Title: Help with Custom Header
Last modified: August 20, 2016

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# Help with Custom Header

 *  [toyhypeusa](https://wordpress.org/support/users/toyhypeusa/)
 * (@toyhypeusa)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/)
 * Hi,
 * I am trying to upload my custom header using a theme that allows it. I keep getting
   the following error message on every theme I try:
 * >  Warning: imagecreatefromstring() [function.imagecreatefromstring]: Data is
   > not in a recognized format in /hermes/bosweb/web173/b1736/ipg.toyhypeusacom/
   > wp-includes/media.php on line 258
   >  Image could not be processed. Please go 
   > back and try again.
 * Also the space allows 1000X288 pixels. What size should I make my custom banner?

Viewing 11 replies - 1 through 11 (of 11 total)

 *  [Good Guy](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mytaxsitecouk/)
 * (@mytaxsitecouk)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2733909)
 * Without knowing which themes you have tried it is difficult to answer your question
   but say if you were to use Coraline – a free theme by Automatic, then the header
   image info is as follows:
 * > The header image is 770 by 140 in the two column layouts 990 by 180.
 * Coraline link is here:
 * [http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/coraline](http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/coraline)
 * Hope this helps.
 *  Thread Starter [toyhypeusa](https://wordpress.org/support/users/toyhypeusa/)
 * (@toyhypeusa)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2733917)
 * Right sorry. I am currently using Twenty Eleven.
 * I have also tried Twenty Ten, atheros, SmallBiz
 *  [Amy Hendrix (sabreuse)](https://wordpress.org/support/users/sabreuse/)
 * (@sabreuse)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2733920)
 * What format is the file you’re trying to upload?
 *  Thread Starter [toyhypeusa](https://wordpress.org/support/users/toyhypeusa/)
 * (@toyhypeusa)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2733960)
 * a jpg file. But I did text in PhotoshopCS and saved the file to a JPG.
 *  Thread Starter [toyhypeusa](https://wordpress.org/support/users/toyhypeusa/)
 * (@toyhypeusa)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2733979)
 * Ok I got it to upload with a a smaller pixel size but the image came out very
   blurry and I had to crop the image. Why did I have to crop the image when I thought
   I was using the correct pixel size?
 *  [esmi](https://wordpress.org/support/users/esmi/)
 * (@esmi)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2733980)
 * Can you link to a copy of this image?
 *  [Good Guy](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mytaxsitecouk/)
 * (@mytaxsitecouk)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2733986)
 * My personal opinion is to crop the image away from WP using tools like Fireworks
   or photoshop. The reason for this are two folds:
 * 1) You want to speed up the loading of images in browsers and so browsers should
   not have to resize the image and waste valuable time;
 * 2) WP, as I understand it, does not shrink images correctly. The images are always
   blurred and completely deteriorated. Of course, you have to be a perfectionist
   to notice this like late Steve Jobs but that is a different story altoghether.
 * hth
 *  Thread Starter [toyhypeusa](https://wordpress.org/support/users/toyhypeusa/)
 * (@toyhypeusa)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2734007)
 * Everytime I cropped it in photoshop WP said the image was too large. I thought
   I was using the correct pixel size.
 * If the theme says 1000×250 for example, what pixel size should I make it in photoshop
   and crop?
 *  [Good Guy](https://wordpress.org/support/users/mytaxsitecouk/)
 * (@mytaxsitecouk)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2734013)
 * If your header allows a 100px by 250px then it is always advisable to have exactly1000x250
   so that the image loads smoothly. If the image is not of the correct size, I 
   understand that WP will resize it to fit within the space of 1000x250px.
 * I suggest download this image and try to load it on your site:
 * [http://tinyurl.com/7jd84tm](http://tinyurl.com/7jd84tm)
 * The above image is exactly 1000×250. The trick is to have the canvas size of 
   1000×250 and then import your original image on top of it so that it resizes 
   automatically. Anyway, that is how I do but my theme is coraline and so the image
   size is smaller than yours.
 * What is your theme called?
 *  Thread Starter [toyhypeusa](https://wordpress.org/support/users/toyhypeusa/)
 * (@toyhypeusa)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2734039)
 * twenty eleven
 *  [esmi](https://wordpress.org/support/users/esmi/)
 * (@esmi)
 * [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2734043)
 * In that theme, you need to upload an image of at least 1000px by 288px.

Viewing 11 replies - 1 through 11 (of 11 total)

The topic ‘Help with Custom Header’ is closed to new replies.

## Tags

 * [pixels](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/pixels/)

 * In: [Fixing WordPress](https://wordpress.org/support/forum/how-to-and-troubleshooting/)
 * 11 replies
 * 4 participants
 * Last reply from: [esmi](https://wordpress.org/support/users/esmi/)
 * Last activity: [14 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/help-with-custom-header-1/#post-2734043)
 * Status: not resolved

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