Uploading to SmugMug

Billy Idol

Hello all, first post here and started a trial of smugmug today as fed up with flickr.

I've started to sell the odd picture here and there from specific events etc so I'd like to use smugmug pro for this.

I use Aperture 3 and PS CS5 to edit and store my shots and normally my workflow would consist of storing and editing in Aperture 3 with the odd trip into Photoshop and then once the image is ready to upload I would take it into Photoshop and resize it and then use the 'save for web devices' setting to reduce file size and upload it, or if I had a lot of images I would induce an automated batch with some sharpening thrown in after the image reduction.

Now from what I understand when I upload a picture to Smugmug I should upload the file in its original size. I use a Canon 5DmkII and shoot RAW so the jpeg I would be uploading will still be pretty big.

Question is should I still take the file into Photoshop and use the 'save for web devices' setting and how will this affect the printing process if someone wants to purchase and print an image?

PhotoLasVegas

You can upload smaller sized photos, but whatever you upload will be the file that prints UNLESS you replace the file. There's an option to replace the file when someone makes an order, so you could at that point upload a full resolution image.

We just upload full resolution images for all our events because it's a "background" job and doesn't take up extra time for us - re-uploading a specific file is just extra work for us.

You could also save your JPEG with the longest side being in the 6000-7000 pixels range, that will more than enough to print 11x14 and 16x20 and will save you a little filesize vs. the full res photo.

Billy Idol

Well it wouldn't actually be a smaller sized photo, just a smaller file size.

As an example I have a unedited RAW image which is 4896 x 3264 in size and 24.29MB

If I export an original sized jpeg of the RAW file from Aperture the file is now 20MB in size

If I take this file into Photoshop and don't touch it apart from use the 'Save for Web and Devices' setting and select 80 on the quality slider the file now becomes 6MB.

So I'm wondering if I use the Save for Web and Devices how it will affect the image for print.

Are people uploading 20MB jpegs as I'm on a pretty slow DSL connection and it would take forever.

PhotoLasVegas

I wouldn't cut down the quality setting.... but we use Lightroom and export our 7d RAW files to JPEG and limit them to 4000px on the longest side, 100% quality. 16x20's come out great and they are about 8mb in size.

Wil Davis

I had a similar question when I first set up my account just over a year ago. I was advised that JPEGs around 2500 pixels on the long side, saved (PhotoShop) with "10" (on a scale of 1->12; ~1.5Mb) would be perfectly adequate; I've had no problems, and it certainly makes the uploads much quicker.

I did some tests and found the results to be perfectly acceptable, although I haven't had much need to print above 10" x 8" so far.

YMMV -

HTH -

- Wil

BTW - Welcome to DGPF!

Billy Idol

Thanks guys, appreciate it.