Windows only: If you need to crop a lot of JPEG images in a hurry, JPEGCrops is an invaluable freeware tool. Almost every image program offers the ability to crop images, resize them, and oftentimes do both in bulk. JPEGCrops stands out by allowing you to set the crop for each picture using a thumbnail system. Then, once you have set your specific crop for each photo it will batch crop and resize a set of image files. The cropping is lossless as JPEGCrops crops without repacking the file but instead discarding the data that is cut away without re-compression. JPEGCrops offers a host of preset file sizes you can crop to such as standard print and screen sizes.

Adding a crop size is easy in JPEGCrops is easy; I added a 320x240 size to crop pictures for the photo album on my phone. Additional features include having a golden rule and rule of thirds grid imposed over your photo to aid in cropping, cropping by ratio instead of fixed size, and the ability to bulk resize without cropping at all. If you read our recent post about rules for computing happiness and simplicity, JPEGCrops fulfills rule #2 of computing happiness "Use software that does one thing well." For more information about cropping, check out how to crop your pictures for maximum impact. JPEGCrops is a free download for Windows only.