need help with proper workflow

F
Posted By
frank
Jul 24, 2006
Views
203
Replies
4
Status
Closed
Hello,
I have used PS for a while but never learned it in a systemized manner. But I have gotten a book and am going chapt. by chapter but in the
meantime I need to know the answer to this question on workflow. When my file comes out of my camera it is at 72 pixels per inch and the size 32" x 48" When I work on the image in PS, what should my workflow be so I have the option of printing myself or sending it to a lab
to get printed at different sizes. I have been told several things, most conflicting. Some say work on it in the native resolution, some say
work on it in the resolution I intend to use for the future print size.

I want to do this correctly so I don’t pidgeon hole myself into one size of output.
I have noticed on this group the knowledge level is very high and I hope this question is not too elementary for this group. thanks for any help that I can get on this
Frank

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S
Stewy
Jul 24, 2006
In article ,
"frank" wrote:

Hello,
I have used PS for a while but never learned it in a systemized manner. But I have gotten a book and am going chapt. by chapter but in the
meantime I need to know the answer to this question on workflow. When my file comes out of my camera it is at 72 pixels per inch and the size 32" x 48" When I work on the image in PS, what should my workflow be so I have the option of printing myself or sending it to a lab
to get printed at different sizes. I have been told several things, most conflicting. Some say work on it in the native resolution, some say
work on it in the resolution I intend to use for the future print size.
I want to do this correctly so I don’t pidgeon hole myself into one size of output.
I have noticed on this group the knowledge level is very high and I hope this question is not too elementary for this group. thanks for any help that I can get on this
Frank

If you do all you want to do with the picture on the first pass thru PS, keep it in it’s native format, be it jpeg or raw. If jpeg, save at 12. If you plan to work on it again and again then convert to PSD or some other lossless format. If you’ve a DVD burner, then convert everything to PSD and save to DVD or burn completely unaltered pictures to disc. Your camera takes 8 megapixel pictures and you should always keep it that size. If you need something smaller, Duplicate and re-size. Once you’ve thrown away some pixels it’s impossible to get them back without creating a picture which is much more ‘noisy’ than before.

The 72 ppi is the native resolution of your monitor and has little to do with maximum print size. Most people recommend at least 200ppi for a decent resolution – which means you can print up to 17 x 11in – about A3 – perfectly adequate for most people.

If you do get prints done at A3 regularly it’s probably worthwhile getting yourself an A3 printer – around $300 or less.
RG
Roy G
Jul 24, 2006
"frank" wrote in message
Hello,
I have used PS for a while but never learned it in a systemized manner. But I have gotten a book and am going chapt. by chapter but in the
meantime I need to know the answer to this question on workflow. When my file comes out of my camera it is at 72 pixels per inch and the size 32" x 48" When I work on the image in PS, what should my workflow be so I have the option of printing myself or sending it to a lab
to get printed at different sizes. I have been told several things, most conflicting. Some say work on it in the native resolution, some say
work on it in the resolution I intend to use for the future print size.
I want to do this correctly so I don’t pidgeon hole myself into one size of output.
I have noticed on this group the knowledge level is very high and I hope this question is not too elementary for this group. thanks for any help that I can get on this
Frank

Hi.

I would doubt that there is anything like a standardised or common workflow. Everyone has their own way of doing things.

However there are some sensible routines. The first is to save your images to Cd or DVD as soon as they are downloaded, using the same file naming and folder structure as you use on the HDD.

My second is to bring the images to 10 inches on long side, without resampling, so that when I am later working on them I will know whether any proposed Crops are likely to reduce the PPI too much for printing.

Once I start Editing, I always do that on copy images with a -1 or -2 tacked on to the file number, saved into a "In Progress" folder, so that the original remains available for reference, or restart, if needed.

My first Editing is to bring the colour and density to what I want. Other editing gets done as and when, or if.

I always save work in progress and finished Prints as PSD, and only use Jpeg to make an additional A4 size copy of the finished print.

Because I want to produce Prints on my own printer, all my work is carried out using the Adobe RGB Workspace, except for those A4 Jpegs copies which are converted to sRGB. If you will be getting your stuff printed for you, or it is for on-screen use, use sRGB as your normal Space.

Sharpening should be made the last Editing action, just before Printing.

My finished Prints are given Titles which are saved into the "File Info" along with date printed and their originating file, or negative number. They are then saved as "Print Number xx ", and added to my Print Archive.

Roy G
T
Tacit
Jul 25, 2006
In article ,
Stewy wrote:

If you do all you want to do with the picture on the first pass thru PS, keep it in it’s native format, be it jpeg or raw.

Never open a JPEG, edit it, and then save it as a JPEG again. This introduces cumulative loss.

Every time you re-save a JPEG, quality goes down. Avoid this at all costs whenever possible. Save as JPEG only if you have a clear, well-understood, and compelling reason why the image *must* be JPEG and no other format will do. If the image must be JPEG for some reason, save a copy in a lossless format like PSD as well.


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T
Tacit
Jul 25, 2006
In article ,
"frank" wrote:

I have used PS for a while but never learned it in a systemized manner. But I have gotten a book and am going chapt. by chapter but in the
meantime I need to know the answer to this question on workflow. When my file comes out of my camera it is at 72 pixels per inch and the size 32" x 48" When I work on the image in PS, what should my workflow be so I have the option of printing myself or sending it to a lab
to get printed at different sizes. I have been told several things, most conflicting. Some say work on it in the native resolution, some say
work on it in the resolution I intend to use for the future print size.

If you change the resolution with "resample image" turned off, then it makes no difference at all if you resize before or after editing–the number of pixels remains exactly the same, and no pixels are added or removed.

If you change the resolution with "Resample Image" turned on, THEN it matters, Do this only when you’re finished with all your other edits.


Art, photography, shareware, polyamory, literature, kink: all at http://www.xeromag.com/franklin.html
Nanohazard, Geek shirts, and more: http://www.villaintees.com

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