Published May 21st, 2010
by Websites and Services Support
Welcome to our new 24-hour on-line support resources. You can find information about properly resizing your images, to Email Marketing services, to uploading sessions.
We encourage you to browse the "Support Links" or other pages for specific information. You will find all sorts of tips and information to get you started.
We have answers to many of your commonly asked questions so don't forget to check out our FAQs page. You will also find our video tutorials very helpful along with step-by-step instructions if you prefer to print a specific page or bookmark it for later.
Check back often for more guides and helpful information as we continue to grow and add more support to guide you along the way. Marathon strives to give you the best customer service and overall excellent service you deserve. If you ever have concerns about server status, check out status.marathonpress.com for up to the minute information on any servers that may be down for scheduled maintenance or otherwise.
However, if you have additional questions you may submit a support ticket through our Contact page or call us at 800-228-0629 between 8am and 5pm Central, Monday through Friday.
Published April 19th, 2010
by Websites and Services Support
Getting Started
Watch a video tutorial on how to setup your Session Proofing settings in your Marketing Control Site OR scroll down to read more about your settings.
The Marketing Control site is where you will create your settings such as the Marathon default watermark, refresh the sessions you just uploaded, enable the zoom tool and much more.
This video tutorial will guide you to setup the initial settings within your Marketing Control site. If you are using sessions ONLY, you will have fewer link options. You can always add the shopping cart. Call for additional details about our one-time setup fee if you are interested in having your clients purchase images online.
1. Click on WEB in the top right corner of your Marketing Control Site.
2. Click on the "Session Proofing" link in red.
If you have already saved your options and settings you can skip step #3.
Create your Online Session Proofing site
3. Create your Online Session Proofing site through your personal options. Click the red link in the text that reads: “...these settings”.
3.1 In this settings screen you can create your contact information, your display options such as zoom and watermarking your images, and shopping cart options for shipping, sales tax, and your payment gateway information to process orders if you have the cart enabled. Please contact Marathon Internet Services Customer Support at 800-228-0629 to ask about our shopping cart and how to get started.
4. If you have already created your Settings, you will be directed to this page to refresh a session you just uploaded via FTP, create price lists, and view orders.
Marathon also offers a Shopping Cart feature with your session viewing. Allows for your clients to view images and place their order online through our secure SSL. You will need to setup a payment gateway to process credit cards by either using Authorize.net through your local bank or via PayPal. You will receive an email confirmation when orders have been placed. Please contact an Internet Representative at 800-228-0629 to ask about adding this feature to your online session viewing area or view a demo to see what your clients would see when checking out.
Published April 16th, 2010
by Websites and Services Support
How to Setup Price Lists Once logged into your Marketing Control Site - mcs.marathonpress.com.
1. Click the WEB button in the upper right corner of the screen. 2. Next click on the Session Proofing red text link. You should now see a screen with Sessions | Settings | Price Lists | Orders. 3. Click "Price Lists".
You will only have ONE A La Carte to list the generic cost of each photo size you offer for all sessions. Click the red link "New A La Carte Product" to create your prices. However, if your studio offers different A La Carte pricing per session type, then you can create one item packages as a work around.
As you scan down the page (especially as you add more price lists) will be a red link called "New Price List". (Located right above the A La Carte title.) This link allows you to create multiple packages for different sessions as well as the one item packages that you can treat as another A La Carte. Watch a video below for more information on creating your price lists.
Once an order is placed you will recieve an email confirmation from your gateway and one from Marathon. The Marathon confirmation will also tell you what images were ordered. Your Marketing Control Site will also have an orders screen to show you pending orders and the ones you have completed. We are not a lab so you will need to process the orders and mail them out to your clients yourself.
Posting an Image --> Upload an image and browser the server to post it later
Pages --> Create a page for a specific event, promotion, or even testimonials
Options --> Additional blog features to enable or disable
Theme --> Choose from different layouts, add a header image, and modify the default grey color scheme
Links --> Add links or image links to your organizations or vendors
If you still need assistance after viewing this page, please feel free to contact us.
Posts
You're ready to start sharing your thoughts and ideas with the world. Since this is the purpose of blogs, it's time to start writing. The process of writing your blog is easy.
Login to your blog Dashboard.
Click the link called 'Posts'. or from the Dashboard tab under Getting Started click 'Write a New Post or Maintain Previous Ones'.
Now you may edit, delete, or write a new post.
SAVE OFTEN! While you are editing a post or page, make sure to 'save draft'. This is nice as you start to write but get writers block. You can always come back to a draft and continue once again. Don't lose your work-in-progress with the new Autosave feature -- Your work will automatically be saved as a draft every 5 minutes while you continue to work on other things. The extended 1-hour timeout feature will allow you to still tend to your daily activities without having to constantly log into the blog.
That's it! You expected more? Okay, we have more details below, but from here, you can probably figure it out for yourself.
All Posts
Where you can manage your posts. Posts are the main content of your blog. You can sort your posts from the AllPosts page by using the up and down arrows. Write Posts
This is the scrolling blog area where you may begin writing about your business, latest thoughts, or even your latest/current events. Each post can have its own unique title. By default, your postings will automatically be sorted so that the most recent post is at the top. However, you can write a post and save as a draft and finish it later or even complete a post and publish on a future date.
Post Title
Fairly self explanatory. Enter the Title of your post here.
Type Your Content Here
This big empty box is where you'll type in the content and may add images in your post. We recommend sizing images down to 72dpi and 700px wide.
The Advanced arrow is expandable and allows for you to change the Author, add tags, change the publish date, and add video embed code.
Save Draft
This button saves the post and will not display the post until you finish editing it and actually Publish the post.
Publish
Makes the post visible on your Blog. Use this button once you've typed in your story, added images, and/or video and you are satisfied that everything is as you want it. If you want to publish at a future date, select the date first from the calendar above and make sure to click on Publish so it will automatically post on that date. Then you don't have to log back in to publish the post manually.
This first part details the sizing and saving of your images prior to uploading. If you've already worked through this and understand the best practices for saving images for the web, you may want to skip to Posting Images
Images can be used in a variety of methods in your posts and Pages. They can be a major subject, or a referenced detail that enhances the information or story.
The first thing to consider is the size of the images. The size and quality of an image for use on a web page is determined by a variety of things.
Physical Size - The physical size of an image is based upon two things: The size of the image on the screen and the file size. Generally, the file size is treated as a different issue.
File Size - This is the size of the file on your hard drive or server.
Resolution - Resolution refers to the number of pixels in an image. Resolution is sometimes identified by the width and height of the image as well as the total number of pixels in the image.
File Type - There are a several image file types that work on the internet. For photographs, jpeg is generally considered the best.
File size dictates the time it takes to load your page, the larger the file size, often increased because of a high image resolution quality, the longer it will take to load. People often don't have the patience to wait through long web page loads, so keeping your file sizes low speeds up your web page access times. Typically, large high quality images should be kept between 100K and 60K. Smaller images should be closer to 30K and lower.
The resolution of the image dictates its clarity. The higher the resolution, though, the larger the file size, so you have to make a compromise between quality and file size. We recommend image resolution of 72 dpi for optimal viewing.
Luckily, the various file types most commonly used on the Internet have compression features. When you save the file as one of these types, it condenses or compresses the data information in the image file. Internet browsers can decompress this information to display the image on the screen. Some graphic software programs allow you to set the compression rate to control the quality of the image (and file size) at the time you save it. Depending upon your use of the images on your site, you may have to experiment with this to get the right ratio that keeps the resolution quality good while maintaining a small file size.
Not all graphic software packages allow you to resize images, though most should. Check your graphics software table of contents or index for resize, size, transform, reduce, or enlarge, all synonyms for the same thing. If they don't have the feature, you may have to find different software.
You can resize an image by simply specifying the image's final size. The advanced graphics programs allow you to set it by exact dimensions or a percentage of reduction or enlargement.
When you have fine-tuned your small sized image, export the image as a jpg.
These instructions assume you are in the Admin of your blog.
1. To create a new blog entry, click "Posts > WritePost". To edit an existing post, click "Posts > All Posts" then click "Edit" next to the desired post.
2. Once you create a new post or edit an existing post, you will see a menu bar above the content box that allows you to bold, italicize, link, etc. Make sure the image you want to insert has already been resized in photoshop. Click the "Insert/Edit Image" icon to insert/browse for an image. (The icon looks like mountains.)
3. The Image Properties dialog box will open.
Image Info tab - click "Browse Server" button to both view and/or select an image you have previously uploaded. At the bottom of the "resources browser" window you can also browse for an image from your computer and upload it to the server. Once it is uploaded you can click the image name to add it to your post.
Link tab - you can type in the URL address if the image is stored elsewhere on the Internet and not within your blog.
Advanced tab - Usually you do not need to use this tab for images.
You must make your filename "server friendly" by removing any spaces, apostrophes, slashes or other non-alphanumeric characters ($,%,&, etc.) before uploading.
All Pages
Where you can manage your individual pages. Pages provide content separate from the blog posts. You may Edit, Delete or Reorder your pages. These page tabs will appear at the top of the main blog. Write Page
Pages provide content separate from the blog posts. Like an informational web page, you can include page content that you can easily manage without the knowledge of programming code. It's so simple a caveman can do it!
You can add content and images just like you can on the blog posts. More options are found under the Advanced arrow. This link is expandable and allows for you to change the Author, change the publish date, and add video embed code.
Options
Blog Options - Allow you to turn on/off the following features that will be viewable by the public in the "side bar" of your blog which depending on which theme you choose could appear at the bottom, left or right of the screen. Also check out the 'Options' link within some of the features for more tips or personalization.
Comments - Allow visitors to comment on your blog posts and pages. Under options you can enable reCaptcha or Inline Comments.
Feed - Provide visitors the ability to subscribe to your blog using RSS Feed.
Search - Provide visitors the ability to search your blog for a specific post/page. An option to give your search box a different title.
Recent Posts - Provide visitors with easy access to your most recent posts. Within the options area for Recent Posts you can change the number to display in your sidebar (up to 10 maximum)
Page Protect - Provides rudimentary protection against image theft. Meaning that the script is limited that some viewers may still find a way to disable the right-click script. We recommend you watermark your images for the best way to protect images you post online.
AddThis - Allows your users to share your content on many more social networking sites they subscribe to and allows more avenues to share your news.
Blog Info
You may add your Blog Title/Studio name, tagline, and Author. In the Advanced expandable menu you may add your meta keywords and description as well as your Google Analytics code. Keep track of who's going to your blog using your own Google Analytics account showing much more robust statistics to aid in your marketing efforts. Studio Info
An area to enter and display your studio name, address, contact information, and even include a brief bio or mission statement. Social
Social Options allows for you to easily add the URLs to your social networks, such as twitter, facebook, and myspace with the icons already available for you to use. You may also use the additional options to enable the Facebook "Like box" and "Like button". Twitter options allow you to display your most recent Tweets within your blog's sidebar. How do you enable the Facebook features? First you will need to locate your Facebook ID.
Layout
Theme Layout - You can choose between 3 theme layouts to display where your content and profile will display to the end user. Even if you have posted you can still change your theme layout but you will need to redefine your color theme. If you ever switch back to your original them the colors will be retained. Each layout has a differrent defined set of colors.
Header
Feeling creative? If you want to replace your current blog header image to personalize your blog, feel free to upload an image.
Recommended Dimensions are indicated on each Theme Layout - Maximum Height: 300 px
Marathon has even made it easier if you want to download one of our designs for FREE and modify it to your liking with your logo, images, etc.
Color
You can select solid colors for the look of your blog. You can modify background, foreground, border, highlight, inactive links, and text colors. Each layout will feature a theme guide to assist you when choosing your blog's colors. While in your dashboard, save the changes and click on the View Blog toggle in the upper right corner to view your color choices live.
All Links
You are able to edit, delete or reorder the links you have added to your blog. Write Links
Just like it sounds. You can add all sorts of URL links such as a link back to your website, organizations you are involved with, vendors, etc. You can even upload an image that will act as your link. For instance, your website's logo to redirect back to your main website or the logo for other vendors, charities, or organizations. This is in the Advanced options of your links and you can even add alt text to your images.
Links Title
If you don't like the sound of LINKS to display your list of URLs, this can be modified.
How do I find my Google Analytics Web Property ID? You first must have a Google Account. If you don't have an account go to google.com/analytics. It's easy and it's FREE! Use Google Analytics to drive targeted traffic, use online marketing initiatives and learn which ones are cost effective. Lastly, see how visitors actually interact with your site.
Your Web Property ID, informally referred to as UA number, can be found using multiple methods including:
UA-number in the code supplied by Google Analytics; or
Looking at the overview of the Website Profile in your Google Analytics account.
The Web Property ID has two parts: The X's (UA-XXXXX-YY) represent your account number and the Y's (UA-XXXXXX-YY) represent profile numbers within your account. The complete string (UA-XXXXX-YY) is referred to interchangably as your Web Property ID or UA number.
Published April 14th, 2010
by Websites and Services Support
Replace web site images by renaming your original images to replace/overwrite existing images within each gallery, home page or spotlight images.
Spotlight images are static and may appear on your information text pages. You may follow the same instructions as you do for switching out a batch of gallery images. For best results when it comes to the speed of a page loading, we recommend you review how to manage your images before following these instructions.
Requirements
Adobe Photoshop version 5.5 or above.
FTP Program
Other image manipulation and FTP software may be used, however these instructions were prepared with the CuteFTP program in mind. For additional tutorials using other image resizing programs or FTP clients, please click here.
1. Get Thumbnail Information
You may refer to the "About" page of the original Designer Website for image sizes at MarathonPress.com.
1.1 Open your web site and go to the gallery page that you want to update.
1.2 Some HTML websites allow for you to right-click the thumbnail image and select Properties from the menu for details. However, some HTML sites have flash elements and may not allow for your to easily view the properties to find the image file path. A window similar to the following should be displayed.
1.3 Note the larger of the Width and Height attributes, in this case 75 pixels. This is found next to Image Dimensions: as the stylesheet will resize the thumbnail accordingly.
1.4 Note the location of the image file so you can easily navigate your folders within your FTP program. In this case the images are stored under content/galleries/fineart/thumbnails followed by image name. Your new photograph needs to be rename 04.jpg to replace this photo. Your site should be setup in a similar fashion.
1.5 Close the Properties window.
2. Get Large Image Information
As stated above for thumbnails, you may refer to the "About" page of the original Designer Website for image sizes for the home page, galleries, and spotlight images at MarathonPress.com.
2.1 If you have an HTML website, place your mouse pointer on top of one of the large images, then right-click and select Properties from the menu. However, some HTML sites have flash elements and may not allow for your to easily view the properties to find the image file path.
2.2 A window similar to that shown in Figure 1.2, above, should be displayed.
2.3 Note the width and height attributes. If you want to use the maximum image space, resize image to the maximum HEIGHT. In Web Photo Gallery, set the large image size and then change the constrain to Height (not both). This will automatically adjust the image width. However, if you have a panoramic photo or wedding album layout, choose the maximum width and constrain the WIDTH so the height will automatically adjust.
2.4 Close the Properties window.
3. Determine Which Images to Replace
If you will be replacing all of the gallery images you can skip this step.
3.1 Place your mouse pointer on top of the thumbnail image, right-click, and select Properties from the menu or count your images across the page like reading a book.
3.2 Note the name of the image. (usually numbered 01.jpg, 02,jpg, etc.) The name of the image in the example above is 04.jpg. Repeat this process for each image that you want to replace.
4. Prepare the Source Images
4.1 Create a new folder (i.e. on your Desktop or in your My Documents folder).
4.2 Name this folder "source".
4.3 Copy the source images into this folder.
4.4 Rename the images according to the names that you noted in Step 3.2. If replacing all of the images, then simply rename the images 01.jpg, 02.jpg, 03.jpg,...19.jpg, 20.jpg.
5. Create the Destination Folder
5.1 Create another new folder (i.e. on your Desktop or in your My Documents folder).
5.2 Name this folder "destination". Photoshop will output the images it generates to this folder.
6. Process the Images
6.1 Open Adobe Photoshop.
6.2 In Photoshop, click the File > Automate > Web Photo Gallery menu item. The Web Photo Gallery window should be displayed. Change the Styles drop-down menu to Simple.
6.3 Click the Browse button (Windows) or the Choose button (Mac).
6.4 Locate and select the folder created in Step 4, then click the OK button (Windows) or the Choose button (Mac).
6.5 Click the Destination button.
6.6 Locate and select the folder created in Step 5, then click the OK button (Windows) or the Choose button (Mac).
6.7 Click the Options drop-down menu and select the Thumbnails option.
6.8 Set the size for the thumbnails in pixels as determined in Step 1.3.
6.9 Click the Options drop-down menu AGAIN and select the Large Images option.
6.10 Set the size for the large images in pixels as determined in Step 2.3. If you want to get the maximum out of your images, in the Constrain drop-down choose Height. If your image is panoramic or a storyboard type of photo, then reprocess that one image and constrain by Width.
NOTE: If you want to watermark your own images before posting them in a gallery, click on Options drop-down menu and select the Security option. Now you can select Custom Text setting or any of the other options. Then you can position the watermark and even change the font color and it's opacity.
6.11 Click the OK button to begin processing the images.
A web browser window will open to display a preview of the gallery once Photoshop has finished processing your images. You can close this window.
7. Upload the Images
7.1 Open your FTP software.
7.2 Connect to your FTP site.
The following information is needed to connect to your FTP site:
Host name, also referred to as host address
User name
Password
Please contact Marathon Internet Services Customer Support to obtain this information if you do not already have it.
7.3 Once connected, locate and open the remote folder determined in Step 1.4.
7.4 Open the destination folder and locate the images and thumbnails folders.
7.5 Upload the images and thumbnails folders by single-clicking on the folder on the left-hand side and then clicking the upload button at the top of the window.
7.6 Once you have uploaded your images, visit the gallery page on your web site to verify that the new images are displayed.
In some cases you will need to refresh your browser window (either by pressing the F5 key on your keyboard or clicking the refresh button in your browser) in order to see the new images.
Published April 13th, 2010
by Websites and Services Support
Upload a session for on-line viewing
Upload a photo session with optional high res images. The high res images allow you to use the zoom tool. This is especially nice when viewing a larger group such as a generations photo or sports group photo.
TIP: Test every session before you tell customers how to check them online to eliminate additional phone calls. Allows you time to upload that session and test before giving a date they will be posted and session ID in case regular activities prevent you from getting a session uploaded. Life happens.
The process will include doing the following:
1. Process your original images using the Web Photo gallery feature of Photoshop or another image sizing tool in other photo editing programs. 2. Step 2 is optional - to include high resolution images to enable the zoom feature in the Marketing Control Site panel. The zoom feature may not be available for some systems so please contact Marathon if you are interested in upgrading. A demo of the photographic shopping cart with the zoom feature enabled can be found at marathonpress.com/photographic-shopping-cart 3. Upload the images created by the Web Photo Gallery into the proofs folder of your FTP site. 4. Test the session to make sure that it is working properly.
Overview
These instructions assume that you have a folder containing the original images and that you can locate and access this folder from the computer you are sitting at.
Your photos must already be in the correct orientation (upright) before beginning the processes below. Use only alphanumeric characters (a-z and 0-9) for the image file names. Do not use spaces, symbols, or any other special characters if you are renaming your images. Leaving images with their raw image file name with underscores is acceptable just make sure that images DO NOT begin with a dash or underscore as that is not a proper naming scheme.
Requirements
Adobe Photoshop version 5.5 or above.
FTP program
If you have Adobe Photoshop CS4 or CS5 and you have not yet installed the Web Photo Gallery plugin, please visit this page first.
A 30-day trial version of CuteFTP is available for download from cuteftp.com. Other image manipulation and FTP software may be used, however the instructions were prepared with this program in mind. For other suggested programs to use when resizing your images, please click here.
STEP 1 - Process the Images
1.1 Create a new folder (i.e. on your Desktop or in your My Documents folder).
Use only alphanumeric characters (a-z and 0-9)
Do not use spaces, underscores, dashes or any other special characters when naming your session folder.
We recommend that you use only lowercase letters.
The name of this folder is the Session ID or password you will be giving to your client.
The Session ID is case-sensitive.
1.2 Open Adobe Photoshop.
1.3 In Photoshop, click the File > Automate > Web Photo Gallery menu item.
The Web Photo Gallery window should be displayed. The very top of this window has a "Styles" drop-down menu. By default is it set to Centered Frame 1 - Basic. Since you will be resizing images taller than 450px, you will want to change this to Simple.
1.4 In the Web Photo Gallery window click the Browse button (Windows) or the Choose button (Mac).
1.5 Locate and select the folder containing the original images, then click the OK button (Windows) or the Choose button (Mac).
1.6 Click the Destination button.
1.7 Locate and select the folder created in Step 1.1, then click the OK button (Windows) or the Choose button (Mac).
1.8 Click the Options drop-down menu and select the Large Images option.
1.9 Set the size for the large images in pixels.
We recommend Large Images be sized to 525px high or 800px wide (no wider that 925px with other software editing programs).
1.10 Click the Options drop-down menu again and select the Thumbnails option.
1.11 Set the size for the thumbnails in pixels.
We recommend Thumbnails sized to 110 pixels.
1.12 If you want to embed a watermark in your images before posting them to the public, click the Options drop-down menu and select the Security option. Now you can select Custom Text setting or any of the other options. Then you can position the watermark and even change the font color and it's opacity. Highly recommended if you want to protect your images by placing your own watermark than using the session default.
1.13 Click the OK button to begin processing the images.
A web browser window will open to display a preview of the gallery once Photoshop has finished processing your images. You can close this window.
STEP 2 - Create High Res Images
This option is not available for all session proofing systems. If your session login page asks for the email address AND the session ID then you can proceed with sizing high res images. If not, please skip to step 3 or ask about upgrading your system. If you are not sure if your system has this option available, please contact an internet service representative at 800-228-0629.
If you want to use the zoom feature when viewing session images click here to follow instructions on how to create high res images. If not, you can skip to STEP 3.
STEP 3 - Upload the Images
3.1 Open CuteFTP.
3.2 Connect to your FTP site.
The following information is needed to connect to your FTP site:
Host name, also referred to as host address
User name
Password
Please contact Marathon Internet Services Customer Support at 800-228-0629 to obtain this information if you do not already have it.
3.3 Once connected, locate and open the proofs folder by double-clicking on the folder icon labeled proofs.
3.4 Upload the folder created in Step 1.1 into the Proofs folder.
Select the folder to upload on the left and then click the Upload button at the top of the window. You MUST be withing the PROOFS folder before you click the upload button. Otherwise the folder with fall outside the folder and the session ID will not work. Very important to test every session before giving out the session ID/password to your customers.
STEP 4 - Test the Session
If your login screen simply asks for the Session ID then just key in the new session name and make sure you can view thumbnails and large images. You are done!
If your login screen asks for email address AND Session ID continue with the steps below to refresh the newly uploaded images.
4.1 Login to your MCS site at https://mcs.marathonpress.com .
Once logged in click on Web button in the upper right. Then click on the Session Proofing text link and then click Sessions.
4.2 Find the new folder you just created and click the word 'refresh' to now populate the number of images you just uploaded via FTP.
4.3 Now you can open your web browser (i.e. Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc..) and go to the Session Proofing login page on your website.
4.4 Type in your email address and the name of the folder created in Step 1.1 into the Session ID field.
4.5 Click the Submit button.
4.6 You should now be viewing the proofs.
If for some reason you do not see your images, please contact Marathon Internet Services Customer Support at 800-228-0629 for assistance.
Marathon also offers a Shopping Cart feature with your session viewing. Please ask about adding this feature to your online session viewing area. Allows for your clients to view images and order them online. You will receive an email confirmation when orders have been placed.
Creating High Res Images for online session viewing
This feature is only available in our latest session proofing system using your Marketing Control Site (MCS) login.
Before you upload a new session - First, create a folder on your desktop and the name of that folder will be the client's password. If this is the first time uploading a session make sure to size your session images and thumbnails following the instructions here before creating your high resolution images.
You will be required to create your personal settings and save the changes before you can proceed to refresh the recently uploaded sessions or enabling any features. NOTE:You only have to create your profile when you initially get started with your account setup and then you can always edit your settings.
Next click on the Sessions link and refresh all the folder names to activate new (and previous sessions) for online viewing. Very important to refresh your Session IDs if you have been hosting sessions and/or using our shopping cart with Marathon's previous online viewing program.
These instructions assume that you have a folder containing the original images somewhere on your desktop or hard drive. Your photos must already be in the correct orientation (upright) before beginning the process of resizing images based on our tutorials.
If you would like to enable the zoom feature you must include a folder called 'hires' along with 'images' and 'thumbnails' folders created by your image resizing software such as photoshop. Place all three of these folders within a main folder (perferably on your desktop) before you upload it via FTP. This desktop folder name will be your client's password or session ID.Also enable the zoom feature option within your Marketing Control Site settings.
Download the action script we have created for you in order to create the hires folder (or you can create your own actions within photoshop). Download Photoshop Action Script.
Requirements:
Adobe Photoshop version 5.5 or above and an FTP program. We recommend CuteFTP or FileZilla.
Use only alphanumeric characters (a-z and 0-9). DO NOT use spaces, underscores, dashes or any other special characters when naming your session folder. However, dashes and underscores are acceptable in the image file name just not for the session ID / password.
We recommend that you use only lowercase letters, but if you do use a combination of capital and lowercase letters you will need to relay that exact spelling to your clients. Session IDs are case sensitive.
We recommend large images to be sized down to 525px in height (800px width with Web Photo Gallery) Other programs that we don't support may allow you to size images even larger but can be no wider than 925px as a maximum.
We recommend thumbnails sized at 110px for height and width.
OPTIONAL: If you want to embed your own watermark in your images there is a setting in the Web Photo Gallery to select "Security" and allows you to change your preferences to use custom text, color of the text, and alignment.
For those unfamiliar with Photoshop actions, they’re simply pre-recorded tasks that you can save and reuse anytime. Photoshop actions commonly have an .atn file extension. Installing a Photoshop action for more recent versions of Photoshop is easy: simply drag the .atn file onto the Actions palette or place it directly inside your Program Files (Applications) / Adobe Photoshop / Presets / Photoshop Actions folder.
1) Create a folder on your desktop called 'hires' and also place a copy of the folder that contains your original images. (usually easier to locate on your desktop rather than browsing your hard drive folders). Make sure there are no spaces, commas, ampersand sign, or other special characters in the names of your original images. These high res image names MUST match the names of your thumbnails and large images.
2) Once you open photoshop, click File > Automate > Batch.
3) In the Batch dialog box > Play section, choose Resizing Images.atn from the Set drop-down menu and set the resolution for your images in the Action drop-down. (Only available when you create your action scripts or downloaded Marathon's)
Suggested Image Size:
800 px high – For close-up images (like seniors).
1000 px – 1200 – use your best judgment (try a few images before doing a batch job).
1400 px high – For large group pictures.
4) From the Source drop-down menu choose Folder and specify the location your original files are located by clicking the Choose button and navigating to that folder. We suggest placing a copy of the original image folder on your desktop for easier navigation.
5) From the Destination drop-down menu choose Folder and specify the destination folder for the new files by clicking Choose button and navigating to the new empty folder. (should name this empty destination folder “hires”) Doing this we will keep our original files untouched and we will create the new ones in the destination folder. Make sure there is a checkmark in the Override Action “Same As” Commands.
6) In the File Naming section be sure to change the first drop-down to “document name” and the next field to the right says “extension” in order to define a file name.
Click OK and the Batch automation action will do the whole job for you – creating a new copy of each file from the Source folder as well as resizing and renaming them.
Now you are ready to upload the high resolution images in with your existing sessions folder.
Your new session folder should be on your desktop and inside this folder you have two folders – images and thumbnails. Now you can drag your ‘hires’ folder you just created following the above instructins into that session folder on the desktop.
Last step is to connect to your FTP program and upload the new session ID folder into your proofs directory, which now includes images, thumbnails, and hires to allow your clients to zoom in on the images. If you have not created your thumbnails and large images folder, please size your session images following the instructions here.
Welcome to our website services support site. Please browse the page titles across the top or the Support Links below for additional shortcuts. You may also find the SEARCH feature useful.
Server Status
Check if a server is scheduled for maintenance or other potential server related issues at status.marathonpress.com
