JPEG compression can lead to annoying visual glitches. Thankfully, they're quick to fix with Let’s Enhance. Upload the image, select an upscale type (we recommend Smart Enhance), click 'start processing', and you'll have a restored image within seconds. Curious how this works? Read on!

Takeaways

  • JPEG compression can lead to a number of visual glitches or artifacts that reduce the quality of the image;
  • There are three general types of compression artifacts which include blockiness, ringing, and color bleed;
  • Let's Enhance can restore compressed images and fix visual artifacts;
  • The results of our restored compressed JPEG demonstrate how each type of visual artifact is handled by Let's Enhance.

Understanding JPEG Compression

Compression is the process of decreasing the size of a particular file (in this case a an image) and there are two ways of going about this. With the right software, images can be compressed without a visible loss in quality. This is called lossless compression.

However, there is also lossy compression, which means that the image may end up with a number of visual glitches called “artifacts”.

While understanding the technical intricacies of visual compression and how it works can take quite a bit of research, identifying different compression artifacts is far easier and knowing what they look like can make image restoration much easier.

Blockiness

One of the most common artifacts found in faulty JPEG compression is blockiness, which causes an image to look blurry and have jagged or pixelated edges. This artifact can be spotted by looking at edges where two different colors meet.

The area around the beak demonstrates how this compression artifact can cause bluriness.

Color Bleed

Color bleed can be spotted on edges between two contrasting colors where a third color is visible that is not a shade or hue of either color. This causes an almost mist-like effect in certain areas of the image.

The purplish hue around the yellow neck of the bird is an example of color bleed.

Ringing

If you see extra lines near edges, then chances are you’ve spotted a ringing effect. Sometimes called the "Halo" effect, ringing causes images to have bizarre outlines that are in no way connected to the image.

Looking closely, it's easy to see weird black lines around the bird's wing.

Keep in mind, that after compression, a JPEG may show one, two, or all three of these artifacts at the same time depending on how the image was compressed, the image size, its dots-per-inch (DPI), and what colors the image contains.

How the LetsEnhance.io AI Can Help

While compression artifacts are fixable, doing this by hand can requires a lot of time on top of in-depth knowledge and experience with photo editing software. This is why AI has become the go-to solution for JPEG compression artifacts and the restoration of low-quality images.

Luckily, AI platforms like Let’s Enhance can make short work of compressed images and fix artifacts or other visual glitches. The algorithm that powers the AI is designed to detect these specific artifacts and smooth them out. Our B2B API alternative Claid.ai also has a dedicated compression restoration function that is optimized for removing annoying artifacts from product photos.

Here’s a quick guide on how to restore image quality.

Image Restoration Guide

Step 1. Visit https://letsenhance.io/boost to log in or create an account.

Step 2. Upload your image.

Step 3. Select the image type and upscale size and for best restoration results, select Smart Enhance. You’re free to try other upscale types that may perform differently and produce vastly different results.

As for Upscale Factor, you can leave the image the same size as the original or upscale it twice its original size. This can bring about additional improvements to the image by reducing pixelation and blurriness.

Step 4. Click Start processing and once it's finished click on the downward arrow button to save the image to your device.

The restored image will be saved to your device. The entire process, so long as you have a stable internet connection and are using a desktop browser, takes around 30 seconds, if not less, depending on the complexity of the image.

This is what makes Let’s Enhance such a great option for restoring low-quality pictures. Simply upload your JPEG or PNG image and Let's Enhance will handle the rest within seconds.

You can check out our full tutorial on how to enhance images using Let's Enhance on our official YouTube channel.

Comparing AI Restoration with Traditional Methods

But what good is improving the quality of visuals if you can’t see those improvements? Here are side-by-side comparisons between the original 498x750 pixel image and the restored 996x1500 restored version.

Full size-by-size comparison.

And here’s how Let’s Enhance fixed different compression artifacts:

As you can see by the examples above, Let’s Enhance automatically reduces the effects of compression artifacts. It sharpens edges, reduces blur, pixelation, and blockiness, maintains consistent coloration to prevent bleeding, and gets rid of the rudimentary lines and shapes that cause ringing.

Try It Yourself

Looking to revive your JPEG images? Try LetsEnhance.io for free today and see how our AI can restore the quality of your compressed images.

It's super easy and restore 10 images for no cost, instantly.

FAQ

- Why does JPEG compression affect image quality?

Depending on the type of compression you use, your JPEG may or may not lose quality. Some specialized software offer lossless compression, which means the image file shrinks, but without any loss in visual quality. However, most image compression is lossy, meaning in order to reduce the size of the image file, the visual quality also suffers.

This happens because the compressor deems all non-critical data within the image as unnecessary and removes a lot of the finer detail in the picture to make the file size smaller. Hence why it is highly recommended to use lossless compression if possible, and if not, simply compress the image and run it through image enhancement software like Let's Enhance to restore some of its quality.

- How can LetsEnhance.io help restore the quality of JPEG images?

The Let's Enhance software is powered by a sophisticated AI algorithm that detects visual artifacts that commonly occur as a result of lossy compression and restores image quality by removing these visual glitches.

- Can LetsEnhance.io fix all types of compression artifacts?

While Let's Enhance is quite effective at removing compression artifacts, some images are simply beyond repair. These are usually pictures that were of very poor quality even before being compressed or ones that were excessively compressed. These are generally unfixable.

In any case, it is highly advised to save the original image before compression to avoid losing the finer details indefinitely.

- Is using AI better than traditional image restoration methods?

AI is much faster, more accurate, and far more attuned to identifying and repairing compression artifacts than traditional methods of image restoration.

- How can I start restoring my JPEG images with LetsEnhance.io?

Simply create an account on Let's Enhance, upload your images to the dashboard, choose Smart Enhance, click start processing, wait a few seconds, and finally save it to your device. With a stable internet connection, the entire process should take less than 30 seconds.

- Does LetsEnhance.io have an image decompression API?

While there is no API dedicated specifically to image decompression or removing compression artifacts, Let's Enhance and Claid.ai are more than capable of restoring image quality by cleaning up visual artifacts and glitches.

For more information all about Let's Enhance and our many other tools, visit letsenhance.io.