International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 25-28, 1993 / Riviera Hotel and Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada / Various forms of 'lossy' and 'lossless' encoding have been implemented or proposed to allow compression of still and motion picture images, with varying degrees of success which in turn depend on how success is defined. Proponents of various systems claim 'compression ratios' which by their nature defy comparison of one system with another and suggest there actually may be something like a free lunch. This paper compares various compression methods as well as the implications involved in using them and what happens when different systems encounter the problems associated with the uses of the restored picture.