Scenario
You are using Exclaimer and have created your email signature. You notice that the images within your signature appear blurry or low in quality.
Reason
The quality of the image depends upon several factors, such as:
- The resolution at which the image was created
- The dimensions at which the image was created and is being displayed in.
- The image file format
- The display resolution of your screen
- The zoom settings you have in place for your screen or application
- If a custom font or background image is rendered as a bitmap
Resolution
Some tips to help you resolve the image quality issues:
Check that the image resolution is between 72 and 150 DPI
The resolution of the image affects how clearly it displays, particularly when being sent by email and viewed on various devices.
We recommend that images should be between 72 and 150 DPI with 96 DPI being optimal in terms of image quality and file size.
You can use a tools, such as Photoshop, MS Paint or GIMP to check the resolution of the image.
Example of how to check using Microsoft Paint:
We recommend that images should be between 72 and 150 DPI with 96 DPI being optimal in terms of image quality and file size.
You can use a tools, such as Photoshop, MS Paint or GIMP to check the resolution of the image.
Example of how to check using Microsoft Paint:
- Open MS Paint.
- Open your image file (File > Open then select your image file).
- Navigate to File > Image properties.
The resolution will be displayed.
Example:
Avoid resizing images
Enlarging or reducing the size of images will also reduce the quality of the image.
Example 1 - Quality loss after enlarging image:
Example 2 - Quality loss after reducing image:
Wherever possible, please create the images at the correct size for use in your email signatures.
With Photoshop it is possible to preserve the quality by converting the image into a smart object by navigating to Layer › Smart Object › Convert to Smart Object.
If you are using Microsoft Paint or GIMP, then it is not possible to preserve image quality when resizing; in this case, ensure that the dimensions are correct when you create the image.
Example 1 - Quality loss after enlarging image:
Example 2 - Quality loss after reducing image:
Wherever possible, please create the images at the correct size for use in your email signatures.
With Photoshop it is possible to preserve the quality by converting the image into a smart object by navigating to Layer › Smart Object › Convert to Smart Object.
If you are using Microsoft Paint or GIMP, then it is not possible to preserve image quality when resizing; in this case, ensure that the dimensions are correct when you create the image.
Use the Portable Network Graphic (PNG) image file format
PNG is a lossless image file format designed for transferring images on the internet and is an idea format for use within email signatures. PNG also supports transparency, making it ideal for use with company logos and other graphics in your signature.
As the PNG format is higher quality than other formats such as JPG, the file size may also be larger.
To help keep the file size of your emails to a minimum, you can consider using a tool such as TinyPNG or Squoosh which use smart compression techniques to reduce the file size of the image while minimizing the loss of quality.
As the PNG format is higher quality than other formats such as JPG, the file size may also be larger.
To help keep the file size of your emails to a minimum, you can consider using a tool such as TinyPNG or Squoosh which use smart compression techniques to reduce the file size of the image while minimizing the loss of quality.
Check your display resolution and zoom settings
Some devices, such as those with Retina displays, have the ability to output a very high display resolution (4k).
Normally, increasing the resolution will also make the content appear smaller on the screen, so to compensate for this, devices automatically resize the content to fit the screen.
As we have seen in the previous section, resizing images reduces the quality. It is worth checking what screen resolution and zoom settings your device uses and also compare how an image looks on another device.
The best way to make images look better on high-resolution displays is to create them at a larger size - to make use of the increased pixel count that the displays offer. Please be aware, that this can have an opposite effect on devices with lower resolution displays, so you should carefully consider what devices are likely being used by the intended viewers of your email signatures.
Normally, increasing the resolution will also make the content appear smaller on the screen, so to compensate for this, devices automatically resize the content to fit the screen.
As we have seen in the previous section, resizing images reduces the quality. It is worth checking what screen resolution and zoom settings your device uses and also compare how an image looks on another device.
The best way to make images look better on high-resolution displays is to create them at a larger size - to make use of the increased pixel count that the displays offer. Please be aware, that this can have an opposite effect on devices with lower resolution displays, so you should carefully consider what devices are likely being used by the intended viewers of your email signatures.
Check to see if you are rending as a bitmap
Rendering objects as bitmaps can be useful when including background images or custom fonts in your signature.
Example:
When rendering text as a bitmap, the quality of the image is critical for the readability of the text. As the images can be automatically resized and compressed by a device or mail client, they can be open to quality loss.
You can avoid rendering as a bitmap in your signature. For more information, please see How to resolve bitmap quality issues?
Example:
When rendering text as a bitmap, the quality of the image is critical for the readability of the text. As the images can be automatically resized and compressed by a device or mail client, they can be open to quality loss.
You can avoid rendering as a bitmap in your signature. For more information, please see How to resolve bitmap quality issues?