Occasionally you may need to convert a PNG file (especially one with a transparent background) to a JPG file. I find this necessary with my clipart graphics when wanting to upload directly to other sites and the transparency is a problem (more on that below).
There are a lot of other posts telling you how to quickly convert png files to jpg files without the use of design software. And almost all of these contain a lot of very bad information.
For this tutorial I'm going to give you just one option. It's a good one. It's free. No software involved.
We're going to use Adobe Express, a free online tool from the makers of the world's favourite design software programs. Reliable and trustworthy, it's also easy, and AD FREE!
NOTE: You will need to create an account in order to download the converted files, but it's an easy signup, no commitments and the same account gives you access to any of Adobe's free tools.
Open Adobe Express with the link above. Click the Upload Image button. Then drag and drop or browse for your image. Once uploaded to the web page it is instantly converted. Automatically. In a blink.
All you have to do is click the Download button. Files are sent to your computer's download folder. This tool is by far the easiest, smoothest and most reliable converter I have tried.
While we're here though, let's talk a little bit about PNG files and one reason why you might even need a tool like this.
One of the downsides of PNG files that have transparent backgrounds is that not all websites play nicely with them. If you upload such a file to a site not specifically designed to handle them properly you're likely to end up with a hot mess.
Because I sell all my files in PNG format, and because my customers very often want to directly upload these files on various social platforms or shop fronts, it's an issue that comes up a lot.
Here's a couple examples using my Etsy shop. Etsy has not designed their site to handle PNG transparency properly. This is noticeable mostly in the profile pic or shop button slots where people are most likely to upload these types of file.
You can absolutely upload PNG files here, you just have to have a solid background rather than a transparent one. (this is what I do) For my customers though, a quick JPG conversion is the easiest quickest solution because it adds a default white background.
In the first example we're looking at my profile pic. The image on the left shows my avatar uploaded with a transparent background versus the one on the right that has a solid color background. See the difference? Etsy added a black background but there's also some ugly distortion happening as well around the images edges.
In my second example you see my shop button PNG on left with a transparent background behind the circle. And what it should look like on the right when a solid background is added. This one has an interesting distortion effect that's actually not to ugly. But I've seen some real messes, it depends on the image how that turns out, it's not predictable.
So if you see something like this happening when you upload images to a website, just add a background or convert to JPG to solve the problem!
Happy creating!
Shawnna
Post a Comment