Need help with printing (DPI & PPI)

Hi All. I'm making a billboard ad for a friend using CS2. The dimensions are around 14'x6'. The printing company hasn't been much help for me. They usually print basic vector graphics and they don't worry much about distortion. The most they could tell me was that they print at 150 DPI and that I can make my image at half size and they'll blow it up.. I'm very worried about distortion as it is an elaborate pixel based graphic.

However, I'm having much trouble working at this huge resolution. Major disk errors and massive loading times between tasks (even with 200gb free disk space and 4gb ram). So, I'm wondering is there any lower resolution I can work at without losing quality here? The printing company hasn't been very helpful here, and I'm having trouble avoiding distortion even in photoshop alone at this rediculous resolution. Thanks if you can offer any advice here, I just feel as if I'm making it harder for myself than it should be.

ps I know how to work around the disk scratch errors, but the resolution is killing me.

Yes, even at 75 ppi I calculate just over 181 megapixels. At 8 bits per channel, that's half a gigabyte per layer.

This is an enormous image, even by today's standards, and there is no need. People will not be looking at this billboard from a foot away. Work at 25 ppi or less, which will cut the image size by a factor of 9. Consider doing a final resize to deliver a final rez of 75 ppi.

ok but if I did keep the same PPI, would it matter the size of my document? For instance if it was 1/4 of the actual size, with 150 PPI, it would retain the same proportions and I would be ok to print without losing quality?

Thing to remember is just because you can see the pixels on screen or on paper does not mean the viewers will see them on the billboard. It is too far away to see the individual pixels.

that's a good point. the main concern for me is the actual photograph i need to integrate into the design. Also, to be more precise the ad is for the side of a truck, not an actual highway billboard.

Yes, it would retain the proportions, and the quality will be fine. Close up, a photograph will appear very soft but on the side of a truck, this image will be viewed at a fair distance of 5 meters or more.

You mentioned that your image has an intricate pattern of some kind. If you need individual control of every pixel - for example if the image contains a fine pattern that is very small compared to the final size, that's another matter, and you will need to provide them with a higher resolution image.

It may save some grief if you have them print a proof consisting of a strip of a 20 cm or so of a selected strip of the image. It will cost a little extra, naturally. That way you can be confident that the final image will look right, from both a color and a resolution standpoint, and sign off on the whole thing before they do the final print.

If there are vector objects as well as raster, have you considered using indesign to compile the design?

I NEED HELP PLEASE,WHAT LASER PRINTER IS REQUIRED FOR POSTSCRIPT PRINTING WHICH ALLOWS THE DPI TO BE CHANGED USING CS3 HP PAV,HAVE GOT HP 2015 N AND POSTSCRIPT DRIVER BUT IT DOSENT WORK!!!!!

Please do not type in all caps!