How to Change the Cropping Location of WordPress Thumbnails
If you are a WordPress user, you may have noticed that the post thumbnails function is a great feature to have built into WordPress. However, it has its flaws, such as the fact that there isn’t any parameter for defining the cropping location/position of the image when resized. This can be frustrating, especially if you want to showcase your images in a particular way.
In the past, users had to rely on the TimThumb script for resizing images on WordPress powered sites. However, this method was slower, less efficient, and less secure. Nowadays, the post thumbnails function is a much better option. It is faster, more efficient, and more secure. But, as mentioned earlier, it has its limitations.
One of the limitations of the post thumbnails function is that it crops images from the center by default. This means that if you have an image with an important element at the top or bottom of the image, it may get cropped off. To solve this problem, you can change the cropping location of your thumbnails.
Changing the cropping location of your thumbnails is not a straightforward process. You will have to edit the Core WordPress files, which can be risky if you don’t know what you are doing. Therefore, it is not recommended unless you are an experienced user.
However, if you are confident in your abilities, follow these steps to change the cropping location of your thumbnails:
Step 1: Browse to your wp-includes folder
Step 2: Find and open the media.php file
Step 3: Locate the following code (around line 3.61 in WordPress 3.1.1)
$s_x = floor( ($orig_w – $crop_w) / 2 );$s_y = floor( ($orig_h – $crop_h) / 2 );
Step 4: Edit The code to suit your needs (see explanation below)
The code you found is responsible for cropping your thumbnails. By default, it crops the original width and height equally towards the center. However, you can easily change it to crop to the top, left, top left, and so on.
For example, if you want to crop an image from the top, you need to make the y value equal to 0. To do this, change the second line of code to look like this:
$s_y = 0; // floor( ($orig_h – $crop_h) / 2 );
Similarly, if you want to crop an image from the left, you need to make the x value equal to 0. To do this, change the first line of code to look like this:
$s_x = 0; // floor( ($orig_w – $crop_w) / 2 );
If you want to crop an image from the top left, combine the last two samples:
$s_y = 0; // floor( ($orig_h – $crop_h) / 2 );$s_x = 0; // floor( ($orig_w – $crop_w) / 2 );
Once you have made the necessary changes, don’t forget that you will have to re-crop all your thumbnails. You can do this easily with either of the following two plugins: AJAX Thumbnail Rebuild or Regenerate Thumbnails.
In conclusion, changing the cropping location of your WordPress thumbnails can be a great way to showcase your images in a particular way. However, it is not recommended unless you are an experienced user. If you are not confident in your abilities, it is best to seek professional help.
