Many of us have come across such a concept as “previews”. What is it, almost all people imagine, at least a little familiar with the English language or computer technology. Consider a more detailed interpretation of this word. In addition, we will give some tips on creating your own elements of this type.
Preview: what is it in the broadest sense
The term itself comes from the English word preview, meaning literally translated “preview”.
But if earlier it was applied mainly to graphics, today the field of its use is much wider. But first, let's look at the initial interpretation of the word “preview”. What it is? Yes, just a thumbnail of the original. Thumbnails (as thumbnails are called here) used to be indispensable when posting pictures or photos on the Internet, the actual size of which in geometric terms was too large to accommodate multiple images on one page.
For convenience, the original image was reduced, and when you click on the preview, a full-fledged image was opened. Reduced copies on one web page could fit much more than the same photos or pictures with the original size.
Application of the term in various fields
Over time, the term migrated to a variety of areas. So, for example, it began to be used in the field of software.
As an example, let's take the Windows 10 operating system of the preview version. In the name, this term means that this software product is exclusively a trial version. In other words, the user, based on this modification, can draw a conclusion about the full version of the OS, having previously familiarized itself with its technical characteristics and parameters. Sometimes this term also refers to software products with truncated capabilities.
Similarly, the term is very widely used for educational purposes in music or in cinema. For example, many musical groups before the release of the official full-fledged albums make cuts from the tracks included in it so that listeners can form a preliminary opinion about the quality of all future material.
In cinema, such things are also used. As a rule, these are the most vivid and impressive shots that reveal the essence of a new film, its content, special effects used, etc. Only such videos are called not previews, but teasers or trailers, which, in general, are one and the same. In this perspective, the preview is even a kind of advertising announcement.
In many office programs, previews are used to preview a document, so this term can also be interpreted as a “layout”.
How to make a preview yourself?
But back to the original understanding of the term. Creating a preview yourself is not so difficult. First you need to decide where exactly this element will be published. For the YouTube service, you can create a static picture from some frame (as a rule, the minimum recommended size is 640x360 pixels, but more can be done). The main condition is that the aspect ratio should correspond to a ratio of 16: 9. For other sites, if the minimum image size is not specified, you can use a ratio of 200x200 pixels.
Typically, you should select a picture or frame from a video so that the user who looks at it immediately clicks on it to view a full-size image or video. The main picture can be elementarily reduced in any graphics editor. Yes, at least in the same Paint, included in the standard set of Windows-systems. But if you need to add additional effects, it is better to turn to professional programs like Adobe Photoshop.
When creating an audio or video, the appropriate editors are used. True, many experts recommend making an accompanying picture consisting of several layers ( GIF format images ). This attracts potentially interested audiences much more. In this case, you will need several images, for which in special applications you can set the sequence of frame changes from pictures and the delay time between transitions.
Conclusion
That's all for the term “preview”. What is it, I think, is already clear. Although in the classical sense this is a thumbnail, the current interpretation in different areas of use looks much wider. It’s quite difficult to advise what tools to use for creating previews, because it all depends on what semantic load will be assigned to them, how much they should be effective and attractive, etc.