Online illustrations by Storyset
I read a fascinating stat the other day – 10.1% of all Google traffic is for images.google.com (source) – that means that people are searching for some image and click on it around 1 billion times a day. That’s a huge amount of traffic and highlights the importance of making sure that any images you use not only look good but perform well in search results.
In our next instalment we cover three tools that will help you perfect your image and make sure it’s optimised for the best user experience.
Free Image Optimisation Tool 1 – Squoosh
What is it:
Squoosh is a great little tool from the GoogleChromeLabs team that packs together a bunch of various image processing settings into a really accessible application that runs in your browser enabling you to compress the size of your images.
What’s great about it:
The best thing about Squoosh is that you can see the impact of your compression in real time. Once you upload your image you can then apply different compression options and see the impact of your compression on the overall image quality. Through a neat slider interface you can ensure that your compression doesn’t reduce the quality of your image too much.
What are the limitations:
A frustrating limitation I’ve found is how it handles transparent images, through the image compression (when converting to a .jpeg for example) the transparent background turns black. The only workaround I’ve found for this is you need to apply a coloured background to the image before compressing it. You are also limited to one image at a time.
Pricing model:
Genuinely free to use – no limits on number of images you can compress.
Free Image Optimisation Tool 2 – Magic Eraser
What is it:
Magic Eraser is a free image optimisation tool that allows you to easily remove unwanted objects or backgrounds from your photos. It uses advanced image editing techniques to analyse the image and identify the areas that need to be removed. With a few clicks you can remove something from your image as if it was never there.
What’s great about it:
One of the great things about Magic Eraser is that it is very user-friendly and easy to use. It has a simple interface that allows you to quickly and easily remove unwanted elements from your images without having to have any advanced image editing skills. They also have a variety of tools to help you fine-tune the edits to your image, like being able to adjust the brush size and strength of the eraser.
What are the limitations:
Magic Eraser may not be suitable for more complex images, and there may be some elements of an image that can’t be removed perfectly – especially if they are very close to something you want to keep in the image. You are also limited to removing one object at a time, which may not be ideal if you have a large number of unwanted elements to remove.
Pricing model:
Decent Free Plan – full resolution photo downloads require a subscription.
Free Image Optimisation Tool 3 – Photopea
What is it:
Photopea is a free, web-based image editor that is similar to Adobe Photoshop but 100% cheaper.. It can help you to edit and manipulate images, create graphics, and design layouts. Photopea supports various file formats including PSD, JPG, PNG, and GIF so that you can create a wide variety of different outputs.
What’s great about it:
As mentioned, Photopea is like Adobe Photoshop but free. It has a wide range of tools for editing images, including layers, masks, filters, and brushes as well as support for advanced features such as vector editing, text editing, and 3D modelling. Its range of features makes it a great option for both simple and complex projects as well as both professional and hobbyist designers.
What are the limitations:
One annoying limitation is that it can be a bit slow when working with large or complex files as its processing online rather than on your computer. Additionally, it doesn’t offer all the features that are available in Adobe Photoshop, so if you need some more advanced editing features then Photopea may not be up to the mark.
Pricing model:
Genuinely free to use – no limits at all.
Additional Help
We’ve created a Quick Tips Guide for some pointers on how to get started with these platforms, as well as examples of how I’ve used them and the results I’ve achieved – you’ll need to enter your email address to download below:
In our next post, we’ll share three free tools to help you with your market research.
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