Graphics

Internet Image Degradation

Do things grow old in cyberspace? The answer is "yes"...

When pictures are constantly copied from website to website, and recompressed and rescaled every time, an interesting loss of quality occurs gradually over time. This page tries to simulate and display this gradual devolution. The first picture is the original.

First someone resized the image to 317 pixels and compressed the image at 36% jpeg quality.

Someone else resized the image to 568 pixels and compressed the image at 21% jpeg quality.

Then someone reduced to a 54 color gif.

Someone resized the image to 550 pixels and compressed the image at 26% jpeg quality.

Then they resized the image to 341 pixels and compressed the image at 36% jpeg quality.

Then someone resized the image to 557 pixels and compressed the image at 38% jpeg quality.

After that, they added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 446 pixels and compressed the image at 48% jpeg quality.

Then they reduced to a 29 color gif.

Then they added a bit of sharpen because it looked blurry, resized the image to 354 pixels and compressed the image at 20% jpeg quality.

After that, they added a bit of sharpen because it looked blurry, resized the image to 393 pixels and compressed the image at 20% jpeg quality.

Someone else resized the image to 342 pixels and compressed the image at 21% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 560 pixels and compressed the image at 35% jpeg quality and then someone reduced to a 23 color gif.

Then they reduced to a 32 color gif and then someone reduced to a 33 color gif.

Then someone resized the image to 415 pixels, compressed the image at 33% jpeg quality and someone added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 355 pixels and compressed the image at 23% jpeg quality.

Then someone resized the image to 495 pixels, compressed the image at 17% jpeg quality and then someone resized the image to 479 pixels and compressed the image at 29% jpeg quality.

Then they resized the image to 317 pixels, compressed the image at 16% jpeg quality and then someone resized the image to 461 pixels and compressed the image at 12% jpeg quality.

Someone added a bit of sharpen because it looked blurry, resized the image to 370 pixels, compressed the image at 12% jpeg quality and then they added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 573 pixels and compressed the image at 10% jpeg quality.

Then they reduced to a 12 color gif and then someone resized the image to 331 pixels and compressed the image at 19% jpeg quality.

After that, they resized the image to 559 pixels, compressed the image at 31% jpeg quality and then someone resized the image to 572 pixels and compressed the image at 26% jpeg quality.

After that, they resized the image to 317 pixels, compressed the image at 10% jpeg quality and then someone resized the image to 383 pixels and compressed the image at 31% jpeg quality.

Finally someone resized the image to 386 pixels and compressed the image at 27% jpeg quality.

Oh my, that got pretty bad.

Website by Joachim Michaelis