Prepare a picture for screens
Find out the width of the spot where it will appear and match the size in pixels. JPEG usually works for a photo; PNG for a diagram or a screenshot with text.
Guides
Practical guides
Most picture problems show up at the last minute: the file is too big to attach to an email, the slide with the logo looks like a patchwork quilt, and the print comes out soft and muddy. Here are guides for everyday tasks that are best handled before you hit “Send.”
The original picture is like the draft of a contract: you don't edit it, you edit a copy.
How to read this section: the advice isn't tied to any particular program and works in most image editors, including the ones built into your operating system. Your menu items may be named differently, but the order of steps is almost always the same. Before you change anything, make a copy of the original file: resizing and lossy compression can't be undone.
Guides
Tasks that sooner or later come up for anyone who puts pictures into emails, documents and slides.
Prepare a picture for print
Estimate how many pixels you'll need for the print size at your chosen dot density. If the original falls short, it's better to make the print smaller than to stretch the picture.
Insert a picture into a document
Resize before inserting rather than dragging the picture larger inside the document. Heavy photos make a document sluggish and awkward to send.
Keep a transparent background
PNG and SVG preserve transparency, while JPEG fills empty areas with a solid color. If the background suddenly turns white, check the format first.
Describe the image
Add alt text: a short description of what's shown and why the picture is there. A label like “image” or the file name helps no one.
Articles for English-language readers
This section will feature standalone Clipday articles written specifically for the English edition of the reference.
- Aion 2 Abyss rank: What New Players Should Know
What is confirmed about the Abyss in Aion 2's global release, what remains unverified about rank, and how to set PvP goals without putting your account at risk.
- Game Boosting Versus Coaching: Benefits, Limitations and Market Trends — Planning for Long-Term Play #1
How game boosting and coaching compare across a full season, from pre-season goals to launch-week pressure, mid-season plateaus and off-season review.
- GTA 6 Gameplay Coaching and Skills: Player FAQ
What can be coached before Grand Theft Auto VI launches, which open-world skills likely carry over, and how to keep a coaching arrangement account-safe.
- A closer look at gaming service categories: Consumer Decision-Making
Coaching, carries, piloting, currency sales and official shortcuts compared: how each service category works, where risks sit and what to check first.
- Clash Royale: Path of Legends — Player Experience Analysis
Path of Legends from the player's side: prerequisites, common frustrations, what is unconfirmed, account safety and realistic alternatives to paid help.
Topics in the pipeline
- How to size a photo for a letter-size printout without stretching it
- Preparing a headshot for a résumé, a team page or a professional profile
- Making a diagram that reads well on a big screen and on a phone
- What to do with old family photos that are too small to print
Editorial rules
- Articles in this catalogue are written separately for each language version and are not translations.
- Some articles link to third-party websites, including gaming services; we do not control their content, prices or terms.
- We do not publish advertising for services or publications, rankings, prices or reviews.
Shrink a photo for sending without losing quality
Make a copy of the original
Work on a copy and set the original file aside. If you don't like the result, you can always start over instead of trying to bring back pixels that are already gone.
Crop out the extras
First remove whatever isn't relevant: empty sky, the edge of a table, someone else's elbow. Cropping shrinks a file more honestly than any compression, because it throws away what you don't need instead of degrading what you do.
Resize
Scale the image down to the size it will actually be viewed at. A shot that will be opened on a phone or in an email window doesn't need to keep the camera's full resolution. Make sure the proportions stay locked so the picture doesn't get squashed.
A rough example: if the photo will be opened in an email window half the width of the screen, there's simply no reason to keep many times more pixels across than that.
Choose the format and compression level
For a photo, JPEG with moderate compression works well; for a screenshot with text, PNG. Save the JPEG from the original in one go: every repeated lossy save adds new artifacts.
Check it on screen
Open the result at actual size and look at faces, small text and the edges of high-contrast objects. If you see jagged steps or smudgy patches around edges, ease off the compression and save again from the copy of the original.
Read next
- Tools
The kinds of programs and features that help with images, from the built-in photo viewer to a vector editor and the eyedropper.
- Comparisons
Raster vs vector, JPEG, PNG, SVG and PDF, screen vs print: tables that help you pick the right format and size for the job.
- If it looks off
What to do when a picture turns blurry or jagged, gets too heavy, loses its transparent background or looks dull on paper.
- Glossary
Key terms: pixel, resolution, dots per inch, raster, vector, Bézier curve, compression, transparency and alt text.
- Questions
Answers about this reference, about picture sizes and formats, about printing and about using images found online.
Sources
- Documentation for graphics formats and editors (general principles)
- Clipday editorial materials
This advice is written in general terms as of the date it was prepared. Menu items, save dialogs and export settings are named differently from one editor to the next and change with updates, so check the help for the program you actually use rather than matching our wording exactly.