Still trying to ask the right question. Have 10mp camera. What printer-scanner resolutions would be best?
I see multipurpose -printer-scanners offering color photo resolutions ranging from 9600×2400 dpi down to, say, 2400×1200 with the corresponding scanner resolution ranging from 4800×2400 to 600×400.dpi I am confused by the difference between the photo and scanner resolutions. A 10mp camera adds to my confusion.
Sometimes I move my photos from my camera directy to my computer for editing and then printing. But sometimes I have photos printed by a third party, Walgreens. etc. In the later case, if I am not satisfied with a photo, I will scan the photo into my computer for editing and then print the edited (Walgreen’s) on my printer. Most photos I print are 4×6 but sometimes I want larger photos. Given my 10 mp camera, what combination of camer and scanner resolutions would be best?
February 3rd, 2011 at 6:11 pm
You want the minimum resolution that looks acceptable to you. You will find, that unless you are printing an A3 page, throwing the full 10Megapixel image at the printer is a waste of time.
My 6Mp Pentax has a raw image of 3,000 by 2,008 which I am told is acceptable for A3 size printed images. i would probably only need to send 1/4 of the total pixels if I wanted to print a 4×6/A5 to get the same quality.
In a scanner, the real use of the high dpi is to magnify the original image. I rarely scan stuff at more than 300dpi, unless I am actually zooming in to enlarge part of it, or it is small, like a slide.
Be aslo aware that some stuff doesn;t actually scan at the rates they claim, but interpolate/pad to increase the dpi.
In the end, it comes dow to the minimu that is pleasing to the eye.