The Truth About Pixels, Part 2-1: Printing 4x3 Inch Photos

Why is a 3 megapixel camera better than a 1 megapixel camera? It really depends on how you intend to reproduce the picture. The reason cameras produce pictures at 72 pixels per inch is that this format is standard in video uses such as television and DVD. So there is no noticeable difference in quality when viewing pictures on a TV or DVD. The difference appears when you are cropping and/or printing these pictures. If you are not familiar with the term cropping, I will explain it later. First, let's talk about printing.

Even the most inexpensive of printers these days are capable of printing at 300 dots per inch (dpi). Most are capable of printing at 600 dpi and you can buy relatively affordable printers that print at 1200 dpi and above. You may have noticed that with cameras it's called pixels per inch and with printers it is call dots per inch. The terms are hardware specific, but relate to the same principal. A printer prints a specific number of dots of ink per inch on the paper whereas a TV displays a specific number of pixels per inch on the screen. In either case, combining the dots or pixels creates the picture.

So how does this affect quality? If we're printing a picture that has 72 pixels per inch from a 1-megapixel camera on 4x3 printer paper we've got a problem. (Here is where I have to crunch some numbers, so please bear with me.) Let's figure it out. Four inches times 72 pixels (dots) per inch equals 288 pixels (dots) on the vertical line. Three inches times 72 pixels (dots) equals 216 pixels (dots) on the horizontal line. The total picture would have 288 times 216 or 62,208 pixels. That's way short of one million.

So where did the other pixels go? If you're printing this picture at a store or camera shop that has conversion capabilities, the machine that you are printing on actually crunches the picture down for you. The size of the picture taken by a 1-megapixel camera is approximately 16 inches x12 inches. (16x72=1152 and 12x72=864 and 864x1152=995,328 pixels). The machine makes this picture into a 4x3 by increasing the number of pixels per inch. The 4x3 picture is 1/4th the size of the 16x12 so there has to be four times as many pixels per inch to reduce this picture to 4x3. Four times seventy two equals two hundred eighty eight pixels (dots) per inch. With more pixels or dots per inch, the picture can be reproduced at a higher quality level making details sharper and more distinct. So a 1-megapixel camera can produce a reasonably good quality 4x3 inch picture on a 300 dpi printer. That's what most amateur photographers get with their snapshot cameras. If you try to get larger pictures, then the picture quality begins to deteriorate. Part 2-2 will deal with larger prints.

Conclusion: If you have a printer with more than 300 dpi capabilities and all you want is 4x3 inch prints, then you are not using all your printer's abilities. If you want prints larger than 4x3 inch, then you need a camera with a higher quality output capability. If all you want is 4x3 inch prints and video reproduction without cropping much, then a 1-megapixel camera and 300 dpi printer should serve you fine.

Note: Different printers produce different quality prints. Since this is a discussion of pixels and digital cameras, I do not get into choosing printers for the quality. Suffice it to say, if you have a reasonably good quality printer, then the information provided should work for you.

Note 2: There are ways to enlarge prints with lower dpi rates and size and still get quality results. This information will come in later discussions and is probably geared toward the more advanced photographers and digital dark room users.

Wayne Rockwell is a professional videographer at Legacy Pictures to Video and specializes in Video Montage creation and Photo Retouching.

---

Market Your Photography Business

Setting up your own photography business it easy, you don't... Read More

How to Make Your Production Look a Lot Slicker for £40 More

Tight BudgetsTight budgets are common these days. But the demand... Read More

7 Things You Must Do If You Want To Make That Perfect Camera Shot

Saturate yourself with your subject and the camera will all... Read More

HP Digital Cameras - History and Beyond

HP has started making digital cameras only recently. However, the... Read More

Photography Success Without School

What I learned from a mentor that enabled me to... Read More

10 Things You Can Do to Protect Your Photographs from Infringement

While it would be nice to live in a house... Read More

Four Unique Ways for the Pet Portrait Artist to Stand Out

The warm feelings are flowing all around when the pet... Read More

The Venice Rookery

Love is in the air at the Venice Rookery. The... Read More

Panasonic Digital Cameras - The History Behind Their Cameras

Panasonic is a world-renowned consumer electronics company today. Its digital... Read More

Move Up to the World of the Digital SLR Camera

A digital SLR camera or a single lens reflex (SLR)... Read More

Landscape Photography - Capture the Beauty That is All Around

There are many different types of photography. You can take... Read More

Color Management, the Digital Darkroom, and Adobe Photoshop

PrefaceIn order to understand color management, it is important to... Read More

Traveling to Europe with Your Digital Camera?

The Vacation Season is fast approaching and naturally you will... Read More

Top 10 Digital Cameras - What You Need To Know About Them

There are a large number of top 10 digital camera... Read More

How to Shoot Video of Your Kids Sports Team So That Anyone Else Will Watch It!

Break out that video camera, there is a game this... Read More

Canon Digital Camera - from Humble Beginnings to World Class Company

Started in a single-room by three Japanese men in the... Read More

Keep a Digital Photos Diary

Digital Photo Diary - memories that last a life timeThe... Read More

Diffusion & Softening of Digital Photography Images

Like many people who've made the switch from film cameras... Read More

Digital Camera Macro Mode

The digital camera is a wonderful device that allows a... Read More

Help! My Old Colour Photo has Turned Pink ? 5 Minute Digital Fix

Almost all of us will have seen this particular photographic... Read More

Infrared Photography and Big City Crime

One of the major problems of the larger cities of... Read More

How Many Megapixels Do We Need?

Are you having megapixel envy each time you walk by... Read More

Review of the Photek Product Shooting Tent

Here's the challenge. You have to photograph small items for... Read More

Removing a Textured Pattern from a Scanned Photo ? 5 Minute Digital Fix

One of the most common problems when dealing with scanned... Read More

Hyperfocal Focusing: What Is It And Why Should You Use It?

When should you use hyperfocal focusing? Well, sometimes when shooting... Read More

Let Those Digital Photos Out! (You Don?t Have To Print Them Yourself)

What have you done with the photos you've taken with... Read More

Buying the Best Digital Camera for Your Needs

Choosing a digital camera can be a daunting task with... Read More

Why 1.5 Megapixels is Enough

Dots Per Inch is a useful measure of relative resolution.... Read More

Digital Camera Printers

The digital camera is not meant only for capturing images... Read More

Seven Ways for Saving Your Digital Images Forever!

So, you have taken lots of pictures with your new... Read More

Digital Cameras and Digital Photography

Before you rush into buying your digital camera this holiday... Read More

Light and Depth of Field

With such a fantastic device as the digital camera for... Read More

Crooked Horizons in Your Photos? ? Here is a Five Minute Digital Fix

Remember the good old photography days?Film camera in hand, you... Read More