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 reduced to a 25 color gif.

Someone else reduced to a 60 color gif.

Then they resized the image to 338 pixels and compressed the image at 36% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 300 pixels and compressed the image at 20% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 438 pixels and compressed the image at 36% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 481 pixels and compressed the image at 58% jpeg quality.

Then they resized the image to 414 pixels and compressed the image at 65% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 307 pixels and compressed the image at 31% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 482 pixels and compressed the image at 33% jpeg quality.

Then they resized the image to 410 pixels and compressed the image at 14% jpeg quality.

Someone reduced to a 45 color gif.

Then someone added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 429 pixels and compressed the image at 19% jpeg quality and then someone reduced to a 45 color gif.

Then someone resized the image to 392 pixels, compressed the image at 32% jpeg quality and after that, they added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 541 pixels and compressed the image at 9% jpeg quality.

Then they resized the image to 335 pixels, compressed the image at 30% jpeg quality and then someone resized the image to 309 pixels and compressed the image at 15% jpeg quality.

Then they added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 548 pixels and compressed the image at 14% jpeg quality and then someone reduced to a 44 color gif.

Someone reduced to a 35 color gif and after that, they resized the image to 386 pixels and compressed the image at 9% jpeg quality.

Someone else resized the image to 579 pixels and compressed the image at 31% jpeg quality and then someone reduced to a 40 color gif.

Someone added a bit of contrast, resized the image to 403 pixels, compressed the image at 32% jpeg quality and after that, they resized the image to 529 pixels and compressed the image at 34% jpeg quality.

Someone else resized the image to 362 pixels, compressed the image at 17% jpeg quality and then they resized the image to 458 pixels and compressed the image at 34% jpeg quality.

Someone resized the image to 363 pixels, compressed the image at 29% jpeg quality and someone else resized the image to 412 pixels and compressed the image at 23% jpeg quality.

Finally they added a bit of sharpen because it looked blurry, resized the image to 551 pixels and compressed the image at 17% jpeg quality.

Oh my, that got pretty bad.

See also this experiment involving VHS tapes.

Website by Joachim Michaelis