printing dimensions

SBlanca · May 6, 2008

hey, this one's out of curiosity and the fact that I don't know much about this.

what would be the biggest size i could print at (keeping it looking nice obviously) on my 400D (highest quality setting for example)

and how about shooting raw? or would it remain the same?

thanks a lot guys

dslrchat · May 6, 2008

I really don't know either, but I beleive it depends on the size of the original shot, even at best quAlity, I think it depends on more than that, like shutter speed etc, on how big the file size is originally?

I am sure some one will correct me.

astrostu · May 6, 2008

The Canon 400D is 3888x2592 px. Assuming your photograph is taken at the highest resolution, that would be a 12.96"x8.64" at 300 ppi, which is at what most people recommend printing. The lowest-resolution at which people recommend printing (before you start to see pixelation) is 150 ppi, so that would give you a 25.92"x17.28".

It has nothing to do with anything else, really.

prodigy2k7 · May 7, 2008

well yes but, making a larger image wouldnt be THAT bad if you looked at it from a distance, some good programs like photoshop have decent algorithms which can make an image bigger without getting a horribly result. Also with you look from a distance, the defects kind of go away..

Look at billboards, their dpi is crazy, yet still viewable since people are very far away most of the time..

Big Mike · May 7, 2008

There are many factors.

As mentioned, the native resolution of your camera is a factor. That's how many pixels you have to work with. The 'standard' is 300 pixels per inch, but you can easily go bigger than that if necessary. Also, you can use software to increase the number of pixels.
Prodigy2k7 hits on a good point...viewing distance. You can print at a lower resolution if your viewing distance is great enough.

Enlarging an image will magnify the bad parts as well as the good. So if the image is not sharp, that will become more apparent. So if you are going to blow up an image...there are things will really help. Use a tripod, a remote (or timer) and Mirror lock up. Use a good quality lens at an aperture in it's sweet spot.

Given a good sharp image, you should easily be able to print poster sized (24x36) images that look good.

andrew99 · May 7, 2008

Mike, what about sharpening in software? I noticed from my own experience that the smaller you shrink an image (ie: for web, all the way down to thumbnails) the smaller you go, the more sharpening you need. So going very large, would you need less sharpening? Or would you still need a lot to keep the image looking crisp?

Mike_E · May 7, 2008

Depends on the resolution of the print and how far back you stand/sit.

You can easily shoot for billboards with your camera, but you would want to be driving while looking at it.

Big Mike · May 7, 2008

Mike, what about sharpening in software? I noticed from my own experience that the smaller you shrink an image (ie: for web, all the way down to thumbnails) the smaller you go, the more sharpening you need. So going very large, would you need less sharpening? Or would you still need a lot to keep the image looking crisp?

Sharpening can be a somewhat deep and complicated issue. I find that a little bit of sharpening is usually helpful for most shots, then more sharpening may be required after you resize an image.

When I resize an image in Photoshop, I resize 'sharper' when going smaller and 'smoother' when going larger. Depending on the image, I may sharpen again afterward.

andrew99 · May 7, 2008

Thanks Mike, I'm going to be printing some 8x10's and possible larger (from my 6MP D40), so I'll try those tips. The resizing options I didn't know about, so I'm glad you mentioned that.

RyanLilly · May 7, 2008

You can also go bigger with cleaner images,(lower iso) because the noise in high iso shots becomes distractingly obvious with larger prints because the graininess is so rough. Also its better on enlargements if you don't have to change the exposure much in post, this adds noise too, not obvious on a 4x6, but much more so on big prints.

A low iso shot that is well exposed in camera, will let you make all kinds of huge prints with pretty good results, even 20x30, isn't uncommon to be printed from 8 or 10MP.

8x10, and 11x14 should be no problem at all, don't even worry about resizing files for those. I have many 8x10/12 printed from my 4mp Olympus SLR, and they look great right in your hand, no grain, no chunky looking pixels, no problems.

SBlanca · May 8, 2008

so then this means that if i were to shoot a good clean photo with my 400D using my 18-55 i would be able in theory to print to 20x30 or lower? or would i have to put it through photoshop first?

prodigy2k7 · May 8, 2008

the lens u use doesn't matter? not that I know of??

astrostu · May 8, 2008

I think 20x30 is stretching it for a 10 Mpx image. That's only about 130 ppi. So unless you plan on looking at it from no closer than a few feet, I'd recommend something smaller. But, you could always try!