Digital Photography Tips from the Top Floor

[Phooto]

I get requests for pictures - like this one :

"Can you provide high res images for the ---- for a printed advert. It need to be 300dpi"

OK, so to my mind, if he wants to print it 1" square, then a 300 x 300 image will be fine. But, if he wants it for an A4 image, then I probably don't have an image to suit him... (they never seem to specify the actual size they want to print)

I always think in pixel dimensions, so, I would think 2000 x 3000 for example, then work back. For newspapers, really they are 150dpi, so that is relatively huge, but a magazine would be 300 DPI, so this will be maximum 6.6" x 10".

Do other people use DPI as a specification for images - e.g. talk about a 6 x 4 72dpi image, or like me talk in pixels?
_________________
Simon Taylor LRPS, LBPPA
My Flickr
2010 Workshops in Farnborough

[atothej]

I heard this a lot... I think many people from the print world/old days don't quite grasp this "new concept".

I'd say, change the dpi to the desired number and send it to them, they should be happy

no, seriously. I see your problem if you want to sharpen for example that is virtually impossible if you don't know the desired size. But yeah, dpi is not a measurement for size at all. I think of it - somewhat untechnical - as a conversion factor...

have you tried asking them at what physical size they want to print it, or do they just always ask for dpi??

I guess many people just know what dpi their printer or whatever output at and don't know the actual size at which the picture is going to be printed (could imagine that to be the case in newspapers, where the writer also puts the photo into the article but doesn't know too much about printing...)

edit: if they ask you for 300 dpi just send them a 300x300 pixels image and set it to 300 dpi if they see that a 300 dpi image can actually be too small, maybe they're force to think about the concept ...
_________________
It's time to redesign the way we design things.

flickr

[rstein]

Asfar as I know printers use SIZE at DPI as their reference. And the size is not always inch, points are also around.

We should ask Lee!

In terms of measurement neither the pixels nor the DPI are a unit for size. Size is measured in "Meter" or a derived unit (Inches are derived from the Meter.... ).
_________________
Rolf Steinort
Meet the GIMP! - Video podcast
My images at 23hq - ByeBye flickr!
e - m:a; i:l : rs a-t gorfnet d-o-t de

[TheAviator]

[rgoshko]

I usually only run into DPI when I am scanning, but printers are a different breed if you prick them I think they bleed CMYK....