The post Image Size and Resolution Explained for Print and Onscreen appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Helen Bradley.
One of the most confusing things for a new photographer is understanding image size, resolution, and printing.
So in this article, I’ll explain what these terms mean.
And I’ll show you how to resize your images depending on what you want to do with them.
Let’s get started.
What is resolution in digital cameras?
When talking about digital cameras, resolution refers to the number of megapixels produced by an image sensor.
This, in turn, generally corresponds to the amount of detail a camera can capture.
So if your camera packs 20 megapixels (often written as 20 MP), it captures less detail than a camera with 30 megapixels, which in turn captures less detail than a camera with 40 megapixels.
But what is a megapixel, really? And how does it affect your ability to print and display photos?
Megapixels and photo size
Technically, a megapixel is equal to 1,048,576 pixels; in reality, camera manufacturers round this number to 1,000,000 when stating how large of an image the camera will capture.
So my camera, for example, captures 14.6-megapixel images, which is around 14,600,000 pixels per image (14.6 x 1,000,000). This information tells you nothing about the actual pixel dimensions of the image – it only tells you the total number of pixels that make up the image.
My camera, like most DSLRs, captures images with an aspect ratio of 1.5. So the ratio comparing the number of pixels along the long edge of the image to the short edge of the image is 3:2.
Each of my full-sized RAW images is 4672 x 3104 pixels in dimension. So by multiplying the number of pixels along the image width by those along the image height, we get the actual number of pixels in the image (4672 x 3104 = 14,501,888). You and I might call this 14.5 MP, but camera manufacturers round this up and call it a 14.6 MP camera.
You can check the width and height of an image using your photo editing software. In Photoshop, you can open your image, then choose File > File Info > Camera Data. The image above shows the resulting information dialog box.
Now, a pixel itself is a single picture element – and for our purposes, it’s the smallest element that your photo can be divided up into. A pixel can only be one color, and a photograph is made up of a grid of thousands of pixels, each of the different colors that together make up your image.
You can see these pixels if you open a photo and zoom in until you see single blocks of color (as shown below). Each of these blocks is a pixel:
Why size is important when printing
When you’re printing an image, you may encounter the term PPI or pixels per inch. This literally refers to the number of pixels in an inch-long line of an image.
Most printing services, and indeed your own printer, will require a certain density of pixels in the image (PPI) to be able to render a print that looks good (i.e., with smooth color transitions so you can’t see each individual pixel).
Typical printing PPI values range from 150 to 300 PPI, although some high-end magazines may require images that are 1200 PPI.
So for example, if you want to print a 4 x 6 inch image at 300 PPI, then you need a file that has at least 4 x 300 (1200) pixels along its short side and 6 x 300 (1800) pixels on the long side. In other words, it needs to be at least 1200 x 1800 pixels in size.
To print an 8 x 10 inch image at 300 PPI, use the same math:
Multiply the printed image’s width and height in inches by 300 pixels. The result is 2,400 x 3,000 pixels, which is the image resolution you need to print an 8 x 10 image at 300 PPI.
Therefore, when cropping and sizing an image for printing, you’ll need to know what PPI the image should be. Your printer manual or printing service should be able to tell you this.
Below is a screenshot from the MpixPro.com website, showing their optimal and minimum image sizes for standard print sizes. Their printer outputs at 250 PPI (but can handle 100 PPI images), though other services may differ, so always check before preparing your images.
Use the crop or resize feature in your software to size your image to the desired width and height and the desired PPI resolution.
Here, an image cropped to a size of 3000 x 2400 pixels is being adjusted from 72 PPI to 300 PPI in preparation for printing at 300 PPI. There is no resampling required, as the image is already the correct dimensions and only the resolution requires adjusting.
Photoshop, like other applications, will also crop an image to a fixed size and resolution if you type your desired values into the options bar when you have the crop tool selected (see below). If your image is smaller than the typed dimensions, then the image will be enlarged using the default resampling method. While it isn’t generally advisable to enlarge images, provided the image is already close to the desired size, enlarging it a little generally won’t cause a noticeable loss of quality.
Sizing for the screen
When it comes to displaying images on the screen, you need far fewer pixels than you do for printing.
This is because the density of pixels on the screen is far less than what is required for printing. For example, a typical monitor is 1920 x 1080 pixels in size; to fill the monitor, you only need an image that is 1920 x 1080 pixels in size. That’s about the same size image you need for a 4 x 6 print at 300 PPI – yet the 1920 x 1080 pixel image displays perfectly on a 23-inch monitor.
The post Image Size and Resolution Explained for Print and Onscreen appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Helen Bradley.
The post Photo Hacks to Make Your Canvas Print a Showstopper appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Gvido Grube.
Taking perfectly decent photos isn’t rocket science. And once you’ve taken them, it’s also not hard to turn them into perfectly decent photo canvas prints. But what if you’re striving for something more, something exceptional? What if you want your canvas print to be a real showstopper?
Well, there are a few hacks you can use that should get you instant results. And the photo printing experts at CanvasDiscount.com are here to talk you through these canvas printing tips.
Read on.
Stick with the basics of composition
Photo by Roger Erdvig – Unsplash
It sounds counterintuitive to play it safe when you want your photo to stir things up. But some rules really are best left unbroken. Using the Rule of Thirds, Fibonacci Spiral or Phi Grid might sound basic if you’re a battle-hardened professional. And yet these lie behind pretty much every successful photo ever taken.
And there’s another factor in play here.
It’s worth noting that after you print a photo on canvas, the canvas is stretched over a wooden frame and attached at the back. This means that some of the image detail – the very margins of the original photo – appear on the sides of the frame.
For those “playing it safe,” this shouldn’t have much impact, as the position of the subject, the focal points, and lines of perspective will all stay roughly the same.
But for those who take risks with the classic conventions of photography, the opposite can be true.
If your subject, or the center of the “action,” are too close to the edge of your image, there’s a risk that these will be obscured on the finished product.
Aim for scale and movement
Drone photography often makes for superb photo canvas prints. And close-up photos of fabric and plant textures can also look fantastic when printed on canvas. In fact, though it might seem paradoxical, there are certain similarities between these two kinds of shots.
Photos by Adam Gonzales, Ryan Wilson and Bharath g s – Unsplash
Both allow you to take certain liberties with the rules of composition, as the focus here is on a sense of scale.
Repetitive patterns and an emphasis on texture also help to make aerial photos and close-up shots visually effective.
But there are many other ways to give your prints more impact.
Use the leading lines cleverly
Photo by Mak – Unsplash
The most common way to create dynamism in photos is to use the leading lines. These are lines that draw the viewer’s attention to the subject of the photo. Usually produced by lighting conditions (light/shadow relationships) or geometrical patterns in the photo, leading lines can also be formed by the contours of buildings, handrails of a staircase, or any physical object close to the main subject.
When you’re framing your shot, just make sure these lines lead to your subject.
Go to the extremes
Many readers will be familiar with the terms “negative space” and “positive space.” The former denotes the areas surrounding the main subject of your photo, while the latter denotes the main subject/object. Of course, “negative space” shouldn’t be taken as implying any sense of inferiority!
Photos by Adam Birket, Michel Paz, Trevor Mckinnon – Unsplash; Serhii and Besjunior – Adobe Stock
Negative space serves to highlight positive space. In fact, you could say that one relies on the other to make an impact. But it’s possible to compose an image so that negative space becomes the main subject of the photo. This can work to amazing artistic effect, challenging traditional ideas about composition.
Meanwhile, keeping your focus on positive space but taking it to audacious extremes is another example of how you can break the rules and still get great results.
So what do we mean when we talk about extreme positive space?
Photos by Red Ana & Pavel – Unsplash
A photo with extreme positive space usually features little or no negative space. The whole photo, from top to bottom, is buzzing with noise, movement, lines, and patterns, produced by multiple competing subjects. Done right, this can lead to an appealing sense of artistic chaos.
Photos of crowds, building blocks, lush woodlands, or mountain ranges lined up one behind the other – these are examples of subjects that can use extreme positive space to great effect.
And any successful photo using positive space in this way is sure to make for a successful canvas print too.
Photos by Rodion Kutsaev and Janita Sumeiko – Unsplash
You can try going extreme in negative space too. In fact, extreme negative space often gives photos a sophisticated fine-art appeal. So push minimalism as far as you dare, and there’s every chance your photo will make for a wonderfully striking print on canvas.
Blur up the background
Is background clutter distracting from the subjects in the foreground of your photo? Shallow depth of field is a common way to emphasize the subjects in focus, effectively reducing the “noise” in the background. This simple trick works exceptionally well with still-life photos, as it accentuates nuanced details. It also produces the much-valued bokeh effect, as well as some specular reflections and blurred light sources.
Photo by Yeshi Kangrang – Unsplash
One might argue the effect is somewhat overused these days, but there’s no denying it can look amazing. Frankly, we’d recommend jumping on the bandwagon at this point.
You can get the effect by using your camera’s macro settings or shooting in aperture priority mode. Choose the former, and you just need to switch to macro mode, turn off flash and zoom in before you shoot.
For the latter, you’ll need to switch to aperture priority mode and aim for the lowest f-value available – then just zoom in again and take the photo.
The two methods should give you near-identical results.
Use layers
Note that this has nothing to do with manipulations in Adobe Photoshop. Layering is a technique that’s commonly used to give your photo a depth effect. In practice, it means producing a photo composed of multiple layered elements at a range of distances from the lens. Using varying tones and textures will enhance the effect, making the photo appear more immersive.
Photos by Jordan Steranka and Nathan Anderson – Unsplash
Creative use of these layers can produce a striking three-dimensional effect – which should work just as well once you print the image on canvas.
To get the best results, try to keep a clear distinction between the foreground, middle ground, and background of your image.
The many aspects of motion
Movement is one of the cornerstones of photography. Whether you capture a single instant of action using lightning-fast shutter speed or create motion blur with an epic long-exposure shot, movement creates visual tension. It makes your subject stand out from the background action.
This hack is not so much about creating a sense of motion as about where to position your moving subject in your photo. Get that part right, and your image can produce a spectacular impact.
Photos by Rémi Jacquaint – Unsplash, Fannyes, and 75tiks – Adobe Stock
The trick involves leaving a space between the object in motion and the opposite side of the photo. The subject should occupy roughly one-third to two-thirds of the photo, with the remainder taken up by negative space.
This will suggest a direction in which the subject is heading and make your photo more dynamic.
Many great sporting photographs owe a lot of their power to this technique.
Trust your instinct
While the hacks listed above will help you shoot professional, well-balanced photos, the key to getting exceptional results is to go with your gut feeling. If you remember that not everyone agrees with even the most conventional ideas of beauty, you’ll feel free to do things your way.
Photo by Roger Erdvig – Unsplash
There’s no universal formula for taking an excellent photo. No image, however highly acclaimed, is going to appeal to everyone. So when in doubt, trust your instinct, and there’s every chance it will lead you to your perfect photo.
Do you already have a photo with showstopper potential? Think it would look amazing hung on your wall? We can help! In collaboration with CanvasDiscount.com, we’ve prepared a special purchase offer exclusively for the readers of Digital Photography School. Head to CanvasDiscount.com and use the code DIGITALCANVAS15 to get 15% OFF all canvas prints! This is one you don’t want to miss!
CanvasDiscount is a paid dPS partner.
The post Photo Hacks to Make Your Canvas Print a Showstopper appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Gvido Grube.
The post How to Correctly Resize Photos to Print Images Big appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mark C Hughes.
In this digital age, fewer people are printing their images, missing out on what can be an amazing experience with their images. Many images only exist in the ether (or the internet, if you want to be more literal), or on people’s hard drives. However, there is nothing more impressive than to print images big.
Viewing images on phones and tablets means that the resolution is generally pretty forgiving. However, when you actually take photos and print images big, you need to resize them. Doing so will tend to expose problems related to resolution and color.
When you print images big, your images become even more impressive, with more vibrant colors and detail being visible, which can work for or against you.
Printing big always starts with a great image (f/6.3, 1/800, ISO 320).
Practical and technical issues to enlarging images
Beyond simply printing, there is a question of size.
What if that phenomenal image you took with your camera is so memorable, or of such a decisive moment, that you want to make it big?
There are practical and technical issues you need to address if you want to print those images, particularly when making images that are growing in size.
Questions like, for a given image resolution…how big a print is too big for the camera (or phone) that you used? What are the limiting factors? How do you properly resize your images to make them bigger and appropriate for the size of the print you are looking for?
Printing from a cell phone is typically limited in size.
Camera limits
In this day and age, even cameras on smartphones tend to produce at least 12 MP images. You should be able to print them if the image is good enough (sharp/well lit), to produce a 10 x 13 inch image natively.
With a little help from image processing software, you can improve this to some extent. There are some newer software techniques available to boost those images size, both internally from the cameras (such as high resolution mode and HDR), and externally from image processing software that uses sophisticated algorithms to boost the image size by interpolation.
Cell phones use multiple cameras and computational photography to make images better.
Understanding the fundamentals
The size of digital images is measured in megapixels. Each pixel is a single-colored individual group of photosites that are sensitive to particular colors of light (red, green or blue).
A pixel is the smallest dot that makes up an image. The combining photosites from your sensor produce each pixel. As you add more and more pixels, you eventually get an image.
A megapixel is 1 million pixels (give or take, depending on how it is calculated) for the entire image. When you have a camera with a certain number of pixels (i.e. 16 MP), that tells you how many individual pixels there are within the image. Camera sensors generally come in two flavors (3:2 or 4:3 ratios).
The ratio will affect the overall size relationship. What this also means is the megapixel count tells you how many individual pixels are in each direction.
Crop sensor relative sizes.
Basic math
Megapixels just provides you with the total number of pixels. In order to actually print it, you need to figure out how big you want your print and then do some very basic math to figure out what works best for your image.
When you print, typically, you are looking at print resolution, in dots-per-inch (dpi) rather than megapixels, that is appropriate for the medium and the size of print you are going to make.
For most print media you might hold in your hands, you need a minimum of 300 dpi. This means that megapixels divided by dpi will give you the maximum dimensions natively produced by your sensor.
If you simply use pixels, there is no weird conversion. For example, a 12-megapixel image (common cell phone resolution) on a 3:2 sensor translates into pixels that are roughly 4290 x 2800 on the sensor. If you use 300 dpi to give you a print, the maximum size is 14.3″ x 9.3″ (this is not overly large). Even for a 36-megapixel image, you only end up with printable dimensions of 24.5″ x 16.4″.
Native resolution to size of images.
Hold the Phone
Wait a second, isn’t a 36-megapixel camera a pretty high-resolution camera?
If a 36-megapixel image only corresponds to 24.5″ x 16.4″ that seems really small, how do they print billboards? How do you print something larger than that?
There are two answers to that. First, you don’t hold a billboard in your hands, and you view if from a distance, so the resolution to print can go down. Secondly, to enlarge an image, you use a process called interpolation. Interpolation is the process of how you create new pixels to fill the gaps between the existing pixels so you can enlarge the image.
Nikon D810 (from NikonUSA site) is a 36 megapixel camera.
Confusion in figuring out size
Sometimes, image processing software will tell you the dimensions of your image are 60″ x 39″ at 72 dpi. That seems so much larger. So where does this number come from?
There was a time where it was thought that the resolution you needed for monitors was only 72 dpi (this has changed with technology and time), but the early number of 72 dpi stuck and made the images seem pretty large. The reality is, all you really need to know is that the total number of pixels in each direction will define your image size, not theoretical inches and dpi combined.
The difference between 72 dpi and 300 dpi for the same image (hint: there is no difference) – (f/6.3, 1/800, ISO 200).
Viewing distance matters
To make matters worse, the image resolution of your print is also dependent on how big your image is. A magazine will need a minimum of 300 dpi, whereas a billboard in a subway station may only need 40 dpi. What really matters is how far away from the image you are standing when you view it.
As a general rule of thumb, you need to have a minimum printed resolution of 300 dots per inch (dpi) for most prints.
Printing wall sized images (24″ x 36″ Print).
Real-world example
To make things more clear, let’s start with a simple 20-megapixel image taken on a micro 4/3’s sensor (the proportions are 4:3) and work through the process of printing an image for a wall, say a 36″ x 24″.
The image was taken by an Olympus EM1 mark II, 20-megapixel sensor. The image out of the camera is 5184 pixels wide and 3888 pixels. If you open it with image editing software, it may say that the image is 17.28″ x 12.96″ at 300 dpi (the software has done some simple math). The problem is, this is smaller than the image you actually want to print. I want to print an image that is 36″ x 24″
Sample image for printing big (f/5.6, 1/1250, ISO200).
Interpolation… the magic of resizing
The problem with resizing is that each pixel in an image is discrete. In order to make bigger images to print, we need to create new pixels to fill in the gaps between the existing ones. This sounds much simpler than it is in practice.
The classic example is a sharp edge.
As you enlarge the image, the pixels get jagged. It makes it look like something out of Minecraft. This is called pixelation.
Very early versions of photo imaging software would simply average the color and luminance, and put that new pixel in between the existing pixels. This just made the images soft and mushy.
Currently, Photoshop CC 2020 provides 7 different and discrete ways of changing the size of the image. Plus, it has an automatic setting (that selects from the other 7) to make 8 ways. However, it is limited by the content that is already there.
Each algorithm does something slightly different in its approach to interpolating between pixels. Depending on the type of image, each has varying degrees of success.
As you get close into the image, you can see the pixelation.
Although Photoshop has improved much of its algorithms for image size changes, these work reasonably well for smaller changes in size. However, significant changes in size of images can be particularly problematic.
For scaling larger, I have found the best way to increase the size of an image, as of the beginning of 2020, is to use a product from Topaz called Gigapixel AI.
Gigapixel AI uses artificial intelligence to look at the image compared to millions of similar images and creates new pixels with this algorithm.
This is a slow process and CPU intensive. That is because it uses AI to create the missing pixels to come up with a proper scaling that interpolates new pixels that work with the image. It really does work quite well. Each image can take up to 5 minutes, depending upon size.
The process using Gigapixel AI
To scale the images, here is the process I follow.
I shoot micro 4/3s (MFT), so my image sensor is a 20.1-megapixel sensor that produces raw files that average in size around 17 to 18 megabytes. The resolution of the image is 5184 x 3888 pixels.
Doing the math, for a print at 300 dpi, the largest size for the native image (not resized) is 17.28 inches x 12.96 inches. A fair size, but not a huge image.
Suppose we want to print a 36″ x 24″ image. We need to resize it.
In addition, the proportions are not exactly the same. 36 x 24 is a 3:2 ratio and my image is at a 4:3 ratio. Ideally, to get the 300 dpi, we will want to print an image that is 10,800 x 7200 pixels.
Before you start
Before I start, I always use a RAW file from the camera, not a JPEG. JPEG is a lossy format, so you never want any of your intermediate steps to use JPEG images. Even the final one should be a non-lossy image format like PSD or TIF. You can read more about file formats here.
Image sensors record light, not dark. The dark areas are the absence of light.
That seems obvious, but there are ramifications of this. In general, the majority of the image data is located on the right side of the histogram. This means that to have a successful image it must be properly exposed or slightly underexposed and brought back in a raw editor.
Close up of an image sensor
Calibration
Finally, before you start, you will need to ensure your monitor is calibrated.
Calibration of your monitor will ensure that the printed version of our image will be closer to the version you see on your monitor. In general, uncalibrated monitors are too bright. Using an uncalibrated monitor will result in prints that are much darker than what you see on your monitor.
This can sometimes happen even with a calibrated monitor too, but test prints will help assess how far off your monitor is from your prints.
Color Calibration tool for monitors
Noise
When you enlarge an image, you need to ensure that the noise levels are under control before you start.
Enlarging an image with a lot of noise will only increase the amount of noise present. All resizing programs will do their best to examine the underlying data of your image and use it to scale upward, but the noise on an image will only get worse.
High ISO image ISO 6400 (f/2.8, 1/13, ISO 6400)
Sharpening
The sharpening of your image should only happen at the end of the process of resizing an image. Sharpening is a process of looking at areas of high contrast (these are typically edges) and emphasizing the transition to make those transitions seem more distinct. If you do this early in your editing process or during resizing, the scale of the sharpening will create halos or bizarre artifacts that will be really obvious.
Sharpening can cause a crunchy appearance (f/5.6, 1/250, ISO 200)
Photoshop versus Topaz Gigapixel AI
Although many people use Photoshop to resize, as of 2020, I have found that it does not do as good a job as Topaz’s Gigapixel AI.
Larger scale resizing through Gigapixel AI takes longer, but the results are substantially better. All you need to do is to launch the application and tell it how big you want the new image to be. Press Start and go have a coffee, as it takes a little while. However, the results are really good.
Topaz Gigapixel AI is a tool for resizing images large
Making the Big Print
Finally, once you have resized the image to a larger size you need to print the image. There are basically two main methods to print images big. Chromogenic (C-prints) or Giclee (inkjet) prints.
Both can produce big, high-quality images, but the processes are quite different as is the look of each. I generally prefer inkjet-based, but there are lots of people who still use C-print techniques.
Final product printed and on a wall
Conclusion
When you print images big, there are lots of things to consider when resizing your images and then getting them ready to go to print. However, the results are truly breathtaking.
If you have a great image and you take the proper steps to resize the image and print it big, you will be incredibly satisfied with the result. Moreover, you will create a lot of interest in your images, particularly now that few images get printed anymore.
Do you have any other tips to print images big that you’d like to share? Please do so in the comments.
The post How to Correctly Resize Photos to Print Images Big appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mark C Hughes.
Most online image sharing platforms offer an option to print your images and deliver the prints to your home. Usually the images for printing are selected manually by the user but it looks like Google is now planning to offer an automated printing option.
According to 9to5Google Google Photos is trialing a subscription service that automatically selects your ten best pictures each month and sends them for printing. As a user you can only tell the system to focus on faces, including pets, or landscape images, or select images across all categories.
Images are delivered as 4×6 prints on matte cardstock and the service, which is currently invitation and US only, costs $ 8 per month.
Generating a new revenue stream, in addition to paid-for storage, is obviously an attractive proposition to Google but many users might think long and hard before subscribing. You’d need t be pretty confident to shoot at least ten print-worthy images per month and you would either want to store or display your images in print form or possibly give them away as gifts. This being said, time will tell is the trial is a success and the service will be expanded t other regions.
Over the past few weeks, there have been rumblings behind-the-scenes that Photo District News (PDN) is shutting down. Curious to know the veracity of these claims, DPReview contacted PDN’s publisher, Emerald Expositions, last week and were connected with a high-level source who confirmed off-the-record that the details in the rumors were indeed true and an official statement would follow ‘in the next few weeks.’
This afternoon though, American Photography’s Pro Photo Daily published a statement from an Emerald Expositions spokesperson confirming the exact news we were told was off-the-record: that PDN would cease operation of its print magazine and no longer post new articles to PDN Online, but continue to publish Rangefinder Magazine as well as continue both the PhotoPlus and WPPI tradeshows.
A look at what will be the final six print issues of Photo District News.
We have confirmed, via our aforementioned source at Emerald Expositions, that Pro Photo Daily’s quotes were from an Emerald Expositions spokesperson, but that they were said off-the-record and not meant to be shared at this time. Thus, we’re now at a point where Emerald Expositions hasn’t publicly confirmed its closure but has confirmed the now on-the-record statements are indeed true.
Until Emerald Expositions publicly shares further details, we will stick to quoting only what Pro Photo Daily shared in its article:
‘PDN’s current owner, Emerald Expositions, has confirmed that the print edition of the magazine will no longer be published, and that no new content will be added to its online edition. Rangefinder magazine, also owned by Emerald Expositions, will continue to be published […] “The PDN online content will not vanish, and we’re looking for ways to ensure that what content there is will continue to be easily accessible, but there won’t be new content,” said a spokesperson for Emerald Expositions, which operates business-to-business trade shows in the United States, including the PhotoPlus show in New York and the WPPI show in Las Vegas, the largest trade show for wedding and portrait photographers and filmmakers. Both trade shows will continue.’
Our source at Emerald Expositions also shared with us the following statement, paraphrased for clarity with permission:
‘We [at PDN are] extremely appreciative of the PDN community and photo community at large. Our goal is to give our engaged and committed community the info they want when and where they want it. PDN, in its current form, is being retired [but] our community and content isn’t going away; it will just be servicing the community in different ways.’
We will share more information regarding PDN when the details are made public by Emerald Expositions.
The post How to Print a Professional Portfolio So You Can Impress Your Clients appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darina Kopcok.
Marketing yourself as a commercial or editorial photographer means that you need to print a professional portfolio and promotional materials to show clients such as ad agencies, magazines, and major brands that you want to work with.
There seems to be a perception out there that marketing is done solely online these days and that photographers no longer need to print a professional portfolio.
This is not true.
Some established photographers have a roster of repeat clients that they rely on to keep their businesses afloat. But if you’re looking for new clients, or just entering the industry, you need a printed book to show prospective clients your work.
Yes, a website is an important selling tool, but bringing an iPad to an agency meeting can be perceived as amateurish.
These kinds of top-echelon clients want to see how your work holds up in print, which is far less forgiving than a computer screen. They also enjoy experiencing your work directly through a tangible medium like a printed book.
Maybe you’re not a commercial photographer but shoot consumer, like wedding or portrait photography. In this case, having prints or a printed book to show your clients can also have a positive impact. It can drive your client to buy from you and they are likely to perceive you as a photographer who is head and shoulders above the rest.
Types of books
Before we dive into the variables around printing your work, let’s talk about the portfolio itself.
As a commercial photographer, your best bet is to purchase a screw-post portfolio where you can add and subtract pages every time you update it with new work.
My portfolio, pictured above, is a bamboo cover screw-post portfolio manufactured by Shrapnel Design. The company is based in Vancouver, Canada, but ship to most countries via FedEx or TNT.
Other companies make similar portfolios for photographers, so do your research and find the best one for you.
The point is that you want to be able to update your portfolio periodically by printing pages of new work and swapping them out.
You can also get a portfolio printed in a photo book. This is a less expensive option, but you’ll need to re-do the whole thing if you want to update your portfolio. Which you should do periodically.
Just be sure to get a high-quality book printed. The design and paper are very important. It needs to be a visual and tactile experience.
A couple of suggestions are the books by Artifact Uprising and Saal Digital.
Get a lay-flat book in landscape orientation and in a large size, such as 14X11.
Choice of paper
Your choice of paper for your printed book is very important.
The type of paper you choose will really depend on the genre you shoot and which paper will show your work to the best advantage. There are a variety of finishes and weights available.
For my portfolio, I used Smooth Matte Pina Zangaro paper by MOAB. It’s scored and punched for use in all standard format screw-post binders. The paper is archival quality, pH neutral and water-resistant.
Archival quality paper is meant to last. Your prints will not fade and shift quickly when exposed to light.
Some might argue that archival paper is not necessary because you’ll be routinely swapping out your pages if you get a screw-post portfolio. But most good papers are archival quality anyway. Archival paper is more important when you’re selling prints to hang on a wall.
Before you settle on a paper, order some samples from the supplier to check quality or go to the printer you wish to use and take a look at their papers.
Also, make sure that they’ll punch and score the paper for you if it doesn’t already come that way. Otherwise, you can make a mess out of your prints if you don’t know how to do this yourself.
If you purchase a photo book, Eggshell matte paper, like Mohawk Superfine, is a great choice.
Where to print
Unless you’re already a printing dynamo and have an awesome printer that you paid at least $ 1K for, get your book printed by a professional printer that caters to photographers.
Do your research and, if you can, ask other photographers you might know in your community for their recommendations.
It’s important that you don’t spare expense. Get the best quality printing that you can. The quality of inks can make a big difference in the portrayal of your work.
There are a lot of great online services, but a professional printer in your community can give you personalized service that will make the difference in how your prints turn out. They can advise on papers and inks and any potential problems.
Make sure that you print one of the spreads as a proof before committing to handing over the whole project.
Monitor calibration
Before you start designing your portfolio, you have to prepare your images.
It goes without saying that you should be working on a calibrated monitor.
This is a step that a lot of people tend to skip, but unless you’re working on a monitor that is rendering colors correctly, you can end up with tones and colors that are way off base once you print them.
Each device will display colors differently. Calibrating your monitor will make sure what you’re seeing is correct, and that you and your printer are both following a standard that will ensure the same result.
A color calibration device like Color Munki is easy to use. Calibrate your screen regularly and definitely before you print anything or send images to clients. If they complain that the images don’t look right, you’ll know that what you sent them is correct.
Color management and resolution
You need to prepare your images properly when sending them to a printer.
Always check with your printer before preparing your files. Ask them the format and color space that they need your files in.
This will be dependent on the type of printer they use. If they use a printing press, they will likely require your file in CMYK.
However, if they use large format printers with up to 10-inks, they may require anything from Adobe RGB through to ProPhoto.
Using the TIFF file format is usually better than using the JPG format, as it does not compress the image data. But again, check with your printer.
You’ll also need to send the printer high-resolution images, with at least 300 dpi (dots-per-inch). The more dots, the higher the quality of the print in terms of detail and sharpness.
For more in-depth information on this, read: How to Prepare Images For Publication – Part One
Conclusion
To print a professional portfolio can be very costly. This is a case where you need to spend money to make money. If you want to attract the clients with the deeper pockets, you’ll need to get in front of them with a professional-looking book that shows your beautiful photography in the best light.
Do you have any other tips on how to print a professional portfolio that you’d like to share? Do so in the comments section!
The post How to Print a Professional Portfolio So You Can Impress Your Clients appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Darina Kopcok.
A rare signed print of photographer Joe Rosenthal’s iconic World War II photograph ‘Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima’ will be auctioned on October 4 at Heritage Auction’s Photographers Auction. The print features the signatures of three of the surviving U.S. Marines featured in the image, as well as Rosenthal’s signature.
The photograph was captured in 1945; it depicts six U.S. Marines raising a flag on Mt. Suribachi on Iwo Jima. Three Marines — Ira Hayes, John Bradley, and Rene Gagnon — signed this 23.5 x 18.7cm (9.25 x 7.37in) print alongside Rosenthal, who passed away in 2006. It’s worth noting that despite John Bradley signing this print, it was confirmed in 2016 that Bradley was misidentified in the image and it was instead Harold Schultz in the photograph. The back of the print contains a few messages and notes.
The print up for auction was signed by the three Marines when they posed for Felix de Weldon, the man commissioned to construct a statue of the iconic moment for the Marine Corps War Memorial. According to Heritage Auction, de Weldon later met Rosenthal in 2000, which is when he, too, signed the print.
Though a few copies of the photograph with the Marines’ signatures have surfaced, this is potentially the only one that also contains Rosenthal’s signature, making it exceptionally rare. The print itself is described as a loose yellowing sheet with handling creases. The item is estimated to sell at auction for between $ 15,000 and $ 25,000 USD. Interested buyers are able to submit bids on the Heritage Auction website here.
Update (September 27, 2019): Corrected information to clarify that despite John Bradley’s signature being on this particular print, it was revealed in 2016 that it was Harold Schultz in the image, not Bradley.
The post The Real Reason You Need to Print Your Photos appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mat Coker.
Each creative pursuit has its own fulfillment. It is that moment when we can stop and see that our finished creation. A play is written and performed – a score is composed and played by musicians – poems written and then read out loud. The fulfillment of our creative pursuit as photographers is a printed photograph.
When you print a photograph, it becomes physical. A print is the embodiment of the digital file. As a print, it becomes part of our daily physical existence. As a constant part of our life the print comes to play a role in our life, perhaps effecting us in ways we didn’t expect.
A few prints that I stumbled across from my childhood. Each time I come across these memories, I’m reminded of my place in my family as a son, a grandson, and now a father myself.
Coming to life
When something lives in the digital world, it is easily scrolled past, or swiped away and forgotten forever. Digital photos live a ghostly existence.
We experience digital photos like a dream. Just as a dream vanishes when we wake up, a digital photo vanishes as we scroll past it or close the file. But as a print, your photograph becomes part of the real world and a part of your life.
One day I saw one of my digital images – a headshot – on a huge billboard. I was so surprised I had to circle the block just to see it again! I had seen that same image on the internet many times, but to see it in the real world brought on emotions that had never arisen when viewing the photo online.
Yes, “an image is an image” whether it is digital or printed. But a printed image has a different existence – a bodily existence – and becomes part of your world as something physical rather than ghostly or dreamlike.
Before setting out for the East Coast, I knew that I wanted to make a photo book after the trip. Part of the fun was anticipating the project, then living the adventure as we traveled. But the creative experience was not complete until I had finished the book. A lot of the fun was selecting the paper, the lay-flat style and the dimensions.
Daily life
Consider the difference in the way we normally experience digital and print photographs.
A print is displayed somewhere and might remain for a very long time. However, a digital photo is at your mercy – only viewed on your whim and dismissed almost immediately. If you do not wish to see them, they are gone. A digital photo is not ever-present as a print is. Digital photos count on you to come looking for them.
A digital photo is given a physical existence when printed. When it is displayed at home or in our studio, it becomes part of our daily life.
Most people are quite tactile – collecting books, rocks, and small keepsakes. Our family often brings home a jar of dirt from the new lands we visit.
Inspired and called
When printed, our photographs are ever-present reminders of what is important in life.
Unlike the fleeting excitement that digital photos bring as we scroll past them, the inspiration of a printed photograph is always there to view.
When you’re bored of the flow of digital photos, you shut them off. However, you don’t turn off a print; it is there whether or not you wish to see it at that moment. This is important because when we choose our prints carefully, they can be sources of encouragement when we need it most.
An ever-changing sea of digital images is part of your daily landscape. Images pound you like waves, only to disappear once they’ve made contact. They exhaust you as they hit all day long. You live in a chaotic world where you are most likely to forget what is important in life.
You should print photos that inspire you and call you to a good life. The portraits you hang can remind you of who is important in life. Even the landscape you print can calm and inspire you in tough moments.
In my son’s room, there is a picture of him and my grandmother together. It has been there for years. It’s also on my computer. I can tell you the exact folder it’s in, but I haven’t seen the digital file since I made the print. I made the print for my grandmother and received it back when she died. It once reminded her of the joy of her great grandchildren and now it reminds me of the joy of my grandparents.
A stronger experience
While I can hardly recall any of the images I just scrolled through online, I can still remember some of the images in the photography magazines I read as a kid.
When I knew a new issue of Photo Life was due out, I’d check the mailbox every day until it came. I knew the feel of it when I reached into the mailbox. The cover photo would strike me first, then the smell of the brand new magazine. I suppose I did all but taste those photographs!
Imagine the life of those photos. The photographers would conceive their ideas and work away until they had their collection of images. The photographs were developed, culled, and selected by an editor. Once printed, the magazine was shipped around the world. Finally, it would get carried by post for photography lovers to grab from the mailbox or snatch from a newsstand. We’d carry them with us, reread them, and add them to our collection of back issues.
You can close a photo book and put it away, much like swiping away a photo. But a book is placed on the shelf, while a digital photo is swiped away and obliterated into 1’s and 0’s.
The digital world is a gift
Digital photos are important – just as imagination, thoughts and dreams are. But dreams disappear, thoughts are forgotten, and imagination begs to come to life in the real world.
There are many gifts that the digital world has given us. Perhaps most of all the digital world gives us a place to play and experiment before we decide which photos to make real. We have transcended many of the limits of film (although many of those limits may have been healthy for our creativity).
Even though our creative activity is not complete until we have made a print, we don’t need to print all of our digital photos – only the ones that deserve to rise up and become worthy of embodiment.
Create something that becomes real
While there is joy in taking photos and viewing them digitally, our satisfaction is not properly realized until we have printed our photos. A photo that isn’t printed is like a script that is never performed, or a musical composition that is never played. There is still value in the digital photo, just as there is value in a script or musical composition. But the value is mainly the hope that one day the digital photo will be printed and share a bodily life with us – to inspire us, cheer us, and remind us.
The post The Real Reason You Need to Print Your Photos appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mat Coker.
Apple is launching its 2019 ‘Shot on iPhone’ photo contest by inviting iPhone photographers to submit their best photographs shot on an Apple device. Photos can be submitted from now to February 7th and will be judged by an impressive panel including photographer Pete Souza and Annet de Graaf, as well as Apple’s VP of Marketing Phil Schiller and head of camera software team Jon McCormack. Apple says winning images will be featured on billboards in select cities, Apple retail stores and online.
Shot on iPhone 6 by Mandy Blake.
To participate you can post images on Instagram or Twitter using the hashtag #ShotOniPhone. In the image caption you should note which iPhone model it was captured with. Alternatively images can be submitted by emailing them in full resolution to shotoniphone@apple.com with the file format ‘firstname_lastname_iphonemodel.’ Photos can be straight out of the camera or edited.
If you’re thinking about submitting your photos you should probably have a look at official rules on the Apple website, to make sure you know what participation in the contest means for your images. Photographers are essentially handing over exclusive commercial ownership of their images in exchange for photo credit. In a post on Reddit, photographer Trevor Mahlmann shared his thoughts on the campaign and the issues he noticed with the fine print.
Shot on iPhone 7 by Erdem Summak.
In the fine print Apple says: ‘you retain your rights to your photograph; however, by submitting your photo, you grant Apple a royalty-free, world-wide, irrevocable, non-exclusive license for one year to use, modify, publish, display, distribute, create derivative works from and reproduce the photo on Apple Newsroom, apple.com, Twitter, Instagram, in Apple retail stores, Weibo, WeChat, on billboards and any Apple internal exhibitions. Any photograph reproduced will include a photographer credit.’
The company goes on to say: ‘If your photo is selected to be featured on a billboard, you further agree to grant Apple exclusive commercial use of the photo for the life of the license.’
Dear readers, Welcome to this months Giveaway. For this one, we have partnered with Canvasonthecheap.com. We have personally used them in the past and liked the quality of their product. And now for the Giveaway details: One lucky winner will receive a 16″ by 20″ canvas print of their chosen photograph. Here is all you need to do: Like Photodoto on Continue Reading
The post Back to School Canvas Photo Print Giveaway (16″ x 20″ Canvas Print) appeared first on Photodoto.
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