What size prints (350D)?

luckydog

No doubt this is talked about somewhere within the dark realms of DGRIN but I want to know.

I am yet to make a print of any shots from my 350D and was wondering what size people have printed up to with good results from the same camera. I have a couple i'd like to print but don't want to be stupid in the print shop and say "I dunno what size." Would rather be stupid among friends in here

TIA
Lucky

Andy

luckydog wrote:

No doubt this is talked about somewhere within the dark realms of DGRIN but I want to know. Lucky

No prob - but it doesn't belong in the Hall of Wisdom, at least not yet I moved it for you.

Go big! I've printed 6' wide from an 8mpx Sony 828. Your 350D had nice smooth files - go large-- and let the lab do upsizing if needed.

20x30, 30x40, bigger even!

mercphoto

luckydog wrote:

I am yet to make a print of any shots from my 350D and was wondering what size people have printed up to with good results from the same camera. I have a couple i'd like to print but don't want to be stupid in the print shop and say "I dunno what size." Would rather be stupid among friends in here

That camera is capable of very large prints, such as 20x30 or 24x36. Bear in mind that at large sizes the quality of the lens will start to show in obvious ways. After you start to realize this you will start lusting after expensive L-series glass. I have yet to find a cure. Save yourself my misery and only make prints at 4x6. ROTFL!

nokout3839

L glass and print size

mercphoto wrote:

That camera is capable of very large prints, such as 20x30 or 24x36. Bear in mind that at large sizes the quality of the lens will start to show in obvious ways. After you start to realize this you will start lusting after expensive L-series glass. I have yet to find a cure. Save yourself my misery and only make prints at 4x6. ROTFL!

Hi,

Just wondered if someone could clarify exactly how the superior lenses effect print quality. I am only a beginner at photography but I thought that the major benifit of the more expensive lenses was the amount of light that can be passed through to the sensor and focus speeds. Is there other major differnences that will effect prints???


Cheers

SCS_Photo

nokout3839 wrote:

Hi,

Just wondered if someone could clarify exactly how the superior lenses effect print quality. I am only a beginner at photography but I thought that the major benifit of the more expensive lenses was the amount of light that can be passed through to the sensor and focus speeds. Is there other major differnences that will effect prints???


Cheers

Sharpness is the biggie when it comes to resizing. Sharpness is a function of the quality and number of lense elements. Faster lenses (ones with large max aperture) tend to have higher quality lense elements in them.

Another thing to consider is where you will be viewing them from. A 20x30 isn't meant to be placed in a hallway, its meant to be viewed from at least several feet away. Do the DPI calculations... 300 DPI is usually the target, though less can certainly be used when the viewing distance isn't up close.

SCS_Photo

Edit: Duped post.

mercphoto

nokout3839 wrote:

Just wondered if someone could clarify exactly how the superior lenses effect print quality. I am only a beginner at photography but I thought that the major benifit of the more expensive lenses was the amount of light that can be passed through to the sensor and focus speeds. Is there other major differnences that will effect prints???

Yes. The biggest difference is the quality of the optics. A lens manufacturer will typically put much better glass inside a faster lens. This also part of the extra cost of fast glass.

We think of glass as being transparent. This isn't completely true. It is mostly transparent, but is also partly reflective, and also absorbs some of the light. And these properties aren't necessarily linear or constant across the visible light band. Hence the reason for flourite lens elements, special coatings, etc. Something else that can make a lens better than another is the tolerances to which it is ground and polished. Seeing as how you cannot machine/mold/stamp/polish/forge anything perfectly the final product will deviate from the ideal. A lens element in an expensive lens will be closer to the ideal than the optics of less expensive lens.

All this adds up to photos that have more vibrant colors, greater contrast, and sharper detail.

3rdPlanetPhotography

Oh my... I've been suffering from lens lust as well. I was searching for an answer. I wonder if I brought out the old 110 camera that the lens lust may fade? :uhoh

mercphoto wrote:

That camera is capable of very large prints, such as 20x30 or 24x36. Bear in mind that at large sizes the quality of the lens will start to show in obvious ways. After you start to realize this you will start lusting after expensive L-series glass. I have yet to find a cure. Save yourself my misery and only make prints at 4x6. ROTFL!