Newbie Question on Enlargements

[dwilcox]

I want to know what is the best way to take photos that you intend to enlarge. I have a couple of newer generation Minolta digitals and an older Minolta 35mm film camera. (for specifics see profile) This is just for fun, but I want to know what the limits are for enlarging based on the equipment I have. My intentions are simple, my wife has just learned how to make matts for framing pictures and I can make picture frames. So given my very limited photograpy experiance I want to know what is the best "package/setting" to get good quality shots that can be enlarged without too much loss. Film, digital, which film, or what size? And how do I go about getting them enlarged? I know this asking a bunch, but I will take what ever information is sent to me. Thanks in advance for any and all replies. Denny in Arizona.

 

[auer1816]

You're best off to start with the biggest image you can get. A 35mm film camera is going to produce a higher quality image than most digital cameras when it comes to size. You'll just need a hi-res scanner if you're planning on working in the digital realm.

As far as enlarging a digital image, your best bet is something like Genuine Fractals. That will usually get you up 200-300% without too much trouble. The standard Photoshop enlargement (bicubic) might get you 150-200%, but you'll start to notice loss of quality.

 

[dwilcox]

Thanks a ton Brian - that will help me a lot. Now I know where to start from.

 

[Torus34]

No matter what your choice [in film, 35mm will get you to 8" x 10", 120 film will get you to 16" x 20"], a good enlargement generally requires accurate focus and minimum blur. The use of a tripod is suggested to reduce blur due to camera movement.

I'm not competent to comment on digital, though I've had satisfactory 8" x 10" from 5 megapixils.

Please note that the sizes given above assume a very close viewing distance. If photographs are to be seen from, say, 2' away, the sizes can easily be increased.

The apparant size of any print can also be increased through decent matting, which is easy to do with some simple tools.

 

[Garbz]

At 300dpi a 10mpx camera will make a 13x8.7" image. As far as I know 300dpi is the standard high quality print from a photolab. But as mentioned previously the image can be rescaled to be larger and the larger an image is the further away people often view it from.

I have enlarged a 3mpx image to over 14" wide and framed it. So far no one has actually gone and stuck their nose into the picture, people often stand about half a metre away when looking.