Did you indeed print it at exactly the same size in all cases? (in inches on the paper?)
Mac
Yes, exactly the same size.
I think I know what’s happening. Photoshop Elements is printing at 72pixelperinch.
Go to Image>Resize>Image Size. What does your resolution say? If it is 72, that will explain the problem. I hope. Change it to 200 and see what happens when you print your image.
That’s likely the case if using picture package.
Mac
Mark and Mac,
You guys are good! I WAS using picture package, and the resolution was 72. When I pull up the picture on its own, the resolution is 2272 x 1704. How does that equate to using the 200 number?
2272×1704 is the total pixel count (dimensions) and not the resolution. The resolution is pixels per inch. Change your resolution to at least 200 and you should get a good print. Although I’m not sure what is the ideal for your particular situation.
Perhaps someone else can suggest the resolution ranges that would be good for the size of your image and your pixel dimensions.
The trouble with Picture Package is that it’s difficult to know when you have started using interpolation (UPsampling), unless you do the math. Very similar to functions performed by crop tool w/ppi specified.
Same with the print options in PaintShopPro.
2272×1704, without interpolation, yields:
7 x 5.2 @ 324 ppi
7.5 x 5.6 @ 300 ppi
10 x 7.5 @ 227 ppi
Just to factor 3 of the infinite possibilities.
So, IOW, if you printed a 10" print from Picture Package at 300ppi, you’d be upsampling (adding interpolated pixels).
On the other hand, if your print looks nice enough for you, doesn’t much matter whether you’ve used interpolation to output it or not, eh?
—
Mac McDougald
Doogle Digital – www.doogle.com
Mac- Question. I hope I don’t confuse the issue but wouldn’t you be able to tell if upsampling was occuring based on the width height data in image size window. I mean if it says the largest you can print at 300 ppi is say 4.725 X 6.75 wouldn’t you be okay if your print size stayed within this range? I assume that upsampling would occur if you printed a 5 x 7 but not a 4 x 6. Is this line of thought flawed?
You are correct in your assumptions.
Whatever Image Size dialogue reports as you change either ppi or print dimensions (with Resample OFF) is an UNinterpolated image, using the existing original image pixels only.
Mac
Mac. Thanks for posting back on that question.
Terri
I am a total digital-imaging neophyte. I see what you’re saying about pixel resolution in proportion to change in image size. So, if I use Picture Package and the images are going to be, say 5 x 7, then I guess I should first plug in the desired printed size under Image>resize>image size to see what the pixel resolution ends up for that size without resampling the image. Then when I go to Picture Package, I plug that number into the resolution box.
Do I have it right?
That will work.
Note that slight resampling may not hurt your image at all, in some cases can even help up to a certain extent and within certain confines.
And of course, you haven’t actually changed your file by using Picture Package, you’ve only output it to printer. So, regardless of what you choose to do in PP, your actual image file is still intact.
Mac
Wow, I just tried all this out. I used the Picture Perfect again and set the pixel resolution to 324, since I had two 5 x 7 images. WOW! They look great! They make me glad I’m switching from film to digital.
Thanks so much for your help! I’m sure I’ll be back with more questions, but in the meantime, I can’t wait to go out and shoot more pictures.
Very good, Linda…thanks for the report.
Mac
My problem is similar to Linda Bulmer’s Picture Package printing. I have arranged many sheets of pictures via Picture Package and filed them in psd. When I return to retreive these
from psd for printing, many of them print out beautifully but some print out blurred. Any suggestions as to what is occuring with those coming out blurred?
Darvin-
Check and see if all the pictures you are printing on the page have the same resolution. If they are set at different resolutions, this might explain why some print out clear while others are blurry.
They do have the same resolutions, however, I am having
difficulty in determining the correct resolution for the sheets that come out blurred. Thanks for the comment.
Darvin, did you see my comment in the other thread? Need to change Picture Package default resolution from 72 to 200+.
