Is your cover a jpeg or a gif under the required file size (200K)? If so, visit the upload centre. If you want to achieve the required file size then save your file as either of these two formats. If you are unsure of which to use then read the following to see which fits yours best. You can also save your graphic as an uncompressed .tif format and make .jpg and .gif copies from this to draw your own conclusions.

The Jpeg format

JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group). A permanent compression which means that your image will always be viewed compressed (It isn't compressed then expanded once reopened like a .zip file would be!!). JPEG's are commonly used for digital photography and pictures containing many colours. When you save your image as a JPEG (normally .jpg) then you will be prompted to choose the level of compression. Level 8 (out of 10) is good enough for music covers and should safely keep your file sizes down. If you are compressing an image of 150 dpi then you may need to increase the compression level.

The Gif format

Unfortunately, due to the patent laws on the gif format we are unable to accept it as a valid submission image type. We have decided to use PNG format instead. We will inform you of when the patent law expires and when we are able to use the GIF format again.

The PNG format

The Portable Network Graphic (PNG) is an excellent replacement for the GIF. For the Web, PNG really has three main advantages over GIF: alpha channels (variable transparency), gamma correction (cross-platform control of image brightness), and two-dimensional interlacing (a method of progressive display). PNG also compresses better than GIF in almost every case, but the difference is generally only around 5% to 25%, not a large enough factor to encourage folks to switch on that basis alone. All good graphic packages support PNG file format so experiment with this format and JPEG to find which is most suitable for your image.