File sizes and ordering

Montec

I have a problem.

I uploaded over 500 images from a recent wedding to a private gallery.
To save time I made them all a max of 800 pixels wide.

I thought that because I had delayed proofing turned on that I would be able to replace any large format photos with the appropriate files when they were ordered.

Is this not possible? Do I need to upload every image in it's full sized file before they are available for purchase in anything but a 4x6?

The gallery is presently just over 200MB in total size. If I put the originals up the gallery will be nearly 2 GB! It would take days to upload and be a terrible waste of space.

Is there a solution? Please say there is ... :confused

jfriend

Montec wrote:

I have a problem.

I uploaded over 500 images from a recent wedding to a private gallery.
To save time I made them all a max of 800 pixels wide.

I thought that because I had delayed proofing turned on that I would be able to replace any large format photos with the appropriate files when they were ordered.

Is this not possible? Do I need to upload every image in it's full sized file before they are available for purchase in anything but a 4x6?

The gallery is presently just over 200MB in total size. If I put the originals up the gallery will be nearly 2 GB! It would take days to upload and be a terrible waste of space.

Is there a solution? Please say there is ... :confused

See http://www.smugmug.com/help/print-quality for a table that shows what size the images have to be in order to enable a given size in the shopping cart. I'm not aware of any work-around.

This does seem to me like something Smugmug needs to fix for pros now that the proof delay feature permits the kind of workflow you are using. I'd suggest you add something to the feature request thread about it.

Andy

Montec wrote:

I have a problem.

I uploaded over 500 images from a recent wedding to a private gallery.
To save time I made them all a max of 800 pixels wide.

I thought that because I had delayed proofing turned on that I would be able to replace any large format photos with the appropriate files when they were ordered.

Is this not possible? Do I need to upload every image in it's full sized file before they are available for purchase in anything but a 4x6?

The gallery is presently just over 200MB in total size. If I put the originals up the gallery will be nearly 2 GB! It would take days to upload and be a terrible waste of space.

Is there a solution? Please say there is ... :confused

I'm afraid there is not. Images must meet the minimum size or they cannot be offered for sale.

Follow my guidelines for image prep and smashing files and you'll be in the best shape going forward.

http://smugmug.jot.com/WikiHome/ProofDelayForHappyCustomers

http://smugmug.jot.com/WikiHome/Pros/FilePreparation

You'll need to reupload those files that are 800px, I'm sorry about that.

Andy

jfriend wrote:

This does seem to me like something Smugmug needs to fix for pros now that the proof delay feature permits the kind of workflow you are using. I'd suggest you add something to the feature request thread about it.

You mean "change"

Well, the problem is that the system isn't designed to allow pricing on images that don't meet resolution requirements. So, we instruct pros on this, and offer resources for file prep.

I wish it were different, or that I could wave a wand and change it, but ....

Thanks !

jfriend

Andy wrote:

You mean "change"

Well, the problem is that the system isn't designed to allow pricing on images that don't meet resolution requirements. So, we instruct pros on this, and offer resources for file prep.

I wish it were different, or that I could wave a wand and change it, but ....

Thanks !

"Change" or "Fix" is merely a word - no need to be defensive. Yes, it may be working the way you intend. No, it's not working as well as it should for pros. If you were designing the ideal service for pros, you would not design it with this issue. In the eyes of the pro customer, it's not working the way they want it to.

The fact is that Smugmug could be improved for pros that need to offer lots of images (particular those who shoot "events") by letting them upload smaller sizes, by letting them use pricing to control which sizes will offered for sale and then by requiring them to upload an appropriate size before it's printed when a larger size is ordered.

Andy

jfriend wrote:

"Change" or "Fix" is merely a word - no need to be defensive.

You missed my smilie, John. Again

Andy

jfriend wrote:

Yes, it may be working the way you intend. No, it's not working as well as it should for pros. If you were designing the ideal service for pros, you would not design it with this issue. In the eyes of the pro customer, it's not working the way they want it to.

The fact is that Smugmug could be improved for pros that need to offer lots of images (particular those who shoot "events") by letting them upload smaller sizes, by letting them use pricing to control which sizes will offered for sale and then by requiring them to upload an appropriate size before it's printed when a larger size is ordered.

Hi John,

Not gonna argue with you at all - anything could be improved upon, including this. But not at the expense of other more urgent things (things that pros are asking for).

I'm happy we have the proof delay feature and many, many, many pros are using it just fine. Can it be improved in the way you suggest? You bet. But it's not easy.

Thanks again for posting! :jfriend

jfriend

Andy wrote:

You missed my smilie, John. Again

I'll just tell you now that I don't know what the emoticons mean and my brain often doesn't even see them so I am likely to miss their extra meaning.

Montec

Thanks for the replies...I need to read things over more carefully

Oh well...will redo this project...seems like a huge waste of space, bandwidth, time and energy.

Andy

jfriend wrote:

I'll just tell you now that I don't know what the emoticons mean and my brain often doesn't even see them so I am likely to miss their extra meaning.

It was just some 11:30pm humor, no worries, John

Andy

Montec wrote:

Thanks for the replies...I need to read things over more carefully

Oh well...will redo this project...seems like a huge waste of space, bandwidth, time and energy.

The smashed files (see my linked pages for examples) are really quite small. And if you need help with workflow, Dgrin Finishing school to the rescue - or write for me at the help desk.

Montec

Andy wrote:

The smashed files (see my linked pages for examples) are really quite small. And if you need help with workflow, Dgrin Finishing school to the rescue - or write for me at the help desk.

I have Lightroom 'smashing' them right now to level 60. I assume that should work?

Looks like they are resolving at about 1MB average.

Andy

Montec wrote:

I have Lightroom 'smashing' them right now to level 60. I assume that should work?

Looks like they are resolving at about 1MB average.

Yeah but remember, you can constrain the file size on export from LR. So make the longest side the dimensions of the biggest file you want to sell on Smug.

Dna

Montec wrote:

The gallery is presently just over 200MB in total size. If I put the originals up the gallery will be nearly 2 GB! It would take days to upload and be a terrible waste of space.

I love the fact that there is a full res digital backed up off site.
It may take a little longer but the fact that you can sell any size you want and have the back up is worth it.

FWIW I don't use the proof delay feature. I upload photos ready to print and haven't seen any that I would want reprinted due to my workflow.

Andrew

nipprdog

Montec wrote:

If I put the originals up the gallery will be nearly 2 GB! It would take days to upload and be a terrible waste of space.

What type of internet connection do you have?

Montec

nipprdog wrote:

What type of internet connection do you have?

I was exaggerating ... I have a 2.5 mbps? connection. My original files are typically 4 to 5 MB so multiply that by 500 and it is a huge amount.

Thanks to Andy I smashed them down to 1MB per file and all is fine.

PeterGar

Andy,

I'm faced with this very exact challenge. I do use the Proof and Retouch tool, and I really value that tool. However, I resize the resolution of all my proofs to 1500x1500 for upload to SmugMug. As we all know, because of the resize, my clients are limited on the size of prints (and other items) they could order.

Wouldn't it just be easier for the pro to have a feature (pending the pro enables the feature) that allows customers to still order larger print sizes than the uploaded proof size supports, but using the Proof and Retouch tool, the pro could then upload the larger resolution file within the delay period?

As it is, clients are not even given the option to order the larger print size than what the file size supports. I want to at least give my clients the option to order the larger sizes (perhaps with an *asterisk next to the larger sizes indicating there will be a slight delay) and let me then upload the larger file within my delay period. Seems simple to me, but I'm just a mere mortal .

I'll take a look at the articles on smashing the files down when I get home from my day-job.

PeterGar

This is great! I'm now smashing files in ACDSee Pro down to 60% JPEG Compression. The files are now small enough to quickly upload but large enough in resolution for my customers to order large prints and gift items. I have 7 days to replace the smashed files with the larger files when customers order the prints thanks to the Proof and Retouch tool.

Thanks Andy!

Plus the new Windows uploader rocks! (so far)