|
What is resolution?
Resolution refers to the amount of information an image has. In rough terms, the higher the resolution, the better the image (but this is not always true). Resolution consists of pixels per inch (ppi) and dimensions of the file. These two are absolutely dependent on the outcome of your large format print.
Before going on any further - let's explore what a pixel is -- a pixel is a square. It contains one color and only one color. Hundreds to thousands to hundreds of thousands of these one color pixels make up your digital image. When you don't have enough of these pixels - your image looks "pixelated" - the colors don't blend well, etc. When we refer to ppi (pixels per inch), that means how many pixels are in one physical inch. To know the resolution of your file, you need to know how many ppi and how many inches your file is. Your camera will read a resolution of a number of ppi x a number of ppi. For example, 1440 ppi x 2880 ppi. This means that in one inch across - there are 1440 pixels and down there are 2880 pixels.
Well, is this good resolution? It depends on what you want to do with the file. This file is too big to email - but too small to make a large print out of. So, go on to the next question.
Back to Top
|
|
What size file do you need to make my tile mural?
We prefer to print all images at 300 ppi. There is debate about what the best resolution is - but 300 is our preference.
Let's do some math.
If we prefer to have 300 ppi, and our tile size is 8" x 10" -- then we need a file size of 2400 pixels x 3000 pixels. We got that number by taking our 300 ppi and multiplying it by the number of inches we wanted to print at. Now lots of times people will send us an image that is 56 K (this is the number that when you look at your explorer it says this is the file size). For a colored image, this is about 200 pixels x 100 pixels. As you can see by the above - if we wanted to print at 300 ppi, then we'd have a picture that was 2/3 of an inch by 1/3 of an inch. There is NO WAY to make this into an 8x10 tile. So, in order to get the BEST possible reproduction - the size of the file is figured out by taking 300 x the width of the item and 300 x the length of the item that you want -- and that's the resolution that you need. Again, this is to make the ABSOLUTE best reproduction. There are ways to make a GREAT print from less resolution -- see I don't have enough resolution to make the size item that I want. Is there anything that I can do? below.
Back to Top
|
|
What is the difference between ppi and dpi?
While many people use these two acronyms interchangeably - there is a BIG difference between the two and they should not be used interchangeably. PPI stands for Pixels Per Inch. This refers to the resolution of your FILE. DPI stands for Dots Per Inch - this refers to how many dots your printer can print per inch. These two numbers are NOT related. You do not need nor do you want your file to be the same in PPI as the DPI of your printer. When looking for high level of photographic output - you always want to use the highest DPI your printer has.
Back to Top
|
|
I don't have enough resolution to make the size item that I want. Is there anything that I can do?
Yes, there is something you can do. Software programs can interpolate (ie. make stuff up) information to help fill in the blanks. Photoshop can handle up to 150% of your original sized image and still maintain a GREAT quality. For photographic images, you don't want to go above 150%. There is another software program called Genuine Fractals -- this software program can go up to 500% of the original file size. Remember that anything that is even slightly out of focus will be magnified and it will LOOK VERY out of focus in an enlargement. The file has to be dead on focused in order to interpolate this high. Also, you have to start out with enough information. You can NOT take a 56K image and blow it up -- there is just NOT ENOUGH information in that image to "make stuff up". Genuine Fractals suggests starting with an image that is AT LEAST 1MB. We use Genuine Fractals in our office. If you don't understand how to re-size an image, then DO NOT DO IT. Leave it to us to do this for you. Once you damage your original photo by resizing it wrong - it is damaged and there is nothing we can do to help you.
Back to Top
|
|
Can't I just re-size my image so that there is enough information to make my mural?
Please read the answer to the above. There are many different ways that software programs make up pixels that are missing. Some ways are better than others - some software programs are better than others. If you don't have enough information in the original file, there is no way that you can get pleasing results.
Back to Top
|
|
I have a top of the line camera, why do you say my image size isn't big enough to make a nice mural?
When you take digital pictures, you have to set the quality in your camera. A lot of people make the mistake of setting a low quality so they can get thousands of images on their flash card. This means little files and if you read above, you realize that we can't do much with little files. Be sure to consult with your camera manual to make sure you are shooting at a high enough resolution to do what you want with your images.
Back to Top
|
|
What are the cautions about .jpg files?
.jpg files are a compressed file. They are great for sending pictures across e-mail, using on your web page, etc. If you plan on making changes to your picture (correcting red eye, color correcting, adding borders, etc. ) you should NOT save the file as a .jpg. Every time you open the file and save it the file compresses -- if you do this too many times the file will lose integrity and soon the file will not be usable. You can open and close a .jpg many times without any problems as long as you do not save it.
Back to Top
|
|
I scanned one of my images to make some corrections, can you use this file?
Yes, we can. Please see the above discussions about file size and resolution.
Back to Top
|
|
I'm still confused, what can I do?
There are many books out there about digital photography and digital imaging. You can check one out in a library. If you have specific questions, please feel free to . We are more than happy to discuss digital imaging with you (after all - that's what we do !)
Back to Top
|
|
|
Tile Murals:
