Hi All,
Is there such as thing as standard resolutions for particular mediums? For example, 72dpi for screen, 300ppi for most printers, 1200ppi for colour separations... I am wondering at what resolution should I be drawing at if the client doesn't tell me or doesn't know themselves where the illustration will end up, such as in a website and printed on a brochure. Does anyone have any guidelines for this?
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matt_lorenzi
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Re: Image Resolution Issues
Good questions. My only advice is build in a high resolution: 300 dpi, which works for most commercial printers. It's easier to "dump" information when down-sizing than it is to bring it back when up-sizing.
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JamesProvost
- Posts: 174
- Joined: Mon Dec 14, 2009 8:03 pm
- Location: Toronto, Canada
- Contact: Website
Re: Image Resolution Issues
To be technical (and that's what we do here) you're talking about pixels-per-inch (PPI) not dots-per-inch (DPI). PPI refers to the density of information in an image file, whereas DPI refers to the density of ink/toner dots on a printed page. The two are commonly used interchangeably, but it's useful to know one describes the amount of information in an image, and the other describes the precision of a printer or output device.
These numbers only mean something when paired with a specific size. For example an image that's 2400px by 3000px could be 72ppi, 300ppi or 1200ppi. But if it's printed at 8" x 10", it'll be 300ppi.
To answer the question though, in general, images for the web are produced at 72ppi, for print at 300ppi, and for large scale printing around 100-150ppi. That's not to say that every screen displays images at 72ppi, or every printer prints at 300ppi, these are just common practice because they produce good-enough results without excessive file size.
I typically produce my raster work (Photoshop, 3D, etc) 50% larger than the client asks for (so 450ppi at the given print size). I do this to squeeze in more detail, in case the client wants to use it larger, or in case I want to resell the work later or print it myself. Like Matt said, it's always possible to scale images down, but never up.
Hope that helps!
These numbers only mean something when paired with a specific size. For example an image that's 2400px by 3000px could be 72ppi, 300ppi or 1200ppi. But if it's printed at 8" x 10", it'll be 300ppi.
To answer the question though, in general, images for the web are produced at 72ppi, for print at 300ppi, and for large scale printing around 100-150ppi. That's not to say that every screen displays images at 72ppi, or every printer prints at 300ppi, these are just common practice because they produce good-enough results without excessive file size.
I typically produce my raster work (Photoshop, 3D, etc) 50% larger than the client asks for (so 450ppi at the given print size). I do this to squeeze in more detail, in case the client wants to use it larger, or in case I want to resell the work later or print it myself. Like Matt said, it's always possible to scale images down, but never up.
Hope that helps!