I can't print large!

[melanie_bailey]

I have a Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ20,it's 5MP, and the best quality you

can shoot are TIFFS which are about 14MB per shot. When I go into

Photoshop, the largest I can print them at around 250dpi is 8x10.

People I know that have lesser quality, smaller megapixel cameras can

print larger than that! Please help me!

[john_myers4]

Melanie,

 

It's pretty much straight math. If you have friends with lower megapixels that can print larger, then they're not printing at 250dpi. In your example, 8x10 at 250dpi is 2000x2500 which equals 5,000,000, which is 5 megapixels (approximately). You can print larger by lowering the dpi.

 

Hope that helps.

 

~John

 

Austin, TX

[jbq]

You can tell photoshop to print at a lower dpi, which will allow you to print larger.

[beauh44]

Or you can use interpolation - sort of the digital equivalent of using an enlarger. If you're using Photoshop, it's a two-step process: 1) UNcheck the box that says "Resample Image", now enter the dpi you want - say 300dpi. 2) Now CHECK the box that says "Resample Image" and enter the dimensions you want your print to be and press enter. Photoshop will re-size your image at 300dpi. Many people find they can make very nice looking and very large prints this way. You may need to sharpen it a bit after enlarging. Best wishes . . .

[dan_brown14]

What Beau said, works great.

[jcuknz]

Of course it does when used in moderation, everybody, almost :-), does it.

You do not need to shoot TIFFs because seven dots is just as good, the main thing is to work at maximum resolution.

 

Resolution affects how big you can print with interpolation and seven dots or TIFF has some effect on quality ... but not much ... and takes up a lot of space on the storage card to no great benefit.

I shoot seven dots .....

Always print at 300dpi minimum with an inkjet.

[jack paradise]

Melanie,

 

Optimum image quality starts at about 240PPI for a digicam. But there's nothing that prevents you from larger prints at a lower resolution. Try it at 200PPI or even 180PPI.

 

And beware of people who use the word "Always". :)

[leonard_evens]

As has already been noted, you can print at a lower resolution with the same pixel dimensions or you can increase the pixel dimensions by having Photoshop interpolate additional pixels. In either case you will lose some quality, but whether or not it is important will depend on the image and how it is viewed.

[shawngibson]

Melanie, I routinely still go back to my C-5060 images, and print them at 13x19": it is definitely within your reach to do so too!

 

Generally speaking, I will do my modifications with the file at it's normal size, however I set it to 240 dpi right off the bat. When it's time to print, I will go into Photoshop, upsize to what I want, 13x19 usually, and set it to bicubic Smoother. Before CS2, I did what I could to clean it up, but if you are using CS2, then the Smart Sharpen and Reduce Noise both work very well. Do the sharpening at the end, as a separate file, or at least as a new topmost layer in your file. I usually reduce noise in a good image at the end, but in a bad image at the very beginning.

 

I have a portfolio with all 13x19" prints, comprised of 10D, Digital Rebel, and a couple of 20D images...and the 5mp images from my old point and shoot. The differences are practically indiscernable.

 

You can do it, don't get discouraged.

 

Shawn

[athinkle]

If I remember correctly, the difference between Tiff and JPEG compression is the tonal range each is capable of. Lossless Tiff files have a broader tonal range, but honestly it's usually almost impossible to tell.

[haris_dobardzic]

Melanie, me too have FZ20. I made some photographs of my friend few days ago, and I used JPG, not TIF. I printed photographs on HP photosmart 8450 printer, and I printed on A4 paper size. Photographs are sharp. I set A4 (21cmx29,7cm)image size in image manipulation software, and I set resolution of 300dpi. Printer resolution was 600dpi (Option "Best" for quality on my printer). So, you can get bigger prints from yours FZ20. I can say for shure that you can get atleast A4 size sharp prints. Maybe bigger, but I can't say because I didn't made bigger prints. Lens is sharp enough to give material for atleast A4 prints. And when I see how photograph looks on A4 paper, I belive it can go bigget, maybe even to A3 size...