Designer’s Guide for the WebP Image Format

How do you feel when those sub-standard images keep popping in every time you search the internet? Have you ever wished the designers used high resolution pictures and improve the user experience? The gift of WebP image format has arrived as the answer to your prayers. This format has been around for quite some time now. Of late, it’s exploring newer pastures with users and web browsers. 

WebP image format – The backstory   

WebP is an upgraded image format designed to offer a much richer and fulfilling user experience to the online audience. Since cyberspace in general, is crowded with image-heavy traffic, loading images becomes a time taking affair. Developers and designers using the WebP image format ensure that visitors experience high-quality images without compromising website speed. When you create WebP images, not only do the pictures look crisper and aesthetically superior, but the surfing experience also speeds up many notches higher.  

Lossy and Lossless Compression

WebP image format relies on lossy and lossless compression. The algorithm of lossy compression involves approximate reconstruction of image and data allowing a little higher rate of compression and smaller size of data. This form of compression is irreversible. The lossless compression on the other hand, involves perfect reconstruction and the compressed file or the picture is a ditto copy of the original.  

Processing web images via these algorithms guarantees much smaller but sharper pictures compared to the conventional formats like PNG, GIF, or JPEG. With a decreased file size, browsers take less time in loading images which in turn, results in much better and faster user experience.  

The WebP image format has been there for a long time but its popularity has soared in the recent times. This technology was acquired by Google from On2 Technologies. At present, almost over 90% of the browsers support the WebP image format.  

Impressed with the benefits of this novel format, you must be wondering how do I convert images to WebP.  Here is everything to know. 

How to create WebP images – The conversion

Whether you choose a JPEG, TIFF, or PNG image, you can simply convert the entire set by downloading the precompiled cwebp tool for conversion. It supports Mac OSX, Linux, and Windows. If you want to convert PNG to WebP, then you have to download the dwebp conversion tool. Whatever you choose, instructions are provided by Google Developers on it’s the Getting Started page. You can, however, choose free image converting tools from the internet as well.  

Here is a quick rundown of the top image conversion tools: WebP Converter from Cloud Convert 

This supports all formats and is quite easy and fast. It involves the simple process of choosing a format you need to convert from the dropdown menu and then choosing the destination format in the same manner and simply let the converter do its job. 

Online-Convert 

This process is also quite efficient and simple. Once you upload the file you want to convert or insert a link of the chosen image, press “Convert File”. The change is nearly immediate, followed by instructions of downloading the new WebP image. 

EZGIF’s Online JPG to WebP Converter 

This has been exclusively designed to transform JPG images. Once you provide a link or upload the image, the process starts.  You can choose from the various options of conversion by using the navigational tabs. 

Image Converter by Convertio

This conversion tool can tackle different kinds of conversions. You can also install a chrome extension. As a part of the process of direct conversion on the web, simply choose the file you want to convert and the process would get initiated. It supports the conversion of more than 11,000 images. 

WebP Converter

Through this converter, you can create WebP images quite easily. Simply by uploading the image to be converted, the process starts. This tool offers a few tweaks too, like the quality of the image, whether you want to retain its metadata, or convert it into a lossless format. Just click on “Convert” after making the desired choices and you are done. 

WebP Converter by Free Convert

Over 500 formats are supported by this converter. It is known to reduce frictions in the process of transfer. Here you simply choose files from various locations and on pressing Convert, the process starts. Conversion done, simply download, and save the file in the new format. 

Conclusion

It can thus, be safely said that the WebP image format not only saves time but ensures quality images. This in turn, betters the user experience. However, you can choose to hire creative web designers in India at reasonable rates and with a much-lesser turnaround time to create WebP images from scratch for your social media page or website.