Hey all, just a quick tip to help out on .psd file sizes. We all know that certain .psd's can grow to enormous proportion and eat up room on the old harddrive, so here's a handy tip to help keep that size down. Best of all? It's a ridiculously easy trick.

So you have your work in your .psd (nice job, by the way!). All you have to do is create a new layer that rests over everything else. Name it whatever you like, or don't. I usually name mine "poncho", ans it's a covering.

Now, fill that layer with white. Seriously.

Your layers should now look something akin to this:

1. Poncho Layer
2. All other layers beneath it.

Turn your poncho layer off as your working. Whenever you're about to save, turn it back on. A chunk of the file size isn't the actual information that Photoshop uses to create whatever you've done, but rather an image representation for use with your OS browser and file handling on your computer. By adding the poncho, you're basically telling the computer that it's just an image of a plain white background. The rest of the filesize is now simply whatever information Photoshop needs.

It's not the end-all be all of tricks, but it's a useful way for keeping large files down in size, especially when dealing with those pesky high DPI files for print.

Hope that helps!

Haha, wow, thank you so much for that. I have a big problem with hard drive space lately, so this should help with that some.

hmm, interesting idea but I usually just delete the original pencil sketch after I'm done inking. Cuts the filesize from 40-60mb to 10-15 :)

Works for me :)

That's pretty clever, actually.

I tried this in Photoshop 7 on a 70 meg file. It saved down to 52.6 megs. That's a massive saving.

I love having a file preview, but I don't see why a preview should take almost 20 megs...? Photoshop is a good image editing program but that's a very, very large flaw.

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And thanks for the tip! :)
When I do this I will definitely call them "poncho" layers still, in honour of you.

No problem - glad to be of service :)

That's a very strange tip, but a good one. :] I just tried it with a 23mb file and it's down to 20 now. Although, when I tried it on a 3.4 mb file, it went up to 3.7

Results may vary - it'll usually knock 10-15 megs off a file for me, depending on how complicated I get.

Just a lil trick to experiment with :)

Wow, that's really handy. Thanks for the tip.

Whooooboy. I just knocked a 211 mb file down to 190 mbs. Cute trick. I probably won't use it because I like the preview and my names can be a bit obscure after a while, but still... pretty snazzy, good to know.

wow im gunna try that , maybe stop my comp from crashing everytime i open folders with tons of psds .

HOLY HELL !!!! that works good ( 86 -> 46 ) thanks


now if only i could find a way to make my porn smaller

That's fantastic! If only it worked so well with 3D's, that's what's eating away at my memory :(

Welcome, all!

If I understand PSD files correctly, the data you're loosing with the poncho method is the 'Full resoloution composite', I.E. If you tried to open the PSD in a program that doesn't handle layers you will literally end up with just the white layer.

So in theory, wouldn't unchecking the 'maximise compatability' option save a similar amount of filespace while keeping the thumbnail image?

BRB, checking if I'm massively wrong or not.

Okay, I did a little experimenting and here's my results:

File 1: Original page file, with multiple layers, no poncho and maximum compatability. It's size is 18.512MB.

File 2: Using the poncho method I got a file size of 17.128MB. Not too shabby, that's nearly 1.5MB (Obviously larger files will gain more from the loss of the composite image).

File 3: However, saving the file again without the poncho and unchecking maximum compatability I got a filesize of 15.233MB. A significant decrease in file size.

File 4: curiously using both methods at once left me with a file size of 17.164m, which proves that the poncho method only effects the composite image (something unchecking compatability does away with completly).

Using Photoshops browse function, Files 1 and 3 had full thumbnails while the two using the poncho obviously showed up as blank white rectangles.

furthermore, attempting to open the PDF files with Quicktime picture viewer, file 1 loaded perfectly, file 2 produced the poncho layer and the 2 saved with comatibility turned off failed to load properly.

In conclusion, turning off 'maximum compatability' appears to produce an even smaller file without sacrificing the file's thumbnail. However I'm sure that the Full resoloution composite isn't the only thing lost using this method, the Poncho method ensures that the file will load correctly in other programs that use layers and older versions of photoshop. So If you use multiple drawing programs maximum compatability is something you'll want to have.

'wow that turned into a huge wall of text. For reference what I mean my 'Maximum compatability' is the checkbox that appears after you enter the filename when you try to save a PDF in photoshop.

To each their own- danke for the heads up on the other functions! i've never utilized them myself, simply because I never use any other programs when creating comics or exporting them. Good to know, though!

Phillby
Okay, I did a little experimenting and here's my results:

Good thinking.
So I've done the same thing and here are my results:

-saved in CS4)

Test file. No poncho. Max compatibility 81.8 meg
Test file. No poncho. No compatibility 61.5 meg
Test file. Poncho. No compatibility 61.5 meg
Test file. Poncho. Max compatibility 62.4 meg

In addition, the files saved without the compatibility turned on in CS4 wouldn't open in either Illustrator CS1 or Photoshop CS1.

-Saved in CS1
Test. No Poncho. Max compatibility 48.0 meg
Test. No Poncho. No compatibility 35.0 meg
Test. Poncho. Max compatibility 35.4 meg
Test. Poncho. No compatibility 35.0 meg

The files saved without the compatibility turned on in CS1 did open in both CS4 and Illustrator CS1

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My conclusion here is that saving bigger files with either a poncho layer or comparability turned off produces files of about the same size. But if you save it in a later version of Photoshop with the compatibility mode turned off then earlier versions of Photoshop, illustrator and possibly other programs won't be able to open it.

So it just depends on what size files you like working with, whether you like previews and weather you ever want to open those files in other programs.- I like my files to be compatible because I open them in a number of different programs and program versions.

That's strange you guys got the same file size with "No Poncho. No compatibility" and "Poncho. No compatibility".... the files I tested mine on earlier in the thread were already at no compatibility, and adding the poncho reduced one of their sizes (and slightly increased the other). This was with CS3, though.

Maybe the differences are really only apparent on quite large files with lots of layers and effects? (over 40meg)

Probably. My comic files are usually pretty beefy and clock in at 60+ megs, averaging roughly 30 layers between base CG and effects.

Neat experimentation, though! It's like watching Mythbusters...only in Adobe.

I haven't tested it myself buuut... if it affects only the composite, the space gain will be the largest on pages in really high dpi. Say, someone working in 600dpi with highly textured colors and lots of details?

But I've found another reason why I wouldn't use that personally. I like my files "previewable" with picture viewers and it's annoying enough that I can't see my .sai files without opening them.

Aurora Borealis
I like my files "previewable" with picture viewers

Yeah, I know what you mean...

That's not so much of an issue in my own case though since I always have jpg and Illustrator versions of all the same files with the same files names (except the extensions of course), in the same folders -because of the various editing stages a page goes through. That means there will always be a previewable version of the file in any case. :)

Awesome- I love when tricks like this really get put through their paces- thanks!

For my part, I used the poncho since my entire comic page/illustration work/ is done solely in Photoshop, 300-600 DPI depending, with 20-30 layers (give or take) with texture and all the bells and whistles.

If you like previews and whatnot, or like to see your image and only use photoshop, then the other tricks supplied here are right up your alley. (seriously, thanks again for pointing those out!)

One of these days I really need to find the funds to nab a copy of Illustrator. I do miss playing around with that program. Until then? More Photoshop tricks coming at ya later this week :)