Need Help with Large printing for bridal show

<p>I need to print large prints for an upcoming bridal show and I am not sure If they will print clearly in a large size! I want to print this image at least 30x20. When I zoom in on the image in photoshop I can see the pixels. It doesn't look that great. Is this an accurate representation of how it will print. The image is sized at 340 res. and 10206x6804 pixels. Any information about how to print a good quality large print will be greatly appreciated! I can email the image if it will help. Also, I am going to shoot a bridal portrait session in a few days and plan to use some of those images. Anything I should think about while shooting, to print a large print? Thanks! ( I shoot with a Nikon D300)</p>

<p>Hi Holly, I'm not certain what you mean by the image is at 340 res, do you mean 340 dpi (or dots per inch) You might want to look into a few tools, like onOne softwares Genuine fractals, it helps increase the size and maintain the same sharpness. Keep in mind that a 30x20 will not have someone standing inches in front of it, just like you wouldn't stand inches in front of a billboard.</p>

<p>As for thinking about for large print, I will assume you shoot in RAW, if not a heated debate could ensue, but as long as the image is sharp, you will be fine, just remember to shoot, always, for a print that someone wishes to hang in their home. I use a D700 shooting at RAW uncompressed 14bit images, it may seem overkill until every once in a while I need all that information.</p>

<p>The .jpg file (at 300 dpi) from your camera is what you want to send along for getting an enlargement made. You also have to be aware of a 20-by-30 inch print will involve cropping one edge of the print (if you take the size of your image and increase one measurement to 30-inches, the remaining side will not be 20 inches.)</p>

<p>How sharp the enlargement will be is based on how sharp your image is.</p>

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<p>If you want to see how it's going to look without spending a lot of money just crop an 8"x10" section with important detail, and get that printed as a test. There's a lot of info here and on the web about printing large, but I've found that the best resource is often the lab that's doing the printing. Talk to them. What do they recommend?</p>

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<p>Thanks for the responses. I do shoot in RAW. By 340 resolution I meant that when I open it in photoshop and check image size it says 340 resolution pixles/inch. Is that the same as DPI? I haven't changed the resolution from the original file, just resized the inches and kept the constraints on, in image size in photoshop, so that it automatically changed the res to 340 in photoshop. The original image from my camera was 300.<br />I will try the 8x10 crop. I do lossless compressed and 12bit right now. When I shoot the next time I will do RAW uncompressed 14bit. <br>

I'm still working on the sharpness of my photos. They always look better as smaller sizes tho...<br>

Here is an image I am thinking about printing. I hope you can see it. Can you tell if it is sharp enough?<br>

Is there a better lens to shoot with? To get sharp images? I have a 70-200mm 2.8, 50mm 1.4, 17-35mm 2.8 and 60mm 2.8. Haven't tried the 50mm yet in a portrait session. Just got it in the mail yesterday!<br>

Still baffled at how people get those <em>super </em>sharp pictures... just takes more experience? Or is it better camera and lenses....?</p><div></div>

<p>DPI does not matter as it exists on your computer. It only matters when printing. You have a certain number of pixels in the X and Y axis. If you printed the image at 1020 inches by 6804 inches you still have the same number of pixels. However, you will not view that image 6 feet from the image.</p>

<p>When you limit yourself to DPI you are limiting the size of the image based on the dots per inch and the number of dots (pixels) that you have.</p>

<p>Even at 100 DPI when printed at 20x30 the image will look very good. Unless you get 6 inches from the print and look at the image. For example consider a 42 inch television (closest to 20x30) in HD that has 1080x1920 pixels and is about 20.4x36.2 inches. That works out to about 53 pixels per inch. The image still looks excellent.</p>

<p>Also, on a different note, it is soo hard to choose images to print large for the show. And I have a limited budget. I want to pick about 4 or 5. my website is www.hollycolemanphotography.com. If anyone has a vote for a favorite few images, that would be awesome! ...Or should I post this question in a different thread? (I'm new to the forum world). Thanks so much!</p>

First off what camera and lens were you using.

 

Second, forget about the pixels, they normally don't show up in your enlargements.

 

Third, convert to TIF files from RAW, not jpeg.

<p>I would not print that image. There is too much noise, as in extra stuff in the image that conveys little to the image. The groom is also lost in the black background with his dark suit. Almost looks like a head floating in space. His right arm is also missing and his hand looks like the hand from The Adams Family. I also find the image a little to blue for my taste but I like warmer images anyway.</p>

<p>There is no accounting for taste and my wife tells me I have none. If you like it and want to use it then go for it.</p>

Hi Holly,

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<p>You have some interesting shots on your site for sure. The ring shot with the couple's reflection is a keeper IMO. The one posted here on the other hand has too may elements competing with/distracting from your main subject. The angled base of the balcony is a distraction. Also, in terms of the "key" of the image, it is not consistent. The pillars are too bright, distracting from the couple's faces. In short, I wouldn't enlarge this for print.