Problems with Custom Portraits

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Most show when creating a character but there are some that wont appear?
There's the standard 110x170 (file size 55.1 or 55.2) and then there's the other 210x330 (file size 203) you can use. There are also some others that have slightly different dimensions and file size that DO show up as well.
Anyone have any clue why I seem to have some that do and some that don't show

 

There's a few requirements that images have to stick to to be able to be used as a portrait file in BG:EE, namely filetype, image size and filename.
First of all, the image needs to be a 24-bit bitmap (.BMP) file. Simply taking a .jpg/.png or other image format and renaming the extention will not work - be sure to actually open the image with an image editor (windows paint works fine for this) and save it to the correct format.

It used to be the case that baldur's gate used two separate images, a small one for the sidebar portrait, and a bigger one for the character record screen - hence the supported 110x170 and 210x330 image sizes. (There was also a third, even smaller size image but iirc that wasn't used for anything.)
The enhanced edition can simply use the 210x330 one for both, since screen resolutions are a lot bigger then they used to be back when the original game was released, so sticking to that size for your images is probably the best option to preserve detail.

Finally, there's the filename, which has to adhere to a few rules, namely :

· It must NOT contain any spaces.
· The filename must be no shorter then 1 and no longer then 7 characters (not counting the size letter, see below)
· It also has to end with the letter L, M or S, according to size. in this case the 110x170 would end in an M (for medium) and the 210x330 would end in L (for Large)

A few examples would be :
FemaleElfL.bmp <- will not work, filename is too long, taking up 9 spaces. (not counting the extension and size character.)
FemElf.bmp <- will not work, lacking the size character (M or L)
FemElfL.png <- wrong filetype, needs to be saved as a bitmap.)
FemElfL.bmp <- This one will work, provided the image has the correct image size of 210x330 pixels.

 

In vanilla BG(2), the 110x170 is for the character screen and the 38x60 is for the portraits on the side bar. For NPCs, there is another, smaller, size as well, for showing in the dialogs. Also for vanilla BG the 110x170 is L, the 38x60 is S.

I'm mildly disappointed that they didn't remove the 8.3 filename and extension limits in the EE, though. Naming with effectively only 7 characters is a pain in the ass.

 

There is definitely something wrong here. Lol.
I have some that end with a "size" letter and some that don't and they show.
I also have one that has an underscore in the middle of it and it shows fine. It's a 110x170 with a 55.2 file size.

Wow this is just plain funny now. Lol. I just made a new portrait with a file name that puts it as the very last portrait in the file. BUT it's showing up somewhere in the middle when I try to make a new character. Lol.

There IS a little gremlin running around this house (and I don't mean a little kid) and it must be hacking my computer. Lol.

Oh well. Just another mini game I guess