So you need to re-size a bunch of images, but don’t want to endure the tedium of diddling with each photo’s dimensions one at a time. We hear you. Well not to worry — we’ve got the lowdown on a quick and easy method you can use to get the job done in just a few minutes. You’d think that a function so basic as resizing an image file would be included on most major operating systems, but unfortunately that isn’t the case – at least not entirely. Windows doesn’t come equipped with a native batch file resizing utility, and the options you have on OS X are either too restrictive (Preview), or complex and inconvenient (Automator). For this reason, we’ll show you a method that employs a free, easy-to-use third-party software program that works on any operating system: Google Picasa. It’s fast, free, and you don’t need to be a Photoshop savant to put it to good use.

Step 1: Download/install Picasa

Step 2: Open the program and navigate to the folder containing your images. If you just installed the software, it might take a few moments for Picasa to scan your computer and find all your images.

Step 3: Select the pictures you wish to resize. Picasa will display them in the image tray in the lower left corner

Step 4: Once you’ve selected your images, click the Export button.

Step 5: After you click Export, a new dialog window will appear. Adjust image sizes using the slider, or by entering in a specific value in the box. *Note: this number corresponds to the WIDTH of the images. The aspect ratio is locked, so the picture’s height will be adjusted proportionally.

Step 6: Hit export and the dimensions you set will be applied to all the images you selected initially, and all the re-sized images will be saved in your destination folder. Depending on how many pictures you’re working with, this may take anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes.

This method should be adequate for most users, but depending on your preferences, you might want a program with more or perhaps less features than Picasa. The good news is there are a multitude of programs out there you can download to get the job done, so here are a few other alternatives if Picasa isn’t the best fit for your photo re-sizing needs.