Cropping and Printing

<p>I'm not sure if this is the correct forum to be posting this question,,,, <br>

Here is my dilemma. When I download my images to my computer, most of the time I do some degree of cropping. Sometimes alot but most of the time just a bit. When I take these images to my photofinisher and order 8 by 10s for example, I cannot tell how much of the image is going to be lost because of the print size. Is there a software program or a way of superimposing an 8 by 10 frame or a 5 by 7 frame around the photograph to see how the picture will actually look??</p>

 

Lightroom . . .

<p>Ken: how are you working with those image files now? Almost any piece of software that will allow you to open and even minimally edit your files will allow you to crop and/or re-size the images as you see fit - and that way you can hand your printer a file that's already in the same aspect ratio as the 8x10, 5x7, etc that you're asking them to print for you. Definitely don't leave it up to them, or it will indeed feel rather random.<br /><br />So if you can mention what software you're using, you'll get some more specific pointers. But any variation on Photopshop, Lightroom, any of Corel's image editors, even the completely free apps, will do what you're after. Are you on a Mac, or a Windows machine? Are you working with JPGs right out of the camera, or RAW files? A little more info will help a lot.</p>

<p>Crop the picture to the exact size of the print you want before you give it to the photo finisher. Than ask them to print full size with with no borders.</p>

 

<p>Photoshop Elements, and many, many more I expect.</p>

<p>Elements allows you to set the crop ratio to the final print size (8x10, 5x7 or any size you want), and as you crop the photo you will see the overlay of what the final image will be, with the cropped areas "greyed out" in the background.</p>

<p>As an example, the image below shows what is lost from a native 3:2 ratio in-camera jpg when cropped and sized for an 8x10 print.</p><div></div>

<p>Thanks for all the responses. I use Aperture on a MAC. I usually edit my files in raw. The software in Photoshop Elements is exactly what I'm looking for where you're able to see what parts of the photo will be lost when printing. </p>

<p>Aperture's crop tool doesn't provide a preview? That seems like a major oversight on their part.</p>

<p>Many thanks for all your help. I think it may be time to read the manual to try and understand this.<br>

Thanks all.</p>

 

<p>I use Aperture on an iMac. It's crop tool offers a range of different aspect ratios, and when you "pull the handle" across the screen to start the crop process, the Aperture image screen appears very similar to the PSE example that Michael posted above. Since Ken mentioned cropping "just a bit", I'm wondering whether he uses the "unconstrained" or the "custom" crop options; then when his printing service gets the file they use one of the standard aspect ratios. </p>

<p>Here's an example from an Aperture screenshot:</p>