Having problems reducing large image sizes without distortion

[Sandi]

Hi everyone, I'm hoping you can help me. I'm trying to reduce the size of large location product shots for website but I'm new to this and I just can't get it to happen!

The images range from about 10MB - the largest is about 40MB and 8688 x 5792px.
The final images all need to be landscape 917 x 515 px / aspect ratio 1.78 : 1.00.
When I reduce them to the px size they look awful and I can't figure out how to reduce them to that size and retain the look of the original but with a much reduced file size and quality reduction. What am I doing wrong?
Thanks, Sandi

[LeviFiction]

What method are you using? And what parameters?

Also, you will need to crop first because 8688x5792 is a 1.5 aspect ratio, not 1.78. And every time you change the aspect ratio it will distort the result. To do this I recommend grabbing the crop tool, in the tool options palette set the Pixel Dimensions to your final result. And then turn on "Maintain aspect ratio". This will lock the crop frame to that aspect ratio of 1.78. The frame will be tiny but we can now resize it. First drag the frame to the top left corner of the image. Then drag the bottom right corner of the crop tool until it's as big as you can get it. Move it to where you want it, and crop. Your image is now ready to be resized.

Run the resize command found in the Image menu.

Image -> Resize

At the top of the resize dialog choose "By Pixels", click on the "Advanced Settings" checkbox at the bottom of the dialog. You'll see options for "Lock Aspect Ratio" which you should see now matches 1.78 aspect you wanted. And you'll see the "Resample Using" checkbox. By default I think it gets set to "Smart Size" which is pretty good for most things. So you should be able to leave it alone. If it's set to something else I would try the Smart Size first or Bi-Cubic. Those are the most common methods. Then at the top of the dialog set the Width to 917 and it should auto set the height to 515. Hit OK. And it should look pretty good.

[JoeB]

@LeviFiction, just a question. If resizing by that amount, do you think a bit of unsharp mask and/or Clarity might also be needed?

[LeviFiction]

No clue. And would you put it before or after the resizing? I'd say it depends on the image, contents, etc. But I'm really bad at making my photos look good.

[JoeB]

@LeviFiction, since you ask, I would put it after. As you say, it definitely depends on image contents, but I have found in my experience that most resizes down from that large size to a quite small one creates a somewhat softer image, so might not have quite the visual impact as the original. And the original poster mentioned product images so I am assuming the idea is to attract the attention of a consumer.

For the original poster (assuming they are unfamiliar with PSP's various abilities), I would suggest that after resizing down they first try Clarity, adjusting to experiment and to taste starting at the 50 mark. If that satisfies, I would stop there. Unsharp mask if needed for a bit more sharpness if needed, but again with a low setting to start. I do this stuff on an image by image basis because, again as you pointed out, image content can make a big difference on the outcome. And in the end it's a matter of individual taste. Mine tends to images that have a good contrast appeal (hence Clarity), but sometimes a bit of Unsharp mask (not too much) is needed. Personal preference, eh?

[Sandi]

Thank you, I've managed to get it done with a mix of your suggestions above and using weighted average in the advanced settings. I have about 10K images to do so doing them individually is not an option but I'm happy with the outcome and they look much better than they previously ever have. It's for a new website and I've decided to change/update all the images too. There's plenty info out there for increasing image sizes but very little on reducing