Numpty Question !

[FoG]

Ok how big can I print a 300dpi image taklen on a D60? have a couple I want printed Large and wondered how far I can go ie A3 would be lovely A2 marvelous A1 a dream etc etc so can I say a large print to go over the bed about 4-5 ft wide from a single RAW image from a D60?

[OsmosisStudios]

The D60 has a 10.2mp sensor: Ive printed up to 24x36 with that resolution. As long as the shot is properly exposed, well processed and technically sound, it should look splendid.

[acedrew]

It also has a lot to do with viewing distance, a billboard isn't that high of resolution but it looks great from 50m!

Andrew Rodgers
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[fletch]

A D60's sensor is 3872 x 2592 pixels.

3872 ÷ 300 = 12.9

Therefore you can print an image from the D60 at 300 dpi up to 12.9" x 8.6"

However you don't need to pint at 300 dpi to get good quality pictures, especially when you account for viewing distance in large prints. A proper photo lab should also be able to interpolate your image to increase the number of pixels with very little loss in quailty. Therefore for all practical purposes you can print any size you want with a 10mp camera from 6x4 up to the size of a billboard.

[Footski]

Thanks for that. It answers a question I had...

[dcclark]

Just to reiterate, because I feel strongly about this:

300 DPI is NOT a magic number! It's just a random value which someone once said was optimal. You can print at any resolution above 100 dpi and nobody will know the difference unless they're smelling your photo.

[OsmosisStudios]

Originally Posted by dcclark

Just to reiterate, because I feel strongly about this:

300 DPI is NOT a magic number! It's just a random value which someone once said was optimal. You can print at any resolution above 100 dpi and nobody will know the difference unless they're smelling your photo.

A sidenote to this however: this applies to photos. If youre doing anything with TEXT, 300DPI is the minimum I would suggest. You can get away with 200, but 300 really is much better.

[fletch]

Originally Posted by dcclark

Just to reiterate, because I feel strongly about this:

300 DPI is NOT a magic number! It's just a random value which someone once said was optimal. You can print at any resolution above 100 dpi and nobody will know the difference unless they're smelling your photo.

If we are going to be typing in bold I supose there are a few fundamentals that need to be addressed. First of all there is the differece between PPI and DPI.

Pixels Per Inch (PPI) is how the resolution of a digital file is measured. Your statement above therefore refers to a PPI of 100 being acceptable.

When ink is added to the paper the printer (if its an inkjet) will create a certain number of dots per inch (DPI). Dots do not equal pixels. Your print quality is dependant on how the pixels in your image have been converted to dots. This is either guessing what colour to make the extra dots or reducing multiple pixels to one dot. Printers will print at a set number of DPIs regardless of the number of pixels in the file.

It is nowhere near as simple as saying my image has 300 PPI, therefore it will print OK at 300 DPI, nor is a simple as saying a 100 PPI won't print at 600 DPI.

Moral of the story... Printing is a very complex thing indeed. If you are doing it at home then trail and error may be involved. Using a lab? Ask them lots of questions and ask them to check your file will print OK before you hand over the cash.

[BryanC]

Originally Posted by fletch

A D60's sensor is 3872 x 2592 pixels.

3872 ÷ 300 = 12.9

Therefore you can print an image from the D60 at 300 dpi up to 12.9" x 8.6"

It's the right math, but that would be ppi, not dpi. That shows the size of the image at 300 pixels per inch, not the printer resolution.

Originally Posted by OsmosisStudios

The D60 has a 10.2mp sensor: Ive printed up to 24x36 with that resolution. As long as the shot is properly exposed, well processed and technically sound, it should look splendid.

Very true. I have the luxury of being able to get prints made, on demand, up to 36" on the short side, on a high quality printer, for free. This has allowed me to do a lot of 'testing'. I also have a camera with a 10.2 mp sensor. As you said, properly exposed, well processed and technically sound images (and I would also add minimal, if not none, cropping) have printed to 36" on short side beautifully. Viewing distance does play a part, also. Like the billboard analogy, prints these sizes aren't made to sit and view from a few inches away, but look great at a normal viewing distance.

[FoG]

Thank you all very informative !