Cropping question

[SquarePeg]

Do you use the free aspect cropping or do you try to use one of the conventional sizes? I've been mostly limiting my cropping to 5x7 or 8x10. I'm wondering if there are certain standards that should be used or if everyone just crops to whatever best frames their shot even if it's not a standard size. What about when it's something that you think you may later want to print/frame/display? Do you do something differently then?

I realize that since all of my photos are really just for me that I can ultimately do whatever I want but I'm wondering what the norm is, if there even is one.

Thanks for your thoughts on this.

 

[480sparky]

I usually free crop as there's no one, single aspect ratio that will print equally in all the standard print sizes.

When I do get an order in, I will go back to the original edited file and alter the crop to match the aspect ratio of the print requested.

 

[Designer]

With little expectation of sharing or printing my photographs, I crop with no particular aspect ratio. Just for me, it matters more about how it looks on my computer display.

If you're going to print later, you can save some time by cropping to 4x5/8x10 in the first edit which seems to be the usual, or even 5x7 if you already know that will be the aspect ratio you need.

 

[The_Traveler]

I always aim for a standard size 2:3 or 4:5, very occasionally 1:1 (altho I might cheat 5% or so)

I do this for two separate reasons; it is much more convenient and cheaper to get pre-cut mats than custom cut (I buy mats in bulk pre-cut).
Secondly, people are used to seeing a standard size and I believe that significantly non-standard sizes draw attention to the shape rather than allow a viewer's attention to pass through into teh image.

 

[KmH]

I crop for content, not size.

It's easy to make (or have made) non-standard size prints and for me the cost of a custom mat and frame is negligible.
Convenience is not even on my list of considerations.

Printing a non-standard size image onto paper of sufficiently larger size to accommodate the image ensures there is blank border to facilitate mounting and framing the print. None of the image gets lost in the rabbet of the frame either.

I've not seen that significantly non-standard size prints/framing diminish a viewers attention to a image.
Particularly if the image has sufficient visual appeal to be worth printing and framing.
Prints of panoramas are an example of significantly non-standard size that comes to mind that don't diminish a viewers attention to the image.

 

[jaomul]

90% of photos I take I crop 5x7, I like that size photo and I print for me a lot

 

[SquarePeg]

Thanks all!

 

[dannylightning]

i usually crop to 8x12 which is the origional crop that comes right out of the camera and export a jpeg of the file, i keep the raw file for each photo because if i need to make a print in a different size i can crop the photo again for that size print.

a new crop is not always needed, i can often just upload the 8x12 to a photo labs site and it will just cut off the extra from the sides, than i can position the photo so i choose what gets cut off of each side. if i do not like how its comes out after the sides are cut off that is when i will crop the photo again for that size pring

 

[weepete]

I tend to crop to standard sizes, unless I'm paticularly keeping in image as digital only. But I do kinda like the constraint. I like to crop my landscapes to 1x3, 2x3, 16:9 or 16:10 as those formats tend to appeal to me more.

 

[ClareB]

I crop to whatever size works for the image. Then I mat the photo in a standard size mat so that if it's going to make it to framing stage the frame will be standard. I invested in a mat cutter some years ago ;-)

 

[deeky]

I guess I'm a little different. When I do all of my initial processing, I don't crop it at all. I save that version so that I have maximum flexibility. I then crop a sub-saved version for online display or printing. Learned a while back when I wanted a different crop and couldn't get it done because I had already cropped too much for it in a different aspect ratio.

 

[SquarePeg]

I guess I'm a little different. When I do all of my initial processing, I don't crop it at all. I save that version so that I have maximum flexibility. I then crop a sub-saved version for online display or printing. Learned a while back when I wanted a different crop and couldn't get it done because I had already cropped too much for it in a different aspect ratio.

This seems like a good system. Thanks for your insight.

 

[AlanKlein]

If I'm editing vacation or party photos that I will be creating a slide show, I keep them all the same size. That way, when I fade one into the next, the fading is seamless. If I used different sizes, the transitions will be a little jarring.

 

[Alexr25]

I guess I'm a little different. When I do all of my initial processing, I don't crop it at all. I save that version so that I have maximum flexibility. I then crop a sub-saved version for online display or printing. Learned a while back when I wanted a different crop and couldn't get it done because I had already cropped too much for it in a different aspect ratio.

This seems like a good system. Thanks for your insight.

Of course if you use Lightroom you don't have to save a separate version of your image, it does all the adjustments and crops non-destructively so you can come back and re-crop to your hearts content or if you want to save several crop versions you can make virtual copies and Lightroom just saves the adjustment and crop instructions for that virtual image rather than copying and saving the whole edited image each time.

 

[SquarePeg]

I guess I'm a little different. When I do all of my initial processing, I don't crop it at all. I save that version so that I have maximum flexibility. I then crop a sub-saved version for online display or printing. Learned a while back when I wanted a different crop and couldn't get it done because I had already cropped too much for it in a different aspect ratio.

This seems like a good system. Thanks for your insight.

Of course if you use Lightroom you don't have to save a separate version of your image, it does all the adjustments and crops non-destructively so you can come back and re-crop to your hearts content or if you want to save several crop versions you can make virtual copies and Lightroom just saves the adjustment and crop instructions for that virtual image rather than copying and saving the whole edited image each time.

That's good to know, thanks. I'm using PS Elements 11 and do not have LR. I purchased PSE just a few months before Adobe went to the PS monthly deal. Going to try to get my money's worth out of it before I move on to that.