How big can I enlarge with 6 mp

[tcs]

I have an FZ7 and I'm wanting to do some enlargements. How large can I go and still maintain quality?

[D Thompson]

From Adorama's site.

Camera megapixels
2 megapixels 1600 x 1200
3 megapixels 2048 x 1536
4 megapixels 2274 x 1704
5 megapixels 2,560 x 1920
6 megapixels 2816 x 2112
7 megapixels 3072 x 2304
8 megapixels 3456 x 2304
12 megapixels 4288 x 2848

The following table shows the optimal and minimum image resolution for printing at our standard print sizes. We recommend image resolution of at least 300 pixels per inch for optimum image quality, but we will print photos for images of at least 100 pixels per inch. (Note: pixel resolutions generally list the wider dimension of the image aspect ratio first, so our table shows wider dimension for easy comparing.):

Print size Optimal resolution for good print quality (300px per inch) Minimum resolution, less optimal image quality (100px per inch).

3.5x5 1500 x 1050 500 x 350
4x5 1500 x 1200 500 x 400
4x6 1800 x 1200 600 x 400
4x12 (panoramic)3600 x 1200 1200 x 400
5x5 1500 x 1500 500 x 500
5x7 2100 x 1500 700 x 500
6x9 2700 x 1800 900 x 600
8x8 2400 x 2400 800 x 800
8x10 3000 x 2400 1000 x 800
8.5x11 3300 x 2550 1100 x 850
8x12 3600 x 2400 1200 x 800
9x12 3600 x 2700 1200 x 900
10x10 3000 x 3000 1000 x 1000
11x14 4200 x 3300 1400 x 1100
12x12 3600 x 3600 1200 x 1200
12x18 5400 x 3600 1800 x 1200

Hope this helps.

[XaiLo]

8x8 @ 300dpi

[tcs]

Thanks for the help! It looks like my quality will suffer at an 11 X 14. Am I reading it right? The max should be 8 X 10?

[Rhys]

I tend to find 150 dpi does not mean that image quality suffers.
Your camera produces images of 2816 x 2112 pixels.

Now divide that by 150 and you get an absolute maximum print size of 18 inches by 14.

An image printed to 11 x 14 would mean you'd be printing at
2816/14 = 200 dpi
2112/11 = 192 dpi

I see no problem with printing an 11x14. My best suggestion though is: try it and see if you like the results. What'll it cost - a sheet of paper and some ink? You'll have a definitive answer then.

[American Nomad]

This may sound crazy and I am not into the numbers or technical side of making prints but, with my Sony P200 set at 7mp and fine, I have printed to
16x20 inches and to my untrained eye they looked fine. I would try printing one photo at the size you want and see what it looks like. If you don't like it you are only out a few bucks.

[ReF's temporary account]

subject matter makes a big difference in print size. if your image contains small details like trees in a landscape then they will look weird if you blow them up to a large size and details are missing. if you have an archicture shot where only the shapes, light and shadows are important and there is very little texture then that can get stretched out pretty big without anything appearing odd. it also depends on the viewing distance. if people will be looking at your prints pretty closely then faults will be easliy visible. but if it's going to be hanging up on some wall and viewed from a distance then printing to a size where details are missing is okay. you'll just have to do a test print or two to see for yourself.

[ponymont]

It does matter how far away people are viewing your picture. I have a print made with my D50 that is blown up to 24"x36" and unless you are getting right up to it the picture looks great.

[Rhys]

I saw a VGA image blown up to about 9x12. It was possible to see the individual pixels fairly readily but from a couple of feet away, it looked pretty good.

[cwphoto]

Thanks for the help! It looks like my quality will suffer at an 11 X 14. Am I reading it right? The max should be 8 X 10?

This is all academic guys - there is no limit!

The larger you make the print the further away you're supposed to be to view it - so it's all relative.

I have had a billboard shot 10 feet high made from 6x6 film before - no problem cause you look at it from 100 feet away!

If you take 300 dpi as the standard for a print around 8x12" at a viewing distance of say 12", the an 8MP camera does the job (according to the math) - so 6.3MP would be OK for any size (provided you don't need to crop).;)

[timmciglobal]

Realistically if it's a good in focus shot then you could probably do a 12X18 without any croping, including croping your probably going to want to stay 8x10 or smaller considering croping takes the mathematical root of the number of pixels, IE: 8 mp image croped 50% is not a 4mp image but a 2mp image.

Tim