Preparing Your File for Giclée Printing

Acceptable file formats: JPG, BMP, PNG, TIFF

Acceptable file size: Up to 50MB

 

You should understand the quality to expect given the amount of data you have, and the size you want to print. Digital pictures are made up of tiny dots, called “pixels”. These picture elements vary in size when printed. The term “resolution” refers to the amount of pixels in a given inch size (Pixels Per Inch), and the higher the resolution the better the print. We recommend at least 175 PPI for most images, and 250 for images with a lot of detail.

Also, if your print will always be viewed at a distance, or in dim light, you can easily use less PPI, because the eye will see less clearly.

Here’s how it works: If you want to order a print that is 36"x50", and feel that 175 PPI is fine for your needs, you’ll need 6300 x 8750 pixels to get 175 PPI (6300 pixels ÷ 36" = 175). Imaging software (and in Windows folders or on Mac OSX) can tell you the number of pixels in your image so you can do the math (see "How to Check" at the bottom of this page). Scanning software can help you scan at a high resolution to get the number of pixels you want per inch.

 

 

Choose one of the two options below:

If you already have a digital file

If you want to know how to prepare a file

 

 

 

If you have a digital file ready now:

 

Print Size Recommendation Tool

Our main goal is to make sure your file has enough image data (resolution) for the print size you desire. If you already have a file, you need to know what quality to expect.

STEP 1.     ENTER SIZE Enter the pixel width and height of your image: Width: Pixels Height: Pixels            Show me how to check my image STEP 2.    RECOMMENDED PRINTING INFO

Scroll down if you need to scan for a larger file / larger print size

 

If you don't have a file and need to
know how large to scan:

 

Scan Size Recommendation Tool

Our main goal is to make sure your file has enough image
data (resolution) for the print size you desire.

The tool below will give you guidance on the size of
scan to meet your printing needs; consult your scanning software
manual for help on adjusting the settings and getting the best scan.

 

STEP 1.     HOW BIG IS YOUR ORIGINAL? Enter the approximate size of your physical art in whole inches: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 " x 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 " STEP 2.    HOW LARGE DO YOU INTEND TO PRINT? Enter the largest approximate print size you may want to print: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 " x 1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 "                         Then read step 3... STEP 3.    RECOMMENDATIONS

 

PRINT these specific Recommendations

 

Some ways to check your image size

In Windows: View by Thumbnails, then pause your mouse over your file

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In Mac OSX: View in columns, select your image, then review the info

 

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In Photoshop: Go to Image > Image Size... Here you can try on a number of different Resolution settings, and see the resulting Width and Height. Note that "Resample Image" is not checked.