changing image size

SS
Posted By
Sherri_Schneider
Jun 24, 2004
Views
307
Replies
10
Status
Closed
Why is it that when I change a picture’s size that came from my digital camera (it is opened from its folder as a 21 x 28 for some reason) and I set the width at 6 (because I want a 4 x 6 picture), the height always comes out to 4.5? I don’t want to lop off someone’s head because of the extra .5 inch! If I use the resample option and make it a 4 x 6, it is distorted.

Help!

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RR
Raymond Robillard
Jun 24, 2004
Because your camera doesn’t make standard size pictures. For example, my Canon 10D makes pictures of 3072 x 2048 pixels (btw, at 180 pixels / inch). To get the ration, put 3072 divided by 2048. This equals 1.5.

So 4 x 6 is ok with the 1.5 ratio (4 times 1.5 = 6)

My previous Canon, a Powershot A20, made pictures with a different ratio. 1600 x 1200 pixels. 1600 divided by 1200 = 1.3333.

So, in this case, a 4 x 6 because a 4.5 x 6 (6 divided by 1.333 = 4.5)

Therefore, to get a perfect 4 x 6, you’re going to have to crop the picture yourself. There’s no other way.

Ray
BG
Byron Gale
Jun 24, 2004
Ray,

Nice job laying out the math!!

Byron
KL
Kenneth_Liffmann
Jun 24, 2004
Sherri,
I have a similar situation to yours. Here is my work flow in order to avoid an injudicious crop:
1. Open file, go to Image>Resize>Image size. Now, for purposes of printing, set image size to a value which makes the dimensions come out more or less the size that you want. For example, on a current image in my program, setting image size to 375px/in results in width 6.013 in, height 4.027 in. You have to play with the numbers a bit. For printing I like 240-300 px/in, but that is negotiable. Stop there. Click OK.
2.Go to rectangular marquee tool, set style to fixed size, width to 6", height to 4" in this example .
3. You can slide the rectangle around in order to embrace the content that you want to retain, then go to Image>crop.

This technique avoids distortion.
Ken
RF
Robert_F_Carruth
Jun 24, 2004
I don’t know if this is available in any other brand of digital camera but both of my Olympuses (Olympi?)(D-550 and C-740) have the option of picking their standard 1.33 or 1.5 ratios. The 1.5 is called 3:2 in the menu.

The advantages of shooting in 3:2 is perfect 4×6’s, very close 5×7’s and a few more pics on the card. The disadvantage is that if your target is 8×10 (1.25 ratio) you have to crop out a lot more of the picture. If the original is 1.33 you lose 6.6% while at 1.5 you lose 16.7%.

FWIW my best method of cropping if I’m going for as much of the picture as possible:

Select the rectangular marquee tool (new selection), set style to constrained aspect ratio, enter 4 and 6 in width and height depending on orientation, set view to fit on screen, position the tool in the upper left hand corner and drag as far as you can go and release the mouse, put the cursor inside the selection area and drag to the best crop (or use the arrow keys to move), click image/ crop.
Use Image/Resize/Image size with both constrain aspect ratio and resample image checked and change the document size width to 4 or 6 depending on orientation.

Bob

Edit: Ken you beat me to it.
O
OldnSenile
Jun 25, 2004
On Thu, 24 Jun 2004 01:26:57 -0700,
wrote:

I don’t want to lop off someone’s head because of the extra .5 inch!

Sherri,

When I really don’t want to crop the short dimension, I just re-size it to 4" and then extend the canvas beyond the 5.33" image, to 6".

1. Image / Resize / Image Size :
Constrain Proportions checked, Resample unchecked
Change smaller dimension to 4" (larger dimension should change to
5.33"). Click "OK".

2. Image / Resize / Canvas Size :
Change 5.33" to 6". Click "OK".

3. Save As:
Select modified Filename, select desired Format (e.g. JPG) and Quality (e.g. 10) if jpg, click "OK".

This results in a small (under 3/8") white border at the 2 ends, but no cropping is necessary. (Make sure that the Background color is set to White, unless you want a different color.) It works for me, on those images that I dont crop, when I get 4"x6" prints at my local "Target" store.

OldnSenile
RH
Ron Hunter
Jun 25, 2004
wrote:

I don’t know if this is available in any other brand of digital camera but both of my Olympuses (Olympi?)(D-550 and C-740) have the option of picking their standard 1.33 or 1.5 ratios. The 1.5 is called 3:2 in the menu.

The advantages of shooting in 3:2 is perfect 4×6’s, very close 5×7’s and a few more pics on the card. The disadvantage is that if your target is 8×10 (1.25 ratio) you have to crop out a lot more of the picture. If the original is 1.33 you lose 6.6% while at 1.5 you lose 16.7%.

FWIW my best method of cropping if I’m going for as much of the picture as possible:
Select the rectangular marquee tool (new selection), set style to constrained aspect ratio, enter 4 and 6 in width and height depending on orientation, set view to fit on screen, position the tool in the upper left hand corner and drag as far as you can go and release the mouse, put the cursor inside the selection area and drag to the best crop (or use the arrow keys to move), click image/ crop.
Use Image/Resize/Image size with both constrain aspect ratio and resample image checked and change the document size width to 4 or 6 depending on orientation.

Bob

Edit: Ken you beat me to it.
Some of the new Kodak (DX6440 and DX7440 to name two) have a similar feature, either full 4 mp or 3.5 mp with 3:2 size.
You lose some vertical pixels, but it saves trouble (and card space) in the end.
SS
Sherri_Schneider
Jun 26, 2004
You guys have been a great help! I about have all my 125 cruise pictures from last week done. However, I have one more problem. I have several that I actually want to crop something out of the picture. If I do it at the 21 x 28 size, of course it won’t come down to the 4.5 x 6. I let it come to whatever and then tried the rectangle marquee tool and I can’t get my whole picture in. What am I doing wrong??!!
MM
Mac_McDougald
Jun 27, 2004
In this case use crop tool..
Enter the image size in inches you want in the boxes…
Do NOT specify ppi.

Make your crop.
Whatever you crop for that inch size will still use original pixels only, will not up or down sample.

If you get 220ppi or greater from your crop, you should be okay to print. Of course, the more severe the crop, the less ppi you will have for the image size you select.

Mac
JH
Joe_Henry1000
Jun 27, 2004
The advantages of shooting in 3:2 is perfect 4×6’s, very close 5×7’s and a few more pics on the card. The disadvantage is that if your target is 8×10 (1.25 ratio) you have to crop out a lot more of the picture. If the original is 1.33 you lose 6.6% while at 1.5 you lose 16.7%.

My camera comes with this option although I’ve never used it: afraid I might screw up that once in a lifetime shot that I want to print full page. I might give it a go though, I really hate resizing/cropping to get 4X6.

Joe
RH
Ron Hunter
Jun 27, 2004
wrote:

The advantages of shooting in 3:2 is perfect 4×6’s, very close 5×7’s and a few more pics on the card. The disadvantage is that if your target is 8×10 (1.25 ratio) you have to crop out a lot more of the picture. If the original is 1.33 you lose 6.6% while at 1.5 you lose 16.7%.

My camera comes with this option although I’ve never used it: afraid I might screw up that once in a lifetime shot that I want to print full page. I might give it a go though, I really hate resizing/cropping to get 4X6.

Joe
My camera offers the 3:2 ratio by reducing the vertical resolution somewhat. I just don’t get as many pixels in that direction, but then the files are smaller so I get more pictures per card. Visible resolution remains the same.

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