Image Compression Script

This Python script compresses images in a specified folder, reducing their file size from megabytes (MB) to kilobytes (KB) while maintaining acceptable quality. It uses the Pillow library to resize and compress images, saving the results in a new subfolder.

Features

• Supports common image formats: JPG, JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF.
• Resizes images to a maximum resolution of 1024x1024 pixels (configurable).
• Compresses images to JPEG format with adjustable quality settings.
• Preserves original images and saves compressed versions in a compressed subfolder.
• Displays file size reduction for each processed image.

Requirements

• Python: Version 3.6 or higher.
• Pillow: Python Imaging Library (PIL) fork for image processing.
• Operating System: Windows, macOS, or Linux.
• Hardware: Any modern CPU (e.g., Intel i3, AMD Ryzen 3) with 4GB+ RAM recommended for large image batches.

Setup

1. Install Python

Ensure Python 3.6 or higher is installed. Download from python.org if needed. Verify installation:

python --version

2. Create a Virtual Environment

A virtual environment is recommended to manage dependencies:

1. Navigate to your project directory:

   mkdir image_compression
   cd image_compression

2. Create a virtual environment named venv:

   python -m venv venv

3. Activate the virtual environment:
   • Windows:

     venv\Scripts\activate

   • macOS/Linux:

     source venv/bin/activate

3. Install Pillow

With the virtual environment activated, install Pillow:

pip install Pillow

Verify installation:

pip show Pillow

4. Save the Script

Save the compress_images.py script (provided separately) in your project directory.

Usage

1. Prepare a folder containing images (e.g., JPG, PNG).

2. Run the script with the folder path as an argument:

   python compress_images.py /path/to/your/image/folder

   Example:

   • Windows: python compress_images.py C:\Users\YourName\Pictures
   • macOS/Linux: python compress_images.py /home/yourname/pictures

3. The script will:

   • Process supported images in the folder.
   • Resize images to a maximum of 1024x1024 pixels (maintaining aspect ratio).
   • Compress images to JPEG format with a quality setting of 50.
   • Save compressed images in a compressed subfolder within the input folder.
   • Display original and compressed file sizes for each image.

4. Deactivate the virtual environment when done:

   deactivate

Customization

You can modify the compress_images.py script to adjust:

• Quality: Change the quality parameter (0–100) in the compress_images function. Lower values reduce file size but may decrease quality.
• Maximum Size: Adjust the max_size parameter (e.g., (1024, 1024)) to set different maximum dimensions.
• Supported Formats: Modify the supported_formats tuple to include/exclude image types.

Example Output

Processed image1.jpg: 2048.50 KB -> 123.45 KB
Processed image2.png: 1500.30 KB -> 98.76 KB
Compressed images saved to /path/to/your/image/folder/compressed

Troubleshooting

• Pillow not found: Ensure Pillow is installed in the active virtual environment (pip install Pillow).
• Permission errors: Run the terminal as administrator (Windows) or use sudo (macOS/Linux).
• Invalid folder path: Verify the folder exists and contains supported image files.
• Pillow installation issues: Update pip (pip install --upgrade pip) and retry.