Image REsizing

[Kevin C. Haggard]

I am using Photoshop CS2. And when I shoot, I shoot at the Highest setting I can. But when I print an 8x10 I loose a lot of the picture. What is the best percentage or size I can resize my images to so that when I print an 8x10 picture, I dont loos anything.

Any help will be appreciated.

Thank You!

[kenw]

don't resize them at all, let the printer do that. Crop only.

reset: by "losing" do you mean as in area like the edges get knocked off? or is it degrading and losing "quality"?

[MicWayWal]

The settings you use to shoot with have nothing to do with the format or perspective of the digital file. The settings have an effect on the quality of the file not the size. The formatting of the file will be the same.

When you shoot with a digital camera using a 2:3 format you will always lose part of the image file when you print to an 8x10 which is a 4:5 format. It will cut off the "long" ends of the digital file. The best way to assure printing will not lose part of the image is to crop in PS how you want it cropped. Don't depend on the exactness of cropping from a printer. It will just center the file and print.

Maybe you are asking, how do I know, when I take the picture, where an 8x10 will crop. If you want to know look through your camera at an 8x10 print. Fill the frame with as much of the print as possible. What is left over is what will crop out. There are companies that will mark it on your ground glass so you will know but on the 30D it is pretty easy to estimate. Notice where the far left and right focusing points are located. The approximate place of crop for an 8x10 will be about half way between the outside focusing points and the edge of the frame.

[sniperkittie]

Turn you camera vertical to shoot. Can help on many shots. Leave room to crop the top and bottom. So don't fill the frame.

[Davidtxs]

Originally Posted by Kevin C. Haggard

I am using Photoshop CS2. And when I shoot, I shoot at the Highest setting I can. But when I print an 8x10 I loose a lot of the picture. What is the best percentage or size I can resize my images to so that when I print an 8x10 picture, I dont loos anything.

Any help will be appreciated.

Thank You!

To make it simple just dont fill the frame with what you want to print leave some room on the edges then use the crop tool in PS and set it to 10 x 8 or 8 x 10 and just crop the section you want to shoot sometimes turning on the grid in your camera may help too

[KdLaneJr]

You might think about looking into croplines.

[venchka]

Don't print a 2x3 image 8x10. 8x10 is leftover from the Stone Age before enlargers were invented and every portrait studio had an 8x10 camera and made contact prints. If you wanted bigger pictures you used a bigger camera. Enlargers spawned 4x5 film. Exactly the same proportions as the 8x10 from the Ancient Times. Then Herr Barnack built a camera that would accept 35mm movie film. The 35mm frame aspect ratio was 2x3. Not even close to 8x10. 6x9, 10x15, 12x18 all work well for miniature format images. 5x7 is a very pleasing ratio and works better than 8x10 for 2x3 originals. Portrait studios gravitated to 5x7 when they downsized from 8x10. Contact prints were large enough to sell and 5x7 enlargers were common.

Hope this history lesson helps.

[Fireball]

Can I add another question to this thread?

I take photos just to burn on a disc for clients and then to go have printed somewhere else (no studio, just starting). My question is, I too use the highest setting on my Canon 40D and then when I go to resize the image that I've edited, I usually have to crop and crop it to get it to an 8x10 (taking off some of the top or bottom) so in case the client wants to have as large as an 8x10 printed, it will have enough resolution to look good.

The question is, when I go to resize it to 5x7 after making it 8x10 (to print that size), it goes to some other odd number, not 5x7. Why is that? And if the client wants to print 5x7 or 4x6 or wallets, will that make a difference in the print they receive? I've not had any complaints (for the past few years) of doing it this way, but I want to make sure.

[MicWayWal]

Originally Posted by Fireball

Can I add another question to this thread?

I take photos just to burn on a disc for clients and then to go have printed somewhere else (no studio, just starting). My question is, I too use the highest setting on my Canon 40D and then when I go to resize the image that I've edited, I usually have to crop and crop it to get it to an 8x10 (taking off some of the top or bottom) so in case the client wants to have as large as an 8x10 printed, it will have enough resolution to look good.

The question is, when I go to resize it to 5x7 after making it 8x10 (to print that size), it goes to some other odd number, not 5x7. Why is that? And if the client wants to print 5x7 or 4x6 or wallets, will that make a difference in the print they receive? I've not had any complaints (for the past few years) of doing it this way, but I want to make sure.

It sounds like you are aware that with a 40D you are shooting with a 2x3 format proportion. This will produce a file that is exactly proportional to 4 x 6. That is because your image file is 12.96 x 8.64 @300 dpi, a perfect 2x3 ratio. An 8 x 10 of course is a 4 x 5 or 2 x 2.5 ratio.

Are you using the crop tool to get your 8x10 crop? So how are you cropping to get the 5x7?
Are you using Image Size under the Image Menu or the crop tool?
If you are using the crop tool then there should be no problem. You get to set the dimensions yourself.
If you are using some other method like Image Size then when you change one of the dimensions of the 8 x 10, and the Constrain Proportions box is checked, then it will automatically adjust the other dimension to whatever it needs to keep the same 4 x 5 proportions. That is one way you could be getting weird sizes.

Are you printing your files with XYZ lab or are you letting your customer print their own files wherever they want?

[Fireball]

Yes, I'm using the crop tool to get to 8x10 and then going back and forth to the image resize and putting in 8x10 till it gets to the right size. Am I missing something when you say that with the crop tool I can set the dimensions myself? How?

As far as a 5x7, I'm just going in a using the image resize again and trying to get one as size as close to the right one as possible like 5x7.6 or something of that sort knowing that I can cut off part of it, if I have that much to cut off.

No, I don't print anything but a free 5x7 when I deliver their disc. I'm just afraid when they take the disc somewhere or upload it to a lab, they won't be able to order the right sizes or when they do, they'll be cut off in a bad place.

[venchka]

8x10 ans 5x7 are different aspect ratios again. You'll loose some of the 8x10 to get to 5x7. I would go back to the original to crop a 5x7. In fact, I crop many of my 2x3 (35mm) photos to 5x7. The proportions are very nice.

A friendly word of advice: Allowing your photos to be printed without your supervision and quality control is a good way to get an undeserved bad reputation. Folks will say that you messed up. They will never admit that the poor quality is their fault for choosing price over quality.

YMMV.

[Fireball]

Appreciate the advice, but I don't just burn the disc as is. I weed out the over 100 photos down to about 50-60 good ones and from there I edit about 25 of those into black and whites, more saturation, blemishes fixed, etc. Some people have the knowledge themselves to go back to all those other untouched photos and edit themselves. I only charge $200 for about six hours of work so it's a pretty good deal, and I don't have to mess with a studio, packages, nothing.

I just started a few years ago and work part-time elsewhere, so this works for me right now.

[sldi-rooster]

I am not sure if this helps but when I deliver a disk for someone else to print I have it in three folders. One folder marked 4x6 and all the files there were cropped by myself in Elements at the preset 4x6, then other folders set up for 5x7 and 8x10. All folders are filled with files that were cropped by myself using the presets to insure that where ever they are printed the crop is correct. I also send along instructions with the client about the different folder as well as disclaimer about the quality of printing at outside sources.

[JStrattonPhotography]

Originally Posted by sldi-rooster

I am not sure if this helps but when I deliver a disk for someone else to print I have it in three folders. One folder marked 4x6 and all the files there were cropped by myself in Elements at the preset 4x6, then other folders set up for 5x7 and 8x10. All folders are filled with files that were cropped by myself using the presets to insure that where ever they are printed the crop is correct. I also send along instructions with the client about the different folder as well as disclaimer about the quality of printing at outside sources.

WOW, that would take me forever as I do each photo separately and then do them in B&W. What instructions and disclaimer do you send?