Large print

[piyush]

I am using 10 MP Canon 400D camera and in one of the assignment, I will have to get 20 inch X 30 inch print. I tried it but print doesnt look good. Can somebody throw some light on how to do that? I am using Canon DPP and Photoshop. Do we have any special operation/workflow/settings/software to get better image quality for this size?

[Bob Atkins]

You will get the best image quality with the camera mounted on a tripod, ISO set to 100 and the lens stopped down a little. For slow consumer lenses I'd use f8, for faster "L" series lenses I'd use f5.6.

Other than that, it's a matter of using an appropriate degree of sharpening before printing, as well as adjusting color, saturation and contrast to give the best visual results.

[KeithB]

At 240 DPI, 20 x 30 inch is 7200 x 4800 pixels, or about 32 MegaPixel.
What are you printing on?

Here are some tips:
Start with the sharpest image possible.

In photoshop use the image->resize command to increase the number of pixels in the image.  Resize in small increments - about 20% per step.  So if you are starting at about 4000 pixels on the long side,  increase it to 4800 -> 5700->6800->7200.

Remember, too, a 20x30 inch print is not meant to be viewed from inches away!  Step back to about 4-5 feet to judge the print.

[KeithB]

Oops, sorry for the double post....

[piyush]

Bob, Keith, Thanks for the input. I will try doing that again.

By the way, That print will be on a wall so will be atleast at 5 feet of viewing distance.