Rendering GIFS in Photoshop - Is there a better way?

over 7 years ago from Jackson Mason, Designer

After spending way too long trying different render options for an animated, looping GIF in PS, I finally discovered (from searching google and looking around in old, random forums) that saving with the preset "GIF 128 dithered" in the "save for web mode" saved the colors / quality properly.

Why isn't there a solution that is more talked about? Is this preset a solution most designers use? What are your experiences saving GIFs? Is there another software other than photoshop you use to render a small looping GIFs?

6 comments

Nathan Norman, over 7 years ago
I you're converting from video, I've found GifBrewery http://www.helloresolven.com/portfolio/gifbrewery/ to be immensely helpful.
3 points
- Julio Estrada, over 7 years ago (edited over 7 years ago )
  Love that app, especially when I just want to quickly snap something. If I ever need to tweak I could just throw it in PS.
  0 points
- Paul @Stammy, over 7 years ago
  I use Gif brewery a ton! A bit complex with options but it works
  0 points
Kyle Conrad, over 7 years ago
A good way I've found is to create the "GIF" in Photoshop then save out as a movie file, then use ffmpeg on the command line to generate the actual GIF.
A good guide here: http://superuser.com/questions/436056/how-can-i-get-ffmpeg-to-convert-a-mov-to-a-gif
Using the command line, you can play with settings all day until you get the size/quality that you're looking for.
1 point
Marc Edwards, over 7 years ago
It really depends what you're after. Less colours will give you a smaller file and might be ok in some situations, but more colours will be more likely to represent the original well. Dithering looks better, but is likely to make the files bigger.
1 point
Cristian Moisei, over 7 years ago
Gif is generally a low quality format, especially if there's a file size limit.
When using a gif is the only option, it's about finding the right balance for the project - there is no default solution.
If you can use something else, many video platforms offer the option to hide the controls, autoplay and loop.
0 points

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Rendering GIFS in Photoshop - Is there a better way?

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