dpi???

[southernbelle]

Quick question? How do I make sure I am shooting in 300 dpi... and no less? Where is this stated on the camera? I have a Nikon d60... I am trying to figure out all of my menus that I still don't completely understand. Thanks so much for your help!!

[sk66]

DPI has nothing to do with the camera, it really has nothing to do with how you see the image on your monitor...it's a printing resolution and is set by your editing software.

[dcclark]

First, a question: why do you need 300 dpi, no more, no less? Is there a specific reason behind that request?

Now, advice: From a practical standpoint, dpi is determined by two things: the number of pixels in your image (10,200,000 because your D60 is 10.2 megapixels), and the size at which you want to print. You can "set" the DPI in photoshop or gimp, but all you are doing is setting a number in the software, and not changing the image at all. The image will always have 10,200,000 pixels in it, unless you crop it or scale it.

I believe that your D60 sets this magic number to some value, probably 72 dpi, by default (and that can't be changed in-camera). This number is irrelevant and only affects how large the image appears onscreen -- but since you can zoom in using software, it's basically an irrelevant number.

As an example: if you want to print a 4x6 using your 10.2 MP image, you will get a 652 dpi print. If you print at 8x12, you will have a 326 dpi image. At 20x24, you're down to 146 dpi. There is no way that you can print your 10.2 MP image at 20x24 and get 300 dpi, unless you physically add more pixels in to the image (not really worthwhile, it won't add to the quality.)

[Jim Bryant]

Setting your dpi is done in PP in file image size, not in camera. Most printers will auto default back to 300 dpi in printing.

[southernbelle]

Thank y'all so much for your responses. I am working on a project for my mother's work and the printer who is making the poster said he needed all of the images at 300 dpi. I had never thought about dpi until then. It threw me for a loop. Thanks so much again

[dcclark]

Originally Posted by southernbelle

Thank y'all so much for your responses. I am working on a project for my mother's work and the printer who is making the poster said he needed all of the images at 300 dpi. I had never thought about dpi until then. It threw me for a loop. Thanks so much again

While you should double-check with your printer, it's most likely that the printer wants you to ensure that your images are able to be printed at at least 300 dpi. The other possibility is that you will need to set the DPI setting in Photoshop so that your image will print at a specific size, in which case the "Print Size" command is your friend.