Resolution question FZ20

[Camille]

Okay - I know I tried figuring this out before but am still flummoxed.
My understanding is that resolution happens somewhere outside the camera as pixels are pixels and don't care about DPI and the such. So is it happening in Paint Shop Pro? I set the default at 300dpi (unless value was already set).
Went into EXIF data and noted that x & y resoutions both at 72 DPI on pictures brought in directly off camera with no post production done. I do not use software but just stick in my little card reader which is part of computer. Could that be it?
Somehow and somewhere something is setting that resolution but I can't figure out where. I looked at my monitor information and it is set at 96 so that can't be it.......
I have the camera set at just under the tif rating so I get about 404 pictures at 1G.
Hope someone can help me.

[cosmicnut]

DPI = Dots Per Inch

Real Film = 1200DPI
Digital Film = 75DPI

It's the cameras "limit" not a setting you can choose.

Basically, to get the same quality print as a 35mm film camera from a digital camera we need to increase the number of pixel we store. When you print the image on photo paper, this can have a DPI of 2880! If you can print at this DPI, you'll fit a lot more pixels in every inch of paper, you get a super high quality print but it's a lot smaller than you'll see on your PC.

The upshot of the whole mess is that the image is too big for your PC to display in detail so it monkies with it to fit the monitor. Thats why people see a lot of noise in photos when they see them on a PC screen. If you re-size an image to a resolution the PC can display (1024x768 - 1600x1200) You get a better quality image.

In the end, I wouldn't worry about DPI at all. To get the best quality shots, use the top size and the lowest amount of compression. Tiff is best as it's a lossless format, when you save as JPEG you loose information, but a low compression or a high qualty JPEG works fine

[belalang]

as pixels are pixels and don't care about DPI and the such

2304x1728 pixels will stay 2304x1728 as long as you not resample the image.

Then it will be displayed (100%) as 32x24 inches @ 72dpi, around 15x11 & 8x10 inches @ 150 & 212 dpi; note that for print, you need more resolution than screen use.

So.. some standard resolution use are 72 dpi for computer screen & 150 or 212 dpi for print; then you would likely must 'resampled' it 'down' for screen use, as to give 800x600 pixels which equal to 11x8 inches @ 72 dpi.

[astro]

DPI depends on your print size, which is why it's called Dots Per INCH.
So if you have a 8x6" picture that's 1600x1200, then that's 200 DPI. Print the picture out at 16x12" and you get 100DPI.

[Camille]

Ahhhh -
Thank you all. It is becoming clear to me now. It's really a pleasure to be able to go somewhere and ask these questions. Kudos to the forum once again.
Off I go to Bali tomorrow
Plan on taking lots of pictures and sharing a couple of the best with you all.
Camille

[Honest Gaza]

Here's an explanation from "Photoshop CS2 for Dummies"

Image Resolution
The size of your image's individual pixels when you print.

Camera Resolution
Digital cameras capture each image in a specific number of pixels. Open one of your images in Photoshop (or whatever) and go to Image / Image Size. Take a look at the number of pixels that your camera records for the width and the height. Multiply the numbers together, divide by one million, and round off the result. That's the "megapixel rating" for the camera.

Monitor Resolution
Determines how many pixels are visible on screen.

Printer Resolution
Unlike the three preceding terms, printer resolution does not involve pixels.
A printer's resolution tells you how many tiny droplets of ink are sprayed on the paper. (Remember that it takes several droplets of ink to reproduce a single image pixel)

[meillana]

here's a good read on resolution....
Fotofinish.com : Understanding Resolution
enjoy your trip!