User Images

Request Type:

General Assistance

Forums:

Author:

Chloe Germain

Issue/Request:

Is there a way to download user images that have already been uploaded to the site? It only allows me to download and save a small thumbnail of the image. I would like to be able to access the image that was originally uploaded to the users profile.

Zachary Schwartz on September 5, 2017:

Hi Chloe,

I’m looking into this now; I hope to have an answer for you soon.

-Zach

Zachary Schwartz on September 5, 2017:

Hi Chloe, after investigating this further, it appears that downloading the original user images after uploading them is not possible. This is because there is no direct access to the file directory where these images are stored, and these images are resized and compressed upon upload. I’m sorry for the inconvenience this may cause.

I’m not going to close this issue quite yet, because I’d like to know if there is a pressing need to download these photos or if they exist in full quality somewhere else. If this is the only place these images still exist, I can explore options for increasing the size and quality of the thumbnail for you to download.

Please let me know,

-Zach

Chloe Germain on September 11, 2017:

Dear Zach,

Thank you for this information, and for looking into this issue. It would be great if there was a way to increase the size and quality of these images. We would like to print and display them on a board in our department as part of an inclusivity initiative. Many of the faculty want to use the pictures they have on the website, but I do not have the original files, as I only joined the department last year. I was hoping there was a directory on the website for these files, but it appears there is not.

I would appreciate it if you could explore ways to increase the size/quality of images.

Thank you very much for your help,

Chloe

Zachary Schwartz on September 11, 2017:

Hi Chloe,

Thank you for explaining! Now that I have a better understanding of why you need these images, I can give you some good news, and some bad news.

The good news is that my colleague Vincent Massaro was able to locate and download the directory housing the original files after all. I’ll be sending those to you via email, for your privacy.

The bad news is that, knowing why you need these photos, I’m sorry to say that most of them are not well-suited for printing. Even in their original quality, many of them are just too small. There are a handful of large photos in this folder, and this small handful may be suitable, but the others will probably require you to obtain a higher-quality version of these photos from the subject.

You can expect an email with the files shortly, please let me know if you have any other questions!

-Zach