If you are a photographer or have a website that relies on displaying high quality images, optimizing image sizes is crucial for both website performance and search engine optimization (SEO). Large, unoptimized images can slow down your site, leading to higher bounce rates and lower rankings on Google. This blog post will guide you through the best image sizes for photography websites, ways to check your current image sizes, and effective methods for optimizing and compressing your images.

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What are the best image sizes for photography websites?

Images for full width pages

For full-width images that span the entire width of your site, a size of 1920 pixels on the longest edge is recommended. This dimension caters to standard 3K monitors, ensuring your images look sharp across most devices. If you want to prepare for 4K displays, consider using a plugin to serve different image sizes based on screen resolution.

Images for normal pages

For standard images that fill the central portion of your website, such as those in blog posts, aim for a width of around 1290 pixels. Some users prefer adjusting this to 1200 pixels for easier memory. Keeping images within this range will maintain quality without compromising load speed.

Images for slideshows

When using images in slideshows, you can generally apply the same full-width image size of 1920 pixels. This ensures that your images maintain clarity and detail while displaying in a dynamic format.

Images for galleries

A gallery is a great feature on a photography website. Gallery images should also align with the full-width dimensions of 1920 pixels, particularly if you’re displaying them in a grid format. This approach maximizes visual impact while keeping performance in check.

Featured images for blog posts

Featured images should ideally match the dimensions of your blog layout. For most themes, a width of 1200 pixels works well, ensuring they stand out without affecting page load speed.

Images inside blog posts

Images inserted within the body of your blog posts should be optimized to a size between 800 to 1200 pixels wide, depending on the layout and design of your site. This range allows for quality visuals while enhancing loading times.

How to view the current image sizes – different methods

Use a browser extension

Several browser extensions can help you quickly view the dimensions and file sizes of images on your website. Look for extensions tailored to image optimization.

Image Size Info

Using tools like Image Size Info can provide a comprehensive overview of your image dimensions, helping you assess whether adjustments are necessary.

Image Size Check

The Image Size Check Chrome extension allows you to input the URL of your images to check their sizes quickly.

Use the Inspect option in your browser

Chrome

Right-click on an image and select “Inspect.” In the Elements panel, you’ll see the image’s dimensions displayed in the HTML.

Firefox

Similar to Chrome, right-click on the image, choose “Inspect Element,” and find the dimensions in the inspector panel.

Safari

Enable the Develop menu in Safari preferences, then right-click on an image and select “Inspect Element” to view its dimensions.

How to optimize/compress images for your photography website

Use a web service

Web services like TinyJPG allow for easy compression of images directly from your browser, making it simple to reduce file sizes without sacrificing quality.

Use a desktop app

JPEGMini is a popular desktop application that efficiently compresses images, providing a quick way to reduce file sizes before uploading them to your website.

Use a plugin

For WordPress users, ShortPixel is an excellent plugin for optimizing images. It’s our favorite tool to use. You can compress up to 50 images for free on the ShortPixel website, but it also comes in plugin form and you can buy image credits to use inside your website. Don’t worry – it’s very affordable.

It allows you to compress your entire media library and automatically optimizes new uploads. Use the “glossy” format for the best balance of quality and file size.

Conclusion

For photographers, optimizing your image sizes is essential for improving website performance and SEO but also for conserving hosting space. Photography websites to be image heavy so keeping file sizes small will save you money in the long run.

Stick to the recommended dimensions and use any of the effective compression methods outlined above to make sure your photography site loads quickly and ranks well in search results. By regularly checking your image sizes and using the right tools, you’ll help to maintain your site speed and site health.