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 476 pixels and compressed the image at 40% jpeg quality.

Someone reduced to a 50 color gif.

Then someone resized the image to 575 pixels and compressed the image at 52% jpeg quality.

Someone reduced to a 64 color gif.

Then someone resized the image to 436 pixels and compressed the image at 32% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 374 pixels and compressed the image at 54% jpeg quality.

After that and they reduced to a 50 color gif.

Then they resized the image to 431 pixels and compressed the image at 20% jpeg quality.

Then they resized the image to 388 pixels and compressed the image at 15% jpeg quality.

After that and they reduced to a 13 color gif.

After that, they added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 307 pixels and compressed the image at 8% jpeg quality.

Someone else resized the image to 465 pixels, compressed the image at 9% jpeg quality and someone else added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 326 pixels and compressed the image at 25% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 332 pixels and compressed the image at 10% jpeg quality and someone else reduced to a 35 color gif.

Then they added a bit of contrast, added a bit of sharpen because it looked blurry, resized the image to 387 pixels, compressed the image at 9% jpeg quality and someone resized the image to 329 pixels and compressed the image at 20% jpeg quality.

Then someone resized the image to 361 pixels, compressed the image at 15% jpeg quality and after that, they added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 380 pixels and compressed the image at 10% jpeg quality.

Someone else resized the image to 409 pixels, compressed the image at 12% jpeg quality and someone resized the image to 387 pixels and compressed the image at 33% jpeg quality.

After that, they reduced to a 32 color gif and someone resized the image to 463 pixels and compressed the image at 26% jpeg quality.

Then someone resized the image to 305 pixels, compressed the image at 28% jpeg quality and after that and they reduced to a 12 color gif.

Someone else reduced to a 37 color gif and then they reduced to a 35 color gif.

Then someone resized the image to 498 pixels, compressed the image at 32% jpeg quality and someone else added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 495 pixels and compressed the image at 10% jpeg quality.

Finally someone resized the image to 434 pixels and compressed the image at 10% jpeg quality.

Oh my, that got pretty bad.

Website by Joachim Michaelis