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How to Make High Res Pictures

A high-resolution picture is a photograph with a large number of pixels per square inch. This results in a picture that is crisp without blocky-looking pixels, a problem called "pixelation." High-res images are used for printing and generally have a measurement of 300 dpi (dots per inch). In order to create this type of image it is necessary for the photographer to have the correct tools and equipment.

Things You'll Need

High-resolution camera

Instructions

- 1
  Choose a camera that has a high resolution. The more pixels, the higher the resolution. Luckily, as of 2010, most digital cameras sold were high resolution. To create prints up to 13 by 9 inches you&'ll need at least 6 megapixels.
- 2
  Set your camera to the highest resolution using the menu options. This is often labeled "Image Quality." Choose the highest JPG, RAW or TIFF options available. RAW and TIFF files are uncompressed files that have "lossless" data. This means that pixels don&'t become distorted when editing the digital file later on. A JPG file is not a "lossless" file format so there will be some distortion of image pixels. However, the highest-resolution JPG file only loses a small amount of data and takes up 6 to 8 times less space on a memory card. If you&'re shooting photos exclusively for the web, shooting in JPG is a good option because the Internet requires the JPG format.
- 3
  Take photographs and upload them to your computer. Open them in an image-editing program. If you shot the photos as JPG files, convert them to TIFF or PNG format before you edit. This will prevent you from losing data in your photos as you edit and keep your pictures at the highest resolution possible for printing or posting to the web.
- 4
  Print your images on a photo printer or on another printer that has a high dpi. Set your printer to print at the highest dpi possible. For most printers this range is between 600 and 1,200. Change the print settings by looking in the "Menu" toolbar under "Print Settings." If you don&'t have a printer that is capable of handling a dpi between 600 and 1,200, it&'s best to have your photos printed by a professional company. There are several options listed below in the Resources section.
- 5
  Upload your pictures to the Web in high resolution by saving the files as JPGs after you have done all editing in a "lossless" format. Make sure to use the "Save As" feature so you don&'t lose the original file format. Save the files at the highest quality your program will allow you. Generally, there is a sliding selector that ranges from "Minimum" to "Maximum" quality. Slide the selector all the way to the "Maximum" quality setting and save the file.

Photography