Print size

[Drake]

First of all, since it is my first post here, I'd like to say hello to all of the users. I am a novice photographer with little experience, but hopefuly I can get better after advices recieved at this forum.

Now to the topic. A friend of mine has asked me for an A2 size print of one of my photos. The problem is, it's been shot with my old camera, the resolution isn't high enough and it lacks the detail to be printed in such a big format. My question is - how far can I go with this one? I think I could print an A3 with something around 150dpi, but I don't think there is enough detail to cover such a big sheet. Could you check the full res image and give a little bit of advice?

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[ann]

I am not familar with what size an A2 is ; however, what is the viewing distance. That is critical. I have seen billboard size prints made from 4m pixel cameras and when viewed from afar they look terrific. 12 inches away, that is another story.

 

[Drake]

Yeah, exactly. She didn't specify what she wants the print for, but I am sure she won't be looking at it with a magnifying glass. I guess it will be hung on a wall, no specified viewing distance tho.

A2 is 420 × 594mm (16.5 × 23.4in)
A3 is 297 × 420mm (11.7 × 16.5in)

 

[astrostu]

I don't think you have the resolution to make a proper print at that size. My camera is the same size as yours except double the shorter dimension (instead of 2304x1728, mine is 2304x3456). The largest prints I'm comfortable making from it are 12"x18", which is at 192 ppi. With your camera, it would be 12"x9" at 192 ppi.

The rule of thumb is no less than 150 ppi for a reasonable print. For size A2 paper, first off, you'd need to crop your image (or paper) because the ratio of the dimensions are not the same. If you cropped your image, then you would be printing at about 98.5 ppi; if you cropped your paper, you'd be printing at about 104.7 ppi.

Unless this were going to be looked at from several feet away, I would NOT recommend printing at that size. Your friend probably wouldn't be happy with the quality, and it would lead to bad publicity for you if someone were to see the print, ask who made it, and then think that it looks bad.

If it's cheap enough, you can always do a test print. If it's not cheap, then you could crop your image to the correct dimensions to give the same ppi for a 4x6 print and test-print it that way. See what it looks like, how much pixelation there is, and then make your decision.

 

[Sideburns]

There are options for enlarging prints using software...I wish I could remember the site that was recommended...I even wrote it down thinking "I might need it later".

 

[Drake]

If it's cheap enough, you can always do a test print. If it's not cheap, then you could crop your image to the correct dimensions to give the same ppi for a 4x6 print and test-print it that way. See what it looks like, how much pixelation there is, and then make your decision.

Well, it is about $7 so it's not that big deal, but I love your idea with cropping the image and printing it on a smaller format in the same res. Thanks mate

There are options for enlarging prints using software...I wish I could remember the site that was recommended...I even wrote it down thinking "I might need it later".

Yeah, there are some, but there's no magic. The interpolation isn't any better than the one you can get in Photoshop. At least it wasn't when I tested it.

 

[Garbz]

Just for the record A2 is 4x the size of A4. 420 x 594mm If they are not viewing from several feet away they deserve to see a blurry image.

That said. Up scaling the image so that at this dimension it's printed at 300dpi is better than printing at 100dpi and putting up with blocky pixels. I see absolutely no problem in printing an image A2 size given the resolution you have providing it's done properly and you don't expect the quality of an ilfochrome print from a 6x7 large format camera.