Family Historian User Group

Hi,
I have been running the "Family Group Sheet ( for Web, CD or DVD)" report and have experienced a problem with some of the images. In the first Group Sheet I created (for my Paternal Grandfather) there were scanned images of four "old style" BMD certificates. These were all certificates that I had scanned at 600 dpi.

Two of these certificates displayed correctly in landscape orientation, but the other two were rotated anti-clockwise by 90 degrees (Although the image box is still landscape).

I have looked at the properties for all four image files and found that the only differences between the files was that the two that appeared rotated were around 8000 pixels wide, whereas the two that displayed correctly were around 7000 pixels wide. I was able to crop the two larger images to around the same size as the other two, and when I ran the report again they displayed correctly!

Has anyone else come across this problem?

I have just run it again for my parents - a screenshot is attached showing the problem. The image file is 3.21 MB, and the image is 8429 x 3584 pixels at 600 dpi.

I have solved the problem by doing a batch reformat to reduce all my scanned media images to 300 dpi

I’ve not come across that issue before, but I think your scan resolution is far too high. If you are going to reprint a paper document, it makes sense to scan it at a high resolution, but if it is only ever going to be viewed on screen (which is probably what this particular report is targeted at), there is no point scanning at a higher resolution than you can display.

Personally, I find 150 dpi more than adequate. A typical document such as your GRO Certificates is clearly legible when shown full screen, and 150 dpi is only one-sixteenth the file size of 600 dpi. Disk storage today is cheap, but excessively large files still slow down backups and make the overall feel more sluggish unless you have a very fast hard disk.

My guess is that the 'edit' to the images has removed its EXIF orientation data and that has restored it to normal.
See FHUG Knowledge Base Common Image Problems.

Before I resorted to image cropping, or reducing resolution, I tried the "rotating image" fix suggested in "Common image problems", but it didn't work.

I think that it is just the large file size that is overwhelming the report generator, as I have done a close comparison of the properties of files that work and those that don't and can't find any significant differences other than file size. As I said the files that fail all have image widths over 7000 pixels.

All the problems occur with "old style" certificates. All have been scanned on the same Samsung C480FW Laser printer/scanner.

I scan at 600 dpi for several reasons. I do have a need to print copies from time to time. Also, sometimes I find it necessary to zoom in close to decipher the hand writing on some documents, a 150 dpi scan just doesn't cut it.

I have now installed the image processing app, IrfanView, on my PC. This will enable me to keep a "Hi-res Master Folder" of full 600 dpi resolution images and then batch process the complete folder in one go, to create lower resolution copies for FH Media use.

I have tried to reproduce your symptoms with a large 9000x13000 pixel 600 DPI image, but it remains upright.

After using IrfanView to rotate it 90 degrees its orientation then rotates in FH everywhere, not just in Reports.
But with one exception. The thumbnails shown in the Media Window and the Media tab were upright.

With IrfanView it is easy to Rotate images and also check the EXIF Information on the Image tab.