diff --git a/internal/api/client/media/mediacreate_test.go b/internal/api/client/media/mediacreate_test.go
index 53c1ce996..9ba059841 100644
--- a/internal/api/client/media/mediacreate_test.go
+++ b/internal/api/client/media/mediacreate_test.go
@@ -187,9 +187,9 @@ func (suite *MediaCreateTestSuite) TestStatusCreatePOSTImageHandlerSuccessful()
 			Aspect: 1.7777778,
 		},
 		Small: model.MediaDimensions{
-			Width:  256,
-			Height: 144,
-			Size:   "256x144",
+			Width:  512,
+			Height: 288,
+			Size:   "512x288",
 			Aspect: 1.7777778,
 		},
 		Focus: model.MediaFocus{
@@ -197,7 +197,7 @@ func (suite *MediaCreateTestSuite) TestStatusCreatePOSTImageHandlerSuccessful()
 			Y: 0.5,
 		},
 	}, attachmentReply.Meta)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), "LjCZnlvyRkRn_NvzRjWF?urqV@f9", attachmentReply.Blurhash)
+	assert.Equal(suite.T(), "LjBzUo#6RQR._NvzRjWF?urqV@a$", attachmentReply.Blurhash)
 	assert.NotEmpty(suite.T(), attachmentReply.ID)
 	assert.NotEmpty(suite.T(), attachmentReply.URL)
 	assert.NotEmpty(suite.T(), attachmentReply.PreviewURL)
diff --git a/internal/federation/dereferencing/attachment_test.go b/internal/federation/dereferencing/attachment_test.go
index e4030781b..d4220f638 100644
--- a/internal/federation/dereferencing/attachment_test.go
+++ b/internal/federation/dereferencing/attachment_test.go
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ func (suite *AttachmentTestSuite) TestDereferenceAttachmentOK() {
 	suite.Equal(2071680, attachment.FileMeta.Original.Size)
 	suite.Equal(1245, attachment.FileMeta.Original.Height)
 	suite.Equal(1664, attachment.FileMeta.Original.Width)
-	suite.Equal("LwQ9yKRP_4t8t7RjWBt7%hozM_ay", attachment.Blurhash)
+	suite.Equal("LwP?p=aK_4%N%MRjWXt7%hozM_a}", attachment.Blurhash)
 	suite.Equal(gtsmodel.ProcessingStatusProcessed, attachment.Processing)
 	suite.NotEmpty(attachment.File.Path)
 	suite.Equal(attachmentContentType, attachment.File.ContentType)
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ func (suite *AttachmentTestSuite) TestDereferenceAttachmentOK() {
 	suite.Equal(2071680, dbAttachment.FileMeta.Original.Size)
 	suite.Equal(1245, dbAttachment.FileMeta.Original.Height)
 	suite.Equal(1664, dbAttachment.FileMeta.Original.Width)
-	suite.Equal("LwQ9yKRP_4t8t7RjWBt7%hozM_ay", dbAttachment.Blurhash)
+	suite.Equal("LwP?p=aK_4%N%MRjWXt7%hozM_a}", dbAttachment.Blurhash)
 	suite.Equal(gtsmodel.ProcessingStatusProcessed, dbAttachment.Processing)
 	suite.NotEmpty(dbAttachment.File.Path)
 	suite.Equal(attachmentContentType, dbAttachment.File.ContentType)
diff --git a/internal/media/processicon.go b/internal/media/processicon.go
index 17e48fec2..46c721e0c 100644
--- a/internal/media/processicon.go
+++ b/internal/media/processicon.go
@@ -120,7 +120,7 @@ func (mh *mediaHandler) processHeaderOrAvi(imageBytes []byte, contentType string
 		AccountID:         accountID,
 		Description:       "",
 		ScheduledStatusID: "",
-		Blurhash:          original.blurhash,
+		Blurhash:          small.blurhash,
 		Processing:        2,
 		File: gtsmodel.File{
 			Path:        originalPath,
diff --git a/internal/media/processimage.go b/internal/media/processimage.go
index 03c820cc5..03bd4eda8 100644
--- a/internal/media/processimage.go
+++ b/internal/media/processimage.go
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ func (mh *mediaHandler) processImageAttachment(data []byte, minAttachment *gtsmo
 		return nil, errors.New("media type unrecognized")
 	}
 
-	small, err = deriveThumbnail(clean, contentType, 256, 256)
+	small, err = deriveThumbnail(clean, contentType, 512, 512)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("error deriving thumbnail: %s", err)
 	}
@@ -109,7 +109,7 @@ func (mh *mediaHandler) processImageAttachment(data []byte, minAttachment *gtsmo
 		AccountID:         minAttachment.AccountID,
 		Description:       minAttachment.Description,
 		ScheduledStatusID: minAttachment.ScheduledStatusID,
-		Blurhash:          original.blurhash,
+		Blurhash:          small.blurhash,
 		Processing:        2,
 		File: gtsmodel.File{
 			Path:        originalPath,
diff --git a/internal/media/test/test-jpeg-processed.jpg b/internal/media/test/test-jpeg-processed.jpg
index 33c75ac4a..a9ab154d4 100644
Binary files a/internal/media/test/test-jpeg-processed.jpg and b/internal/media/test/test-jpeg-processed.jpg differ
diff --git a/internal/media/test/test-jpeg-thumbnail.jpg b/internal/media/test/test-jpeg-thumbnail.jpg
index b87b2eb79..eeb947ed1 100644
Binary files a/internal/media/test/test-jpeg-thumbnail.jpg and b/internal/media/test/test-jpeg-thumbnail.jpg differ
diff --git a/internal/media/util.go b/internal/media/util.go
index 1178649ea..963e3c93f 100644
--- a/internal/media/util.go
+++ b/internal/media/util.go
@@ -156,23 +156,12 @@ func deriveGif(b []byte, extension string) (*imageAndMeta, error) {
 	size := width * height
 	aspect := float64(width) / float64(height)
 
-	bh, err := blurhash.Encode(4, 3, g.Image[0])
-	if err != nil || bh == "" {
-		return nil, err
-	}
-
-	out := &bytes.Buffer{}
-	if err := gif.EncodeAll(out, g); err != nil {
-		return nil, err
-	}
-
 	return &imageAndMeta{
-		image:    out.Bytes(),
-		width:    width,
-		height:   height,
-		size:     size,
-		aspect:   aspect,
-		blurhash: bh,
+		image:  b,
+		width:  width,
+		height: height,
+		size:   size,
+		aspect: aspect,
 	}, nil
 }
 
@@ -200,25 +189,12 @@ func deriveImage(b []byte, contentType string) (*imageAndMeta, error) {
 	size := width * height
 	aspect := float64(width) / float64(height)
 
-	bh, err := blurhash.Encode(4, 3, i)
-	if err != nil {
-		return nil, err
-	}
-
-	out := &bytes.Buffer{}
-	if err := jpeg.Encode(out, i, &jpeg.Options{
-		Quality: 100,
-	}); err != nil {
-		return nil, err
-	}
-
 	return &imageAndMeta{
-		image:    out.Bytes(),
-		width:    width,
-		height:   height,
-		size:     size,
-		aspect:   aspect,
-		blurhash: bh,
+		image:  b,
+		width:  width,
+		height: height,
+		size:   size,
+		aspect: aspect,
 	}, nil
 }
 
@@ -257,18 +233,25 @@ func deriveThumbnail(b []byte, contentType string, x uint, y uint) (*imageAndMet
 	size := width * height
 	aspect := float64(width) / float64(height)
 
+	tiny := resize.Thumbnail(32, 32, thumb, resize.NearestNeighbor)
+	bh, err := blurhash.Encode(4, 3, tiny)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+
 	out := &bytes.Buffer{}
 	if err := jpeg.Encode(out, thumb, &jpeg.Options{
-		Quality: 100,
+		Quality: 75,
 	}); err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
 	return &imageAndMeta{
-		image:  out.Bytes(),
-		width:  width,
-		height: height,
-		size:   size,
-		aspect: aspect,
+		image:    out.Bytes(),
+		width:    width,
+		height:   height,
+		size:     size,
+		aspect:   aspect,
+		blurhash: bh,
 	}, nil
 }
 
diff --git a/internal/media/util_test.go b/internal/media/util_test.go
index db2cca690..9ba0f76ef 100644
--- a/internal/media/util_test.go
+++ b/internal/media/util_test.go
@@ -23,7 +23,6 @@
 	"testing"
 
 	"github.com/sirupsen/logrus"
-	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
 	"github.com/stretchr/testify/suite"
 )
 
@@ -64,82 +63,82 @@ func (suite *MediaUtilTestSuite) TearDownTest() {
 
 func (suite *MediaUtilTestSuite) TestParseContentTypeOK() {
 	f, err := ioutil.ReadFile("./test/test-jpeg.jpg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
+	suite.NoError(err)
 	ct, err := parseContentType(f)
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), "image/jpeg", ct)
+	suite.NoError(err)
+	suite.Equal("image/jpeg", ct)
 }
 
 func (suite *MediaUtilTestSuite) TestParseContentTypeNotOK() {
 	f, err := ioutil.ReadFile("./test/test-corrupted.jpg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
+	suite.NoError(err)
 	ct, err := parseContentType(f)
-	assert.NotNil(suite.T(), err)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), "", ct)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), "filetype unknown", err.Error())
+	suite.NotNil(err)
+	suite.Equal("", ct)
+	suite.Equal("filetype unknown", err.Error())
 }
 
 func (suite *MediaUtilTestSuite) TestRemoveEXIF() {
 	// load and validate image
 	b, err := ioutil.ReadFile("./test/test-with-exif.jpg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
+	suite.NoError(err)
 
 	// clean it up and validate the clean version
 	clean, err := purgeExif(b)
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
+	suite.NoError(err)
 
 	// compare it to our stored sample
 	sampleBytes, err := ioutil.ReadFile("./test/test-without-exif.jpg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
-	assert.EqualValues(suite.T(), sampleBytes, clean)
+	suite.NoError(err)
+	suite.EqualValues(sampleBytes, clean)
 }
 
 func (suite *MediaUtilTestSuite) TestDeriveImageFromJPEG() {
 	// load image
 	b, err := ioutil.ReadFile("./test/test-jpeg.jpg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
+	suite.NoError(err)
 
 	// clean it up and validate the clean version
 	imageAndMeta, err := deriveImage(b, "image/jpeg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
+	suite.NoError(err)
 
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), 1920, imageAndMeta.width)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), 1080, imageAndMeta.height)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), 1.7777777777777777, imageAndMeta.aspect)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), 2073600, imageAndMeta.size)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), "LjCZnlvyRkRn_NvzRjWF?urqV@f9", imageAndMeta.blurhash)
+	suite.Equal(1920, imageAndMeta.width)
+	suite.Equal(1080, imageAndMeta.height)
+	suite.Equal(1.7777777777777777, imageAndMeta.aspect)
+	suite.Equal(2073600, imageAndMeta.size)
 
 	// assert that the final image is what we would expect
 	sampleBytes, err := ioutil.ReadFile("./test/test-jpeg-processed.jpg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
-	assert.EqualValues(suite.T(), sampleBytes, imageAndMeta.image)
+	suite.NoError(err)
+	suite.EqualValues(sampleBytes, imageAndMeta.image)
 }
 
 func (suite *MediaUtilTestSuite) TestDeriveThumbnailFromJPEG() {
 	// load image
 	b, err := ioutil.ReadFile("./test/test-jpeg.jpg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
+	suite.NoError(err)
 
 	// clean it up and validate the clean version
-	imageAndMeta, err := deriveThumbnail(b, "image/jpeg", 256, 256)
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
+	imageAndMeta, err := deriveThumbnail(b, "image/jpeg", 512, 512)
+	suite.NoError(err)
 
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), 256, imageAndMeta.width)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), 144, imageAndMeta.height)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), 1.7777777777777777, imageAndMeta.aspect)
-	assert.Equal(suite.T(), 36864, imageAndMeta.size)
+	suite.Equal(512, imageAndMeta.width)
+	suite.Equal(288, imageAndMeta.height)
+	suite.Equal(1.7777777777777777, imageAndMeta.aspect)
+	suite.Equal(147456, imageAndMeta.size)
+	suite.Equal("LjBzUo#6RQR._NvzRjWF?urqV@a$", imageAndMeta.blurhash)
 
 	sampleBytes, err := ioutil.ReadFile("./test/test-jpeg-thumbnail.jpg")
-	assert.Nil(suite.T(), err)
-	assert.EqualValues(suite.T(), sampleBytes, imageAndMeta.image)
+	suite.NoError(err)
+	suite.EqualValues(sampleBytes, imageAndMeta.image)
 }
 
 func (suite *MediaUtilTestSuite) TestSupportedImageTypes() {
 	ok := SupportedImageType("image/jpeg")
-	assert.True(suite.T(), ok)
+	suite.True(ok)
 
 	ok = SupportedImageType("image/bmp")
-	assert.False(suite.T(), ok)
+	suite.False(ok)
 }
 
 func TestMediaUtilTestSuite(t *testing.T) {