Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
I
Figure 2.7
Make it easy
to use
images in a
hurry.
These are maximum sizes; your image will be resized proportionally. The larger dimension (either
width or height) will be set to the predetermined size, and the smaller dimension will be resized to
keep it in proportion to the larger size.
You only use the established sizes when you haven't gone to this extra work and want a quick-and-
dirty way to get the image to a size that will fit well in your blog post. The default media settings in
WordPress are too large for most people's purposes and for the goal of creating a fast-loading home
page. We recommend that you reduce the settings, as described here:
•
Thumbnail Size
—The thumbnail size you're given as a default is 150 x 150. In professional web
publishing, a thumbnail—for instance, an image of a person's face—is typically about half that
length and width. So set your thumbnail size to, say, 80 x 80 pixels. This is great for a face shot
to use as reference to a mention of a person in your blog.
•
Medium Size
—We've found, in using images in our own blogs, that an image about half the
width of the blog's middle column allows us to flow text beside it with good effect. A typical
theme allows a column width of about 400-500 pixels. Because your blog will not always be dis-
played at full width, you should go for the low end of this range, and set the medium-size height
and width to 200 pixels.
•
Large Size
—The most sensible large size for a picture is the full width of your blog's main col-
umn. For most themes, this is about 400 pixels or a bit more. A height of the same size makes
sense. This allows you to have text above and below the picture without it looking odd within
your blog.
Nothing here stops you from using larger pictures—or pictures of any size. The established settings
are there for convenience. It makes sense for them to be at a size that's a good fit for your blog.
