Gif File Size Reducer Download Times And

More efficient GIFs lead to speedier download times and less bandwith usage.

Gif File Size Reducer Software Authority With

Sue Chastain is a former Lifewire writer and a graphics software authority with web design and print publishing credentials.

If your software has a lossy option for saving GIFs, this will significantly reduce the file size.

This article explains general rules to consider to reduce the file size of GIFs on your website so images load more quickly and your website operates more efficiently.

Reducing the pixel dimensions of an image is the most effective way to reduce the file size.

Each graphics-editing program offers different commands for resizing.

GIFs only display 256 colors, but if your image only has a few, then reduce the color count anyway.

When reducing colors in GIFs, you get the best compression when the number colors are set to the smallest possible of these options: 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, or 256.

Excessive animation adds to web page download time, and many people find it distracting.

If you use Photoshop, create a GIF file by using the Export As menu item.

When the menu opens, select GIF as the file format and reduce the physical dimensions (width and height) of the image.

If you use Adobe Photoshop Elements, select File Save For Web.

This process opens the Save For Web dialog box that is also found in Adobe Photoshop at File Export Save for Web (Legacy).

When it opens, apply dithering, reduce the color, and modify the physical dimensions of the image.

If your software allows it, use a lower level of dithering to save extra bytes.

This option can significantly reduce the file size, but it also reduces image quality.

Both Photoshop and Photoshop Elements show the download time.

A more valid number appears if you select a cable modem from the drop-down menu.

GIF images have a maximum of 256 colors, meaning you can expect severe image and color degradation if you arent careful.

The GIF file format, in many respects, is a legacy format that goes back to the earliest days of the web.

Before the introduction of the GIF format, web images were black-and-white and compressed using the RLE format.

GIFs first appeared on the scene in 1987 when Compuserve released the format as a web-imaging solution.

At that time, color was just emerging on the desktop, and the web was accessed by modems connected to the phone line.