Photos and images -- resize and edit

Why edit photos and images?
What is GIMP?
Resizing images with GIMP
Resize
Trim edges (crop)
References

Why edit photos and images?

• Large photos and other images are slow loading.
• Sometimes the viewer only sees a small portion of an image and has to scroll to see other parts.
• Larger images use more disk space.
• Cutting off the edges can make a picture more focused while reducing its size.

You don't need to develop image manipulation skills just to reduce the size of images. What is GIMP? GIMP is a free program that runs on MS Windows, Mac OS X, and UNIX for working with photos and other images. GIMP is similar to Photoshop and Microsoft Office Picture Manager. It can be used as an expert quality photo retouching program, an image format converter, a simple paint program, and numerous other functions.

Resizing images with GIMP
We'll talk about "images" — a photo is a type of image.

• Check the size of your image: Go to the folder that contains your image. Right-click the image's file and select Properties. If it shows the size as 100,000 bytes or less, then it's probably not too large. Close the Properties window.
• Make a copy of your image. Go to the folder that contains your image. Right-click the filename and select Copy. Right-click in the folder's window and select Paste. Right-click the new filename, select Rename, then type a new name, like myphoto.jpg, keeping the same extension (for example, jpg, gif) as the original file. Make your changes on the copy. If later you don't like them, you'll still have the original.
• Download, install, and open GIMP: Download GIMP from http://gimp.org/downloads/. Install GIMP (this takes a few minutes, be patient). When it finishes, it will launch. If will open a "tip of the day" window, close that window.
• Open the image file: In the GIMP window, in the File dropdown menu, click Open. Find the file (for example, myphoto.jpg) and open it.
• If the GIMP window is in front of the image, click the image.

• Resize the image:
  • In the Image dropdown menu, click Scale image.
  • If X resolution or Y resolution is greater than 72, click the arrow pointing down and scroll them down to 72.
  • To the right of Width and Height, in the dropdown menu which contains pixels, select inches.
  • To the right of Width, click the arrow pointing down and scroll it down to about 6 inches (the height will automatically adjust).
  • Click the Scale button.
  • In the window that contains the image, in the File dropdown menu, click Save.
  • A new window will open. Click Save again.
  • Go to the folder that contains your image. Right-click the image's file and select Properties. The size should now be less than 100,000 bytes.
  • Send an email message to yourself, attaching the image, to see what it will look like in email.

  Reference: GIMP User Manual, section 4.2.

• Cut off the edges (crop): Cutting a lot of useless background can bring out the subject better, as well as reducing the size.
  • Right-click the image, follow the menus Tools to Transform Tools to Crop or hold down the Shift key and press c. This will change the cursor and allow you to click and drag a rectangular shape.
  • Outline the part of the image you want to keep. Move your mouse pointer to the top left corner of the area you want to keep. Click and then drag down and to the right until you have a new rectangle outlining the area you want to keep. If you don't like what you've done, click a spot outside the inner rectangle and try again.
  • When you like what you have in the inside rectangle, press the Enter key or click inside the inner rectangle.
  • In the File dropdown menu, click Save.

  Reference: GIMP User Manual, section 4.4.

Reference GIMP User Manual.