress individual GIF, PNG or JPG images, and compare the result with the original, while a multi-threaded process processes multiple images at once.

Unfortunately, it is impossible to perform compression here without losing quality. RIOT is designed to reduce the number of colors in images, transcoding JPEG into a lower quality image. Even despite these facts, the program managed to make some of our files even larger in size. We recommend that you carefully check the results obtained using RIOT.

Before you compress your photo folder, you should know that this tool works great with GIF graphics, which we managed to compress by 42.8%.

14. ScriptJPG

Platform: Windows

One of the most primitive tools presented in this article. It is a script that acts as an interface to several command line tools. Drag JPG files V open window script, specify compression options, and ScriptJPG will do the rest.

The tool, despite its advertising and press release promises, does not work with JPG web graphics. We still don't understand why, because the structure of ScriptJPG is so simple that you can't even see the error messages.

We were still able to use a set of JPG photos for testing, and the results were acceptable. We managed to compress each photo by 10%.

If you belong to ordinary users PC, then we recommend using something with a graphical interface.

15. ScriptPNG

Platform: Windows

ScriptPNG is a relative of ScriptJPG. This is a Windows batch file that uses four utilities to reduce the size of PNG files.

Before you compress a photo for the Internet, drag the images onto the file itself, which will open a command line with nine possible ways compression. Select the most appropriate option, and after that the program will close, starting to process file by file ( replacing the original images).

During testing we had problems with executable file pngout.exe and therefore we had to close each error message manually.

Despite the inconvenience, the level of compression was amazing. PNG web graphics were reduced by 40.1%.

We cannot but agree that the scripting approach gives more control over the compression process. If you don't like something about ScriptPNG or want to add some other tools and options, you can edit the script file accordingly.

16. Smush.It 0.5

Platform: Web service

Most online photo size compression web services have significant limitations, but Smush.It is a rare exception. There is a limit of 1 MB per file, but the system allows you to upload as many files as you like. There is no need to register, no need to create and fill out an account, and there are no daily limits. Finished images can be downloaded as a ZIP archive.

The main disadvantage of the service is that you cannot change the compression settings.

This resulted in a real problem when we realized that our test JPG files were only 1% smaller. PNG compression turned out to be more impressive - up to 35%, and GIF compression was absolutely amazing - we managed to get 23.9% ( perhaps this is the best result of lossless compression from the entire collection).

We'd like to have more control over compression settings, but if you're comfortable with this approach, we recommend giving Smush.It a try.

17.TinyPNG

Platform: Web service

TinyPNG is a free web service for image optimization. Drag and drop files onto a web page, and the service will compress them and provide download links.

This online photo compression tool has limitations: the file size should not exceed 2 MB, and when you receive the result, you will have to download each finished file one by one.

In TinyPNG, its algorithm completely reworks the palette and reduces the number of colors used. Thanks to this, we were able to compress web graphics in PNG format by 48% ( the best result in this collection). And in most cases, you can hardly tell the difference between the original and the optimized image.

It's worth noting that several of the tools in this collection also provided up to 40% compression, but if the quality of the final image is important to you, then we definitely recommend using TinyPNG.

18. Trout's GIF Optimizer

Platform: Windows

A miniature image compression tool. There is no need to install it, just unzip the archive and it is ready to go. The program is intended solely for compressing GIF graphics, and there are no settings provided here.

All this at least significantly speeds up the work of Trout's GIF Optimizer. Import your selected photos and the compression process will begin. You will immediately see ready-made images that can be downloaded in just a few clicks.

This tool does not boast good compression results: we were able to compress web graphics in GIF format by only 16.7%.

results

Note: Some tests were performed on previous versions software.

In conclusion

After long hours testing, evaluating and compiling a list, we found out at least one thing for ourselves: online photo compression can give completely unexpected results.

We were able to compress PNG files by 30-40%, and even JPEG images were compressed by 16-18%. We are talking specifically about lossless compression, and, therefore, without affecting the quality of images. The output was exactly the same files, but with less weight.

So what are the best tools to use? FileOptimizer offers the best lossless compression performance on Windows based, and allows you to achieve 42.2% compression of PNG files, gives impressive results when working with JPG and GIF. It also offers several useful options ( for example, compressing PDF documents).

But if this option does not suit you, then you can take a closer look at PNGGauntlet and ScriptPNG, which also compress PNG well. ImageOptim for Mac performed well with JPEGs and GIFs.

Online web services for compressing photo sizes seemed less convenient to us, and therefore we would not recommend using them. Showed the best result of JPG compression without loss of quality

And it turned out that I had problems with image optimization on my site. This happens to many webmasters, so it will be useful for everyone to read how to optimize an image for a website.

You should approach this issue very seriously, especially if you insert a lot of images into your articles. I looked at 5 ways to reduce the weight of a photo without losing quality.

The smaller the page is, the faster it will load. And most often the weight increases precisely because of the pictures. Many new bloggers don't think about making their images as light as possible.

An elementary example: a regular uncompressed photo weighs about 1.5-3 MB at best. There are also more severe cases. This photo can be reduced by more than 10 times without loss of quality - up to 50-100 kb.

There are many ways to reduce the weight of a picture, so I will try to separately consider all the options known to me. Spoiler: in the experiment, the best results were with the Picture Manager program.

I will work with a photo of a cat, which weighs 3MB (from the Internet).

1. Take a screenshot and cut it out. First of all, I took a screenshot of the picture and saved it separately - the weight immediately became 104 kb, the quality suffered only a little, only if you zoomed in closely on the photo. I took a screenshot using the built-in Win7 Snipping function. Are situated in Start – All programs — Standard – Scissors.

But not everyone has this opportunity, so you can just press a button Print Screen on the keyboard, then open Paint and use ctrl keys+ V insert a picture there. Trim the excess so that only the desired image remains. But in this way the weight turned out to be 206 kb, which is all the same better than the original.

2. Paint can help reduce the weight of a photo without unnecessary hassles with screenshots. Just open the photo with this program (it's free and should be installed by default). Click Resize and check the pixels box.

Decrease the number in the Horizontal field to a value that suits you. I specified 500, and the weight was reduced to 72.2 kb. Choose a number that is approximately equal to the width of the page on your site.

This is one of the simplest and most accessible methods, but sometimes reducing the size does not help much. Other methods can be used.

3.Picture Manager- This useful program to compress photos. Included as standard Microsoft package Office, so most likely you have it installed.

A big plus of this program is that you can simultaneously reduce the size and weight of several photos.

Click on the desired photo with the Right Mouse Button (RMB) and select Open with - Microsoft Office Picture Manager.

Click Change picture - Compressing pictures and select the appropriate compression option. For example, in mode Web pages the weight decreases from 3mb to 26.6kb, which can be considered a very good result.

To reduce the weight of several photos at once, move them into one folder. Now, from the File menu, select Add Shortcuts and add the desired folder. Open it through the program, select all the photos and proceed according to the plan described above.

4.Photoshop- a very convenient way, but only if you understand this program and have it installed. Right-click on the photo and select Open with – Photoshop.

IN top menu Images select item Image Size or simply press the key combination Alt+Ctrl+I. Here you can reduce the photo size to the size you need.

When you have set the size you want, click OK. Go to the menu File – Save as… and give the desired name, click Save. After this, a window will open where you can enter additional settings:

Here we reduce the quality to 8 - it’s still high quality, but reduces the size by about a quarter. In the format variety, you can choose any option; I usually choose Basic.

As you can see, in this case the size is reduced to 75.6kb, which can also be considered an excellent result. For my website, I reduce photographs using Photoshop, using a template with a certain size and adjusting the pictures to fit it.

5. Online services – a good alternative to all of the above methods. No need to install additional programs or understand complex schemes.

You can easily find such sites - there are many of them. I'll look at the process using watermark.algid.net as an example. Click on the top menu Services and select Resizing an Image.

IN new page you need to upload the file, then check or uncheck the box Maintain proportions. If you uncheck the box, you will need to specify specific image dimensions, otherwise the photo will not display correctly. If the checkbox is checked, it is enough to change only one indicator, and the second will be calculated automatically.

Click the Next step button and save the resulting image by right-clicking on it and selecting Save As...

Collages– a great way to combine 2-4 photos into one, reducing their weight and not removing them from the article. Very useful when posting step-by-step recipes - there are 4 steps in one photo. For these purposes, I use the convenient website pizapru.com. Free, no registration required, intuitive and loaded with features. I recommend.

That's all the main ways to reduce the weight of a photo without losing quality. Which method to choose is up to you.

How to optimize an image for a website

And now for additional tips on how to optimize images for a website or blog:

• Save images in JPEG format - this is a great way to compress photos without losing quality.
• Avoid heavy formats such as PNG. With its help you can achieve a transparent effect in pictures, so many people use it. But sometimes it’s better to give up unnecessary beauty and increase the site loading speed.
• Name the photos keywords, and not a set of letters - search engines process names and display them in search results. So, you can get an extra influx of visitors if you choose your name wisely.
• In the ALT or alternative text field you need to indicate a description of what is shown in the picture. If the picture doesn't load, so people can find out what was pictured there. You can naturally enter the key in the description.
• In the Title field you should enter the text that will appear when you hover over the image. Search engines this indicator is not taken into account when ranking, so it is not necessary to enter the key. Many webmasters do not fill out this field at all.
• Try to use unique photos. I wrote in this article how to achieve uniqueness of images.

Use the methods described above to reduce the weight of photos without losing quality so that your site loads faster. It only takes a few minutes, but if you optimize the image for the site, your site will rank well in search results. But this is exactly what any webmaster needs.