I really don't like it...

[venchka]

...when a printing service crops my photos.

OK, so I have a paying customer for a 16x20 print. I crop the image the way I want it cropped. The way I know that my inkjet printer will print it on letter size paper. 8 1/2" x 6 1/2" centered on 11" x 8 1/2". The way my client saw the photo when they agreed to buy it. I would like to enlarge this image to fit on 16" x 20" paper with a border. 1/4" minimum on two sides would be fine with me. In other words, make the long dimension 15 1/2", -oops 19 1/2" would work better- and the short dimension anything. Are you with me so far?

I upload the image to Mpix. I select 16x20. I select white border. I select Preview. ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!! YUCK! Major clipping all around. OK, how about no borders. Yuck. Still clipping all around.

In reading the FAQs at Mpix I have to get the file into Photoshop. Set my canvas to 16x20 and make the image fit inside 16x20 to my liking, right? How bogus is that? What's wrong with fit to paper? Huh?

Digital. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[kenw]

make a thin black line border at the actual print size so that the processor that doing it sees something. Often if the computer doesn't see something to print it just crops away....

[venchka]

Thanks Ken.

[kenw]

hope it works at MPix, i came up with the idea after trying to get the computer at a local printer to understand that I wanted 8x8. Since he only did standard sizes, his computer always cropped it to fit 8x10. (phone conversations were pointless....i tried) So i drew a border at 8x10, plopped the 8x8 in the middle of it and sent it on its way. I got an 8x10 with a lot of white space at the top and bottom which is exactly what I wanted....which i then trimmed to 8x8. It hanges in the den currently. It's the only way I've been able to get those 4x4, 5x5 and 8x8 prints.

I've even used this method at Wally World and Walgreens, it worked there so it obviously passes the dummy test.

[carrbowl]

Poor Wayne...it's so hard to teach an old dog new tricks!!! Can I do anything else to help???

[kenw]

Renae, you are a married woman. Stop it.

[J Eddington]

They all do that!

[venchka]

Thanks Renae. You've done more than enough.

Why can't some Geek just add a "fit to paper" switch?

Of course Lightroom doesn't help any. I will export from Lightroom. Open in Photoshop. Figure out how to draw a 16x20 border around the photo. Save as JPEG. Upload.

Isn't digital easy!

[Jake]

Originally Posted by venchka

Thanks Renae. You've done more than enough.

Why can't some Geek just add a "fit to paper" switch?

Of course Lightroom doesn't help any. I will export from Lightroom. Open in Photoshop. Figure out how to draw a 16x20 border around the photo. Save as JPEG. Upload.

Isn't digital easy!

Try making a new canvas in PS(file>new>sized 16x20 @300dpi) and then drag your photos into it. Then while holding down the shift key you can size it inside that 16x20 blank frame anyway you want.

[jeffkohn]

- Open your image in Photoshop. I'm assuming it's already cropped to the desired proportions (eg 5:4 or whatever). If not, go ahead and crop.

- Go to Image -> Resize. Make sure 'Resample Image' is unchecked. Enter the desired image width not including border; in this case, 15.5". Click OK.

- Go to Image -> Canvas Size. Make sure 'Relative' is unchecked. Enter the desired print dimensions including the white border; in this case, 16"x20". Set the "Canvas Extension color" to White. Click OK.

- To add black border as Ken suggested, double-click the 'Background Layer' of your image to make it a real layer (just hit OK in dialog that pops up). Then go Edit -> Stroke. The defaults are probably fine, but you can change them if you want. Click OK.

- Flatten the image (Layer -> Flatten Image) so that you can save it as a JPEG. Don't forget to convert to sRGB if you haven't already.

Kind of a pain, and I agree you shouldn't have to do it. But this is probably the easiest way. Another way of doing it would be using the print-to-file option in QImage, but that's probably not worth the trouble for a single print (could save a lot of time if preparing a whole batch of them, though).

[venchka]

Thanks Jake & Jeff. Your instructions will help a lot.

And furthermore: Computer printing of anything is positively Brain Dead! I just printed out Jake & Jeff's instructions. Selected Fit to Paper. Did it do it? Of course not. I lost about an inch on the right side.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! How did we get people to the moon anyway? Before digital pictures is probably why.

[jgrindal]

Originally Posted by venchka

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! How did we get people to the moon anyway? Before digital pictures is probably why.

You now owe me a keyboard without coke and saliva in it. I'm pretty sure this one is ruined.

[venchka]

Good! One more keyboard down the tubes! Who needs them!

OK, I'm a nice guy. I'm sorry.

I spent hours with 5 files and hugin last night. A total and complete waste of time and electricity. I am not in a very good mood today.

On the other hand, there are folks in this world who could take the CRAP hugin output that I generated last night and publish it in a book and become famous. Go figure.

My crap? Your masterpiece?

"Is it live or is it Memorex."

"Only the Shadow knows."

[Cajungaltx]

My husband said to tell you that you've gotta remember... we got to the moon because NASA was thinking like Marines... they did so much, for so long, with so little...that now they can do everything, with nothing, forever.

;-)

[Jake]

Originally Posted by venchka

....... How did we get people to the moon anyway? ......

But did we really? I mean, really?

BTW, Jeff's way is the better way to do what you need.