Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
ent base, you can optimize for 16 million colors on
at
least
a 17-inch monitor with a 1024x768 resolution.
In most urban markets, the minimum standard
is a DSL or cable modem connection, often with a
download speed of 6 Mbps. But that doesn't give you
the license to throw anything you'd like into a portfo-
lio. Image sizes are cumulative on a page, and even as
options have increased, viewer expectations have too.
No one will wait 20 seconds to watch a portfolio page
render. And during really high-traffic times, even a cable modem connection can slow
to a walk. Every 10 kb saved in optimizing will still be appreciated.
You'll optimize before you begin actual portfolio production, but you'd be wise
to already have sketched out a layout grid for a typical page before you optimize.
Although you can downsize art in HTML or Flash, the closer you are to optimizing
your work at 100% of its onscreen size, the happier you'll be with the results.
What makes us pass on a portfolio?
Not enough attention paid to details
both in the portfolio itself and in
the work. Even in the simplest of
portfolio designs, every detail has
to be addressed and perfected.
—Thane Calder
There are some specialized optimizing tools, like DeBabelizer Pro, but the easi-
est and most common method is to bring files into Adobe Fireworks or Photoshop CS4
or later, which incorporates Fireworks' optimizing windows and range of variables. In
Photoshop CS3 or later, these features are found under “File > Save for Web and
Devices”—in Fireworks, they are under “File > Image Preview.”
In either software, you can choose between optimizing the file as a JPEG, a
PNG, or a GIF. The standard rule of thumb has been that photographic images are
optimized as JPEGs, and graphic images as GIFs. Most browsers now support PNGs,
which addresses many of the GIF/JPEG tradeoffs. However, the PNG format has many
variations and makes larger files than GIF. For size and compatibility purposes, GIF
and JPEG still often prove to be the safest routes.
Applications for optimizing provide presets as jumping off points. Many people
who don't know much about optimization select one of these presets and apply it glo-
bally to their images. That's better than not optimizing at all, but it usually leads to
files that load too slowly, or are significantly smaller onscreen than they need to be.
About slicing
Slicing is a way to break up large images and interfaces into small, bite-sized elements that
load more quickly than a single image would. Many applications, including Photoshop,
offer a slicing feature that helps you to slice an image before you optimize it. But slicing is
often an unpleasant distraction. Unless you have a good visual place to break the file (like
in the center of a two-page spread), it's better to use optimizing techniques to have the file
load progressively, or simply keep your file sizes down.
