Updating non-optimized files for existing blog

  • healingfamilyeats

    (@healingfamilyeats)


    9 years, 7 months ago

    We’ve just discovered optimizing files. Up to now we’ve been loading full size JPGs, which run to several MBs in size, and allowing the Child Theme to resize them.

    We now want to use only optimized files for new posts – no problem there.

    The question is what to do about all existing images on the site, which are still too large. We’re talking around 250 photos, each at numerous sizes. I don’t have any problem in optimizing them individually in Photoshop (except for the time it’s going to take me!). Does anyone know of a batch process to do this, as I’ll accept applying 72dpi to all of them, then optimizing at 50% with preset width of 1200 regardless of whether the photos are landscape or portrait)?

    Can you suggest a batch process particularly for the upload and application on the blog? In an ideal world I would save the filename from Photoshop as the filename that the Media Library has used to store the original image before resizing. Will this automatically overwrite the previous version of the file, create all the new sizes, and still keep all the links to Posts that use the image? I’m guessing I’ll need to run Regenerate Thumbnails in order to make this process work properly…? Would it be simpler to go on my WordPress server and overwrite the originating jpeg file and then run Regenerate Thumbnails?

    How does all this affect the photos that people have already pinned, or linked to in other blogs? If we’re careful to keep all filenames the same as originals, will all links be retained?

    Any other advice to make this all work? (!)

Viewing 4 replies - 1 through 4 (of 4 total)
  • Pioneer Web Design

    (@swansonphotos)

    9 years, 7 months ago

    Will this automatically overwrite the previous version of the file

    Yes, but not the thumbnail sizes.

    create all the new sizes

    No, it will not. It will replace the full size (original) image.

    and still keep all the links to Posts that use the image

    As long as the original image filename is the same, yes.

    Note: the thumbnails should be optimized already? Have you checked that? You can also edit individual posts or galleries to not use the full size images.

    If you do upload and then use a new size image of same filename, make sure to flush server and local browser cache to see the changes.

    You may find a plugin to help with the resizing. You can also manually do so in the Media Library Media Editor.

    Note: Important **EDIT** – Above assumes by upload you are overwriting the original images using an FTP Client or web host provided file management tool(s) and not the Media Uploader.

    Thread Starter healingfamilyeats

    (@healingfamilyeats)

    9 years, 7 months ago

    Thank you so much for the advice.

    The most important part of what you say is that all the “thumbnails” are already optimized. Certainly checking the server, I can see that the resized files are dramatically smaller than the source file (sources are typically 3-5MB, while even the 1024×682 thumbnails that the theme uses as “Large” are typically not much more than 100KB.

    I’ve tried a few photos, and reset their Size from Full (i.e. the size of the Source File) to Large, and the quality seems basically ok – but that might be because the files are still cached in the browser I’m using. Bottom line, does WordPress have an optimization that is close in quality to Photoshop? Is there really an ongoing need to optimize outside WordPress? If the answer to the first question is “yes”, I’m thinking I don’t need to do a Photoshop optimization at all, although I still need to think through whether I’ve needlessly used up storage space on the server that I can now free up.

    … oh, and yes, EDIT does indeed mean using the web host file management tools provided by Siteground, away from Media Uploader.

    Pioneer Web Design

    (@swansonphotos)

    9 years, 7 months ago

    Pro tools can be useful for gaining better image quality. That said, they tend to be larger, so that is a scenario you will have to test and make a decision on.

    Remember, you can serve larger hi-res images from a CDN also.

    Thread Starter healingfamilyeats

    (@healingfamilyeats)

    9 years, 7 months ago

    Thanks again, Pioneer Valley Web Design!

    I think you’ve probably saved me quite a few hours of work.

Viewing 4 replies - 1 through 4 (of 4 total)
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