[dgordon]

I am wanting to do an estimated 8'x22' poster.
Problem, is that you/(I) can not open a file at actual size.
I had read that Spooge, will open a PS file at an est. 2500x3000pxls. Then I would assume that when ready to print you can enlarge the size of the image.
If I understood that. Then wouldn't that much resampling damage the quality. Being that the dpi would be so small. That you'd end up with damn near a mosaic?

I'm hoping that I could do an image as large as my computer can handle. Then just let the client deal with the printing size. That sounds harsh, but they do that in Photography, "blow-up the photograph"? But at the sametime I don't want to blindside a company like that. Without knowing more details.

Hope that someone might know how to handle posters.

[Tinusch]

What you do is you print out the pic as large as you can and then just grab the paper on each end and pull, and stretch it out to the size you want it, you shouldn't lose any quality that way

[CyberArtist]

You can resize the print size by simply changing the dpi. People seem to have this notion that changing the dpi changes the size of the image on the computer... it doesn't unless (using PS) you have the dimensions of the image set to inches instead of pixels. If you just set the dimensions to pixels and alter the dpi, you can check the size in inches by just switching back to inches.

Printing high res images at extreme size does lower the quality up close some, but then, the reason for making them huge is so that they're viewable from afar, not up close.

Do the design in any size you want (using pixels for dimensions) and don't worry about it.



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-CyberA(rtist) aka Ben Golus

Cyber...

[black_fish]

A 2500x3000 image in 300 dpi is 10x8 inches when printed. Your 8x22 image would be much bigger, but I don't understand why you can't open it: I just tried in Ps and it worked. Have you a RAM problem or something?
Anyway if you want to print your image you HAVE to do it in 8x22 or bigger in Ps. You can shrink down the resolution but you can't blow it up (or you'll lose quality). The average printing resolution (magazines) is 300 dpi. Some art books go to 600 dpi, and some cheap comics go to 150. 300 is the best.
Does it answer your question?

[dgordon]

thanks for the replies,

CyberArtist:
If you change the dpi vs. the pxl/inch. The only way to get a larger print size is by droping the dpi. But my confusion has always been either head in my ass or over logical. Because dpi is the pxls squared, so my thinking is that know matter what the dpi is the pxls/inch is your resolution.

black_fish:
If only I could open a file 2880x7920 (8x22') =65.3mb My computer is a HP333mhz 128/PC66. Which means a file 20-30mb is about my limit. I can push it more but, only for short time spans.

I am really considering getting a new mac w/dual processors. Even though my grand kids would have to pay it off after I'm dead and buried. At least working with one of those. I wouldn't have to be testing the computer limitations, just mine..

but hell this whole print thing just confuses the hell out of me. I'll figure it out one of these days..

[Rinaldo]

If you resample the dpi you will not get any more detail, but it will alow you to blow up the pic without getting serious pixelation.

Black_fish- are you sure those are the right specs. I remember taking a class on scanning/prepress and there is a formula for working out exactly what dpi to use for a specific line screen. most print work only needs about 150 dpi (art books are more newspaper is less etc). I wasn't really listetning all that well tho, (prepress guys are not the most exiting people).

Anyway if you are printing off your desktop inkjet then you wont need a high dpi. If you are planing to get it printed profesionaly then go to the printer you plan to use and get the specific requirements.

[Trance-R]

Whoa whoa, wuz all this? I thought I pixel is one dot (dpi). And yeah.... that's why guys like Loki and Zab had to draw in really really really large pixel sized pics. And you could set the dpi in photoshop in that image size panel. 72 dpi is default for web graphics and stuff you look at on the computer. 360 dpi is a typical old printer's default setting. I wish I could get one of those 1200 dpi graphic deskjets.

[This message has been edited by Trance-R (edited August 01, 2000).]

[Danny]

Gordon..

you wanna do a poster of 8 x 22 feet with only 2500x3000 pixels? Well unless you'd be viewing this poster from a massive distance it'll look shite.. It really depends what the poster will be used for. I just made a test print of an image I'm working on at a4 size and decided as it was a test print only, 200 dpi would suffice. On close inspection this is the minimum DPI setting I would recommend. Pixels are just barely starting to appear.
PhotoShop can handle much larger files than 2500x3000 (I believe the theorethical limit is 32K a side). But... you'll need the Ram as some already pointed out.
Another thing you should do a lot of investigating about is colour. Last thing you want is your printcolours to look totally diffirent from those on your monitor, but it's the first thing to expect.
Professional printing is a trade and it takes a lot of time and effort to learn..

Danny

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[email protected]

Trust in Trance

[Spitfire]

I've made posters in the past.. you design them on scale in 300dpi and they get printed with slight interpolation at about 150dpi. Since you have to look at it from a distance of 2 meters or something to completely see the pic, the low res doesnt matter.

[dgordon]

<<"It really depends what the poster will be used for.">>

Well my intent is for it to be used in a retail store. It would be hung about 10 foot on a wall and viewed at 45 degrees. But I do not intend to pay for the cost of printing, just the artwork.

This isn't a job that is already setup. I'm just trying to get an idea. If I would be able to prepare an image that large. I didn't think I would be able to do it with my current hardware. But since I don't understand the dinamics of pre-press. I thought I'd throw it out here in the forum.
I'll adventually get with a printing company to get more information. Right now I don't have the time.

thanks for replying everyone..

[Mergatroid]

Sounds to me like you just need a hell of alot more RAM. If youalready have alot then you need to realocate all available memory to PS. If your poster doesn't have to be a bitmap image then I would try doing the same art in vector based program like Illustrator so that your image is no longer pixel dependent.




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Mergatroid

[Tinusch]

This is all confusing me... Okay, let's say I wanted an 11x24 or so poster, and I wanted it to look reasonably good even close up... What would be the specs for that?

[Mergatroid]

3300 x 7200Pixels. In other words, thats 11x24" at 300dpi which would give you a hi-res image. The real question is what are you going to be printing on?




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Mergatroid

[samdragon]

Well, here is what you do, You go to a print shop, ask them if they have a RIP! (raster image processing) if they do, they can take your image, say half of what you want 4x11 and blow it up to 8x22 with very little loss of quality. The enlargement is done through the rip, not by Photoshop (if they know what they are doing) 8x22 is a strange size, so you'll have to go for large format, if you could shave off some inches you could print on 11x17, save you're self some money and time.
Save your image as a tiff, lossless compression at 150 or above, 300 dpi is photographic quality, anything above that and you're wasting space. take it to printshop and say "here, print this" prints are alot cheaper than they used to be, they usually charge out the butt for paper.
Just remember though, large format printing for under $100 is not that great of quality, you'll see patterns form the print head because it is meant to be viewed from a distance.
YOu could also tile the image.
As far as memory goes in photoshop, set your scratch disk space up a notch or two, make sure it uses all of your partitions, this will help when dealing with very large files if you don't have enough memory.
You don't have to worry about linescreens,unless you're going to be printing for a magazine or newspaper.
It seems many many many people are very confused about dpi,lpi etc. Just because you have an image at 1500 dpi, that doesn't mean it's going to print better than an image at 300 dpi (there are special cases, but for the DTP person at home 300dpi will do fine)
If you want photographic quality, go to film if you can afford it.
Don't start messing with your dpi if you don't know what it does. if your image is 11x22 at 300 dpi and you increase the dpi to 1500, your image will have to shrink to compensate for image quality, if it doesn't shrink in then you're going to get a very fuzzy image once it's printed.

here is something to concider when messing with file sizes...
your image is 8x22 at 300 dpi. that's 2400x6600 pixels.
If you increase your image's dpi to say 700, then your image should be roughly 3.4x9.4 inches, but it's screen resolution is still 2400x6600, make sense yet?
Remember, you can always sample DOWN, with out loss of quality, but you can not sample up with out losing quality, unless you do it proportionally with the dpi.
There are many books about Photoshop and pre-press stuff, if you get a chance visit the book store and flip through them, I promise they will say something very close to what I've explained.

General rule about Photoshop, it will usually require double the memory for each file, if your file is 15 megs, it will require 30 for you to use it inside Photoshop. that's opened size, not saved(compressed size)

Good luck
I'm almost as bad as Fred for long windedness...

[dgordon]

Mergatroid: I need a new computer, and have one that is going to be ordered here in another week or two. The HP that I work on is so damn frustrating to work on. I have considered lining my walls with padding.
I thought about vector and still considering it. Just for the ease of not worry'in over all the BS of dpi. The thing about vector is that it's not bitmaped.. *laugh*
I still haven't dealt with printing (pre-press) in a proffesional aspect. This is a very, very large corporation. And have no intention of even attempting to sell myself (artwork) if I do not know 100% that I can fulfill my part of the contract to an equal 100%. It's my name/artwork, and I want a good taste left in there mouth not a bad.

samdragon: The idea of how RIP works is why I was confused because, I have gotten the idea of being able to resample up without to much loss of quality. But again, I haven't talked to a printing company yet to punch out the details either. I know that the 8x22 poster is a very odd dimension, that is an esimate to the largest dimensions of the area of wall i have to work within.

"I'm almost as bad as Fred for long windedness..."
Hey, I will never be a person to be unapreciative of someone taking the time to talk (type) thoroughly about an idea or subject.

thanks again everyone..