💊 Quick Pill: Batch Image Optimization

ℹ️Info

Use case: Optimize hundreds of JPEG images for websites, reduce storage space, speed up page loading, or prepare photos for sharing.

🚀 Quick Setup

Install Required Tools

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt install jpegoptim optipng

# Fedora/RHEL
sudo dnf install jpegoptim optipng

# macOS (with Homebrew)
brew install jpegoptim optipng

📸 Basic Image Optimization

Optimize All JPEGs in Folder

Save as optimize_images.sh:

#!/bin/bash

# Go to your images folder
cd imgfolder

# Find and optimize all JPEGs
find . -type f -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=35 --strip-all {} \;

What it does:

find . -type f -name "*.jpg": Finds all .jpg files recursively
-exec jpegoptim: Runs jpegoptim on each file
-P: Preserve file modification time
--max=35: Set quality to 35% (aggressive compression)
--strip-all: Remove all metadata (EXIF, GPS, etc.)

⚠️Warning

⚠️ Backup First! This modifies files in place. Always test on copies first.

Run the Script

chmod +x optimize_images.sh
./optimize_images.sh

🎨 Quality Levels Guide

JPEG Quality Settings

Quality	Use Case	File Size	Visual Quality
`--max=35`	Thumbnails, aggressive compression	Very small	Acceptable
`--max=50`	Web images, blog posts	Small	Good
`--max=70`	Standard web use	Medium	Very good
`--max=85`	High quality web	Larger	Excellent
`--max=95`	Print, professional	Large	Near original

Choose Your Quality

# Thumbnails - maximum compression
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=35 --strip-all {} \;

# Web images - balanced
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

# High quality - minimal loss
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=85 --strip-all {} \;

💡 Pro Tips

Optimize specific folder recursively

#!/bin/bash

# Set your folder path
IMAGE_FOLDER="/path/to/images"
QUALITY=70

echo "Optimizing images in: $IMAGE_FOLDER"
echo "Quality setting: $QUALITY"

# Count images first
TOTAL=$(find "$IMAGE_FOLDER" -type f \( -name "*.jpg" -o -name "*.jpeg" \) | wc -l)
echo "Found $TOTAL images to optimize"

# Optimize
find "$IMAGE_FOLDER" -type f \( -name "*.jpg" -o -name "*.jpeg" \) \
    -exec jpegoptim -P --max=$QUALITY --strip-all {} \;

echo "✅ Optimization complete!"

Optimize both .jpg and .jpeg extensions

# Handle both extensions
find . -type f \( -name "*.jpg" -o -name "*.jpeg" \) \
    -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

Keep EXIF data (camera info, date, etc.)

# Preserve EXIF but remove other metadata
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 --all-progressive {} \;

# Or keep all metadata
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 {} \;

Optimize PNG images too

#!/bin/bash

echo "Optimizing JPEGs..."
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

echo "Optimizing PNGs..."
find . -name "*.png" -exec optipng -o2 {} \;

echo "✅ All images optimized!"

PNG optimization levels:

-o2: Fast, good compression
-o5: Balanced (default)
-o7: Best compression, slower

Create backup before optimizing

#!/bin/bash

FOLDER="imgfolder"
BACKUP="${FOLDER}_backup_$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)"

echo "Creating backup: $BACKUP"
cp -r "$FOLDER" "$BACKUP"

echo "Optimizing images in $FOLDER..."
cd "$FOLDER"
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

echo "✅ Done! Backup saved in: $BACKUP"

Show size savings statistics

#!/bin/bash

FOLDER="imgfolder"

# Calculate size before
BEFORE=$(du -sh "$FOLDER" | cut -f1)
echo "Size before: $BEFORE"

# Optimize
cd "$FOLDER"
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all {} \; | tee /tmp/optim.log

# Calculate size after
AFTER=$(du -sh "$FOLDER" | cut -f1)
echo "Size after: $AFTER"

# Show summary
echo ""
echo "=== Optimization Summary ==="
grep -E "optimized|skipped" /tmp/optim.log | tail -5

Optimize only images larger than X KB

# Only optimize images larger than 500KB
find . -name "*.jpg" -size +500k \
    -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

# Only optimize images larger than 1MB
find . -name "*.jpg" -size +1M \
    -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

Resize AND optimize (for web)

Install ImageMagick first: sudo apt install imagemagick

#!/bin/bash

# Resize to max width 1920px AND optimize
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec sh -c '
    convert "$1" -resize "1920x1920>" -quality 70 "$1"
    jpegoptim -P --strip-all "$1"
' _ {} \;

echo "✅ Resized and optimized!"

Create web-optimized copies (keep originals)

#!/bin/bash

SOURCE="originals"
OUTPUT="web_optimized"

# Create output folder
mkdir -p "$OUTPUT"

# Copy and optimize
find "$SOURCE" -name "*.jpg" -type f | while read file; do
    # Get relative path
    rel_path="${file#$SOURCE/}"
    out_file="$OUTPUT/$rel_path"
    
    # Create directory structure
    mkdir -p "$(dirname "$out_file")"
    
    # Copy and optimize
    cp "$file" "$out_file"
    jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all "$out_file"
done

echo "✅ Web-optimized copies created in: $OUTPUT"

🔍 Understanding jpegoptim Options

Common Options

Option	Description	When to Use
`--max=N`	Set maximum quality (0-100)	Always - controls compression
`--strip-all`	Remove all metadata	Web use, privacy
`--strip-exif`	Remove only EXIF data	Remove GPS/camera info
`--strip-com`	Remove comments	Clean up files
`-P`	Preserve file timestamps	Keep original dates
`--all-progressive`	Progressive JPEGs	Better web loading
`--all-normal`	Baseline JPEGs	Maximum compatibility
`--size=N`	Target file size in KB	Strict size limits

Example Combinations

# Web thumbnails - aggressive
jpegoptim --max=40 --strip-all --all-progressive image.jpg

# Blog post images - balanced
jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all -P image.jpg

# Photography website - high quality
jpegoptim --max=90 --strip-com -P image.jpg

# Target specific file size
jpegoptim --size=100k image.jpg  # Max 100KB

📊 Common Use Cases

Website Optimization

#!/bin/bash
# Optimize all images for website deployment

echo "🌐 Optimizing for web..."

# Hero images - high quality
find ./images/hero -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=85 --strip-all {} \;

# Blog images - medium quality
find ./images/blog -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

# Thumbnails - low quality
find ./images/thumbs -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim -P --max=40 --strip-all {} \;

echo "✅ Website images optimized!"

# Instagram/Facebook ready
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=80 --strip-all {} \;

# Twitter (smaller files)
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

Email Attachments

# Reduce for email (target ~500KB per image)
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --size=500k --strip-all {} \;

Photo Archive Compression

# Compress old photos (keep EXIF for dates)
find ./archive -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=75 -P {} \;

⚠️ Important Warnings

🚨Danger

Before Optimizing:

Always backup originals - optimization is destructive
Test on sample images first to find right quality setting
Check results - some images may degrade more than others
Cannot undo - once optimized, original quality is lost

Safe Testing Workflow

# 1. Create test folder with copies
mkdir test_optimization
cp imgfolder/*.jpg test_optimization/

# 2. Test optimization
cd test_optimization
jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all *.jpg

# 3. Review results
ls -lh  # Check file sizes
# Open images and check quality

# 4. If satisfied, optimize originals
cd ../imgfolder
jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all *.jpg

🎯 Recommended Quality by Use Case

# Thumbnails (100-200px)
--max=35

# Social media posts
--max=70

# Blog/website images
--max=75

# Portfolio/photography site
--max=85

# Print preparation
--max=95

# Icons/logos (use PNG instead!)
# jpegoptim not recommended

🔧 Troubleshooting

jpegoptim: command not found

Problem: Tool not installed

Solution:

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt update && sudo apt install jpegoptim

# Check installation
jpegoptim --version

Images look terrible after optimization

Problem: Quality setting too aggressive

Solution:

# Restore from backup
cp -r imgfolder_backup/* imgfolder/

# Use higher quality
find imgfolder -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=80 --strip-all {} \;

Permission denied errors

Problem: No write access to files

Solution:

# Change ownership if needed
sudo chown -R $USER:$USER imgfolder/

# Or run with sudo (not recommended)
sudo find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

Script optimization is too slow

Problem: Processing thousands of images

Solution:

# Use parallel processing (install GNU parallel first)
sudo apt install parallel

# Optimize in parallel (4 jobs at once)
find . -name "*.jpg" | parallel -j4 jpegoptim -P --max=70 --strip-all {}

# Much faster on multi-core systems!

📈 Expected Size Reductions

Original Quality	max=35	max=50	max=70	max=85
High-res photo	~90%	~75%	~50%	~30%
Already compressed	~30%	~20%	~10%	~5%
Screenshots	~80%	~65%	~40%	~20%

🚀 Advanced One-Liners

# Optimize, show progress, count files
find . -name "*.jpg" | tee >(wc -l) | xargs -I {} jpegoptim --max=70 {}

# Optimize only recent files (last 7 days)
find . -name "*.jpg" -mtime -7 -exec jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

# Optimize by file size (>500KB only)
find . -name "*.jpg" -size +500k -exec jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all {} \;

# Optimize and log results
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec jpegoptim --max=70 --strip-all {} \; > optimization.log

# Remove GPS data only (keep other EXIF)
find . -name "*.jpg" -exec exiftool -gps:all= {} \;

📋 Complete Optimization Script

Save as optimize_all.sh:

#!/bin/bash

# Configuration
SOURCE_FOLDER="${1:-.}"  # Default to current folder
QUALITY="${2:-70}"       # Default quality 70
BACKUP=true              # Set to false to skip backup

echo "================================================"
echo "  Image Optimization Script"
echo "================================================"
echo "Folder: $SOURCE_FOLDER"
echo "Quality: $QUALITY"
echo ""

# Create backup if enabled
if [ "$BACKUP" = true ]; then
    BACKUP_FOLDER="${SOURCE_FOLDER}_backup_$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)"
    echo "Creating backup: $BACKUP_FOLDER"
    cp -r "$SOURCE_FOLDER" "$BACKUP_FOLDER"
fi

# Count files
TOTAL_JPG=$(find "$SOURCE_FOLDER" -type f \( -name "*.jpg" -o -name "*.jpeg" \) | wc -l)
TOTAL_PNG=$(find "$SOURCE_FOLDER" -type f -name "*.png" | wc -l)

echo "Found $TOTAL_JPG JPEG files"
echo "Found $TOTAL_PNG PNG files"
echo ""

# Size before
SIZE_BEFORE=$(du -sh "$SOURCE_FOLDER" | cut -f1)
echo "Size before: $SIZE_BEFORE"
echo ""

# Optimize JPEGs
if [ $TOTAL_JPG -gt 0 ]; then
    echo "Optimizing JPEGs..."
    find "$SOURCE_FOLDER" -type f \( -name "*.jpg" -o -name "*.jpeg" \) \
        -exec jpegoptim -P --max=$QUALITY --strip-all {} \;
fi

# Optimize PNGs
if [ $TOTAL_PNG -gt 0 ]; then
    echo ""
    echo "Optimizing PNGs..."
    find "$SOURCE_FOLDER" -type f -name "*.png" -exec optipng -o2 -quiet {} \;
fi

# Size after
SIZE_AFTER=$(du -sh "$SOURCE_FOLDER" | cut -f1)

echo ""
echo "================================================"
echo "  Optimization Complete!"
echo "================================================"
echo "Size before: $SIZE_BEFORE"
echo "Size after:  $SIZE_AFTER"
if [ "$BACKUP" = true ]; then
    echo "Backup: $BACKUP_FOLDER"
fi
echo ""

Usage:

chmod +x optimize_all.sh

# Optimize current folder, quality 70
./optimize_all.sh

# Optimize specific folder, quality 80
./optimize_all.sh /path/to/images 80

Optimize your images for faster websites and smaller storage!

💊 Quick Pill: Batch Image Optimization#

🚀 Quick Setup#

Install Required Tools#

📸 Basic Image Optimization#

Optimize All JPEGs in Folder#

Run the Script#

🎨 Quality Levels Guide#

JPEG Quality Settings#

Choose Your Quality#

💡 Pro Tips#

🔍 Understanding jpegoptim Options#

Common Options#

Example Combinations#

📊 Common Use Cases#

Website Optimization#

Social Media Preparation#

Email Attachments#

Photo Archive Compression#

⚠️ Important Warnings#

Safe Testing Workflow#

🎯 Recommended Quality by Use Case#

🔧 Troubleshooting#

📈 Expected Size Reductions#

🚀 Advanced One-Liners#

📋 Complete Optimization Script#

💊 Quick Pill: Batch Image Optimization

🚀 Quick Setup

Install Required Tools

📸 Basic Image Optimization

Optimize All JPEGs in Folder

Run the Script

🎨 Quality Levels Guide

JPEG Quality Settings

Choose Your Quality

💡 Pro Tips

🔍 Understanding jpegoptim Options

Common Options

Example Combinations

📊 Common Use Cases

Website Optimization

Social Media Preparation

Email Attachments

Photo Archive Compression

⚠️ Important Warnings

Safe Testing Workflow

🎯 Recommended Quality by Use Case

🔧 Troubleshooting

📈 Expected Size Reductions

🚀 Advanced One-Liners

📋 Complete Optimization Script