Resizing Grafix?

[Lee]

My project is scrapbooking

I am dealing with background files designed for scrapbooking, small graphic files that were created by computer & photos taken with digital camera.

The photos are all .jpgs. I convert photos to .png format so I can edit them, adjust color balance etc. Crop photos to be imported into a new file/layout. Otherwise the pixels gets screwed up. As far as I know, you must "crop" photos, you can not shrink nor stretch photos as the pixels gets messed up. I took photography in high school & that is the way we did things. I am leaning on some past experiences dealing with digital photos here.

Backgrounds are .jpgs. Convert to .png. Crop backgrounds as they are made to print on 12x12 sheets of paper & I am printing on 8.50x11. Import background into new file/layout.

The small graphic files are in .png format & transparent. I have notice if gold or silver is in the graphic, I am losing color unless I convert file to .bmp format. .Png format can not handle the metalic colors.

While in Paint.Net, I thought I was resizing each small graphic file & saving files to hard drive. I was not I found out later & this is why my .pdn files were coming out to 35 megs in file size.

With M$Paint, I did find out I could resize using the Image\StretchShew command, resave the file. Then had to go back in & make file transparent again as M$Paint does not support transparent files.

I am concerned that the pixels will get screwed up with this method. I did try taking snapshots of the small graphics but the pixels don't look right.

Is there something else I can try to get the same effect, make smaller frame size or does it matter whether I do it through Paint.Net, resizing the small graphic in order to get great printouts?

Does it matter whether I resize file thru M$Paint. save to a new file, then import into new file\layout?

Or resize small graphic file thru Paint.Net after I have already imported small graphic file into my new file\layout?

All the files I have done in last week, looks like I will have to redo them as they printed badly the other nite. The photos did not always look as good as the originals. I did squeeze some of them into their photo frames & I am paying a price now...going to redo all of them. I kind of knew I was not suppose to squeeze photos very much.

Now I am wondering about the small graphics, photo frames etc. I am trying to use.

Will leave you with afew examples.

[Lee]

As I look at this file attachment, there is a black line around the deer that was not in original file. I did use PhotoShop to make file transparent this time.

[Lee]

In my further testing, I found FastStone viewing pgm to do best so far as far as resizing & rotating file. I am shocked that PhotoShop4 did a poor job of this.

I tested following programs:

M$Paint

Paint.Net

FastStone

[Stephan]

Well, If you're using Photoshop 4 Then you really can't blame it... It was released in 1996 :?

On the PNG thing: it must be an illusion, as PNG saves every single pixel the way it was before. There's no such thing as colors starting to deform. Maybe it was just because you viewed it on a separate monitor, or on paper.

When resizing things, the image does get deformed, because pixels cannot be made larger or smaller, you can only decrease or in crease the amount of pixels the image is spread over.

Also, please print via Word or some external application, as Paint.NET uses the standard MS Printer algorithm, which doesn't allow printing the image in the size it oughta be. Just spreading it over the whole paper.

[Lee]

Of all the programs I have, I forgot I have M$ Digital Imaging. While I am not fond of M$, they do a better job when I made a contact sheet afew months ago. As the photos are already resized within the contact sheet. I guess I can cut photos into individual files & try importing them one by one into my digital photo frames. Ok that is one solution.

Not sure if same will work on the small graphic files I have but will try.

Got some testing to do....I'll be back...