Print size vs Megapixel

[10dedfish]

Hey everyone,


I was just wondering, what the rule of thumb is for print size vs Megapixel of the shot? For example, if I run a few shots at 7.1M then what would be the largest print I could go with before things get "grainy"?

Thanks for the help,

10ded

 

[thomas998]

No easy answer to this one... you also have the issue of compression of the image by the camera... for example, I have an old Nikon D50 that is 6 mega pixels... my wife as a little pocket camera with 10 megapixels... I have blown up photos taken with the Nikon to poster near poster size and had no problems.. I have tried to blow up some of the ones from my wifes camera to 8 x 10 and they were horrible.

If you give more info like the particular camera then maybe someone can give you a reasonable answer... at the very least are you talking point and shoot or a dslr... and if its a point and shoot how compressed are the images.

 

[10dedfish]

Well, currently the Camera is a Fujifilm s700, but I am planning on purchasing a rebel xt on the way home this evening. I want something a little larger than the normal 8x10's you usually see, but wasnt sure if there was a hard fast rule. I would imagine that the sensor on the camera would play a large part of that, but mostly becuase you mentioned it.
I know that the Xt's are little on the older side as far as camera's go, but money is quite the object, especially with the economy as it is.

10ded

 

[thomas998]

I'm willing to bet you can get pretty large prints with the XT even though its older... just make sure you shoot in raw... when you do the jpeg you start to seriously impact the image quality of blow-ups. I'm not directly familiar with that model, but more than likely the noise will only be an issue in lower light situations... only with the more expensive newer models do you get good performance at the higher ISOs... I would suspect it would give you excellent shots up to 11 x 14 and probably good shots beyond that.

 

[MICKEY88]

check out the chart on this page it might help answer your question..


http://www.mpix.com/support/Help.aspx?id=3

 

[10dedfish]

Thanks guys for the replies. I appreciate all the help everyone give out so freely around here.

10ded

 

[seashoreCM]

Don't overlook the quality of the lens. Most point and shoots have some blurriness at the corners that can be noticed in 5 megapixel and greater pictures, particularly at wider angles.

Most cameras have a choice of resolution. I always go with the maximum resolution and also the minimum compression (called large and superfine respectively on mine).

I would say you can get decent 8x10 pictures with 5 magapixels.

Digital camera hints: http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/digicam.htm