dpi,ppi,pixels ahhhhh

[Mircula]

Hello,

I don't really get the connection between,

photo size
dpi of printers
ppi
pixels of my photo
capability of printer


I read a couple of threads in the forum but I am to silly to put it together.


So if i shoot raw at 10mp, how do i determine if i want to make a print how to set my ppi setting? And what is that based on? Does it have anything to do with how many dpi the printer is able to print?

Also, how do I find out how large i can print my photo with what dpi setting to not "add" pixels i don't have and loose quality.

If i make a small print, how high should i set the dpi to get maximum quality?


My usual gibberish, would be glad if someone could enlighten me a bit or send a link to a page which explains it....


Thank you very much!!!!



Mirc.

[ZedEx]

Just crop to whatever size you want to print, at 300dpi. Your printer will probably have settings (if it's a higher end one) to alter the dpi. IMO you don't need more than 300, most commercial print labs run them out at 300dpi and it's more than sufficient. Don't need to look into it too much really, just so long as you know the limitations of your images. View them large on the screen and try to determine how big you can print them. I've done 30x40 inch prints from a Canon 40D (10 mp) just fine. 20x30inch from a sharp, well exposed image is probably about the limit still retaining plenty of detail, but if you're doing prints that big, try to imagine what the viewing distance will be. After all, ANY camera can do a billboard sized print, it's all about viewing distance :)


Hello,

I don't really get the connection between,

photo size
dpi of printers
ppi
pixels of my photo
capability of printer


I read a couple of threads in the forum but I am to silly to put it together.


So if i shoot raw at 10mp, how do i determine if i want to make a print how to set my ppi setting? And what is that based on? Does it have anything to do with how many dpi the printer is able to print?

Also, how do I find out how large i can print my photo with what dpi setting to not "add" pixels i don't have and loose quality.

If i make a small print, how high should i set the dpi to get maximum quality?


My usual gibberish, would be glad if someone could enlighten me a bit or send a link to a page which explains it....


Thank you very much!!!!



Mirc.

[William]

I've had images printed in an Australian camera Magazine , Sent in JPEG images sRGB at Level 10 Compression and at 300ppi and look excellent in print :confused013

[Kym]

Read this:
http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showthread.php?t=1730 :th3:

Two key facts:

A pixel is always a pixel. A 1000x1000 pixel image will always use 1,000,000 pixels on any monitor.
DPI ONLY has meaning on the output device.

[JM Tran]

10MP on the 40D I have printed at 45x30 inch - thats 114.3CM x 76.2CM - and it looks great.

You need to think about the actual photo itself, whether it was exposed nicely, at what ISO, noise level, sharpening done etc. That what makes a nice clear enlargement first, before the DPI.

I print at 45x30 inch more than I do at 6x4 inch little photos that most ppl do. So I have seen all sorts of resolutions from cameras - and it all comes down to what I mentioned earlier. Hell, even a 6MP camera can do it.

I keep it at 300dpi:)

[Mircula]

Hello,

thank you all for the info.

Really great that you can help me so much.

I understand now pixels and what effect they have on print and monitor and why dpi does not matter for screens only for print.

What i still dont get is:

Do printers have differenret dpi capabilities? So do I have to adjust my dpi settings depending on what printer i use?

I mean what point does it make to have 300dpi jpge and the printer can only print 200dpi.



Does a printer which can print say 400 dpi print 2 dots for 1 pixel if i have a photo with 200ppi?Hmmmm...i guess that would not make sense as one pixel does not have more than one colour, or?




. IMO you don't need more than 300, most commercial print labs run them out at 300dpi and it's more than sufficient

my english is not so good, what means run them out? Does it mean the printer cannot print more than 300dpi?

[ZedEx]

sorry, by 'run them out' I mean 'print'. Don't worry, your printer will just print at whatever DPI it is capable of/set to, cropping doesn't really change anything


Hello,

thank you all for the info.

Really great that you can help me so much.

I understand now pixels and what effect they have on print and monitor and why dpi does not matter for screens only for print.

What i still dont get is:

Do printers have differenret dpi capabilities? So do I have to adjust my dpi settings depending on what printer i use?

I mean what point does it make to have 300dpi jpge and the printer can only print 200dpi.



Does a printer which can print say 400 dpi print 2 dots for 1 pixel if i have a photo with 200ppi?Hmmmm...i guess that would not make sense as one pixel does not have more than one colour, or?





my english is not so good, what means run them out? Does it mean the printer cannot print more than 300dpi?