Images
From Showit Manual
Showit supports images in either ".jpg" or ".png" format. We recommend files in JPG format unless you need transparency in which case you can use PNG. However, be sure to compress your PNG files and make sure they are small or they can cause slow loading times for your site.
You can specify how big and how much compression for JPG files in the Preferences panel but the default is that Showit will create three versions of a file:
- Large is 1200 pixels max per side
- Medium is 600 pixels max per side
- Thumbnail is 128 pixels max per side
For best results you can export your images for web from programs like Photoshop or Lightroom at the sizes mentioned above for the best quality and size before importing into Showit. When Showit imports the image, if it is less than the size specified in the Preferences it will copy the image and do no resizing.
When you view a Showit website it automatically decides which image to load based on the user's browser size and how big the image is going to display.
You must convert ".bmp", ".tif", and ".gif" files before importing into Showit or they will be treated as a package file.
Images need to be in RGB format and not CMYK which is typically for print. If you have a CMYK image and no tools like Photoshop to convert it, you can use the free CMYK Converter.
Color Shift
The issue of image colors can and color profiles can be a complex one when delivering images to the web. Because most user's browsers don't read color profiles and aren't calibrated, your images on your website should not be treated as print images but rather the common denominator of the web RGB space. When your website is viewed via the Flash Player, it understands RGB colors using an sRGB gamma(g) 2.2 color space (sRGB is an acronym for standard red, green, and blue). When an image does not use the sRGB profile, it usually has an embedded profile that tells a program how to transform the image into sRGB. If you import an image with an embedded profile into Showit, the color profile is removed and the image appears without its embedded color profile. As such, it is recommended that you use an sRGB profile when exporting images to be used in your site. If you use something like an Adobe RGB (1998) as your image's color profile you will notice a color shift when the image is imported. This may be the standard profile for images you will print, but it doesn't look great on the web. In Photoshop, go to Edit --> Convert to Profile, and choose sRGB as the "Destination Space." and then save and upload that file. In addition, the current resize mechanism in Showit is not as great as one found in Photoshop, so exporting an image below the size specified in the Preferences will cause Showit to copy the image and do no resizing and thus can make your images look as how you exported them.
As an alternative, for images that are slightly off in color, if you bump the saturation up in Photoshop by around 20% and then add them into Showit you'll notice those specific images should look closer to how they appear in Photoshop. The other option is to adjust color directly in Showit by clicking on the Effects tab of the image and then choose the drop down Select Effect to Add. Select Color Adjust and change the saturation amount to 15. You'll notice that this bumps the color up a bit and may get the color you want.
