• Adobe Photoshop

  DPI workflow for compositing and printing

  Posted by Weston Jones on July 13, 2009 at 9:34 pm

  Greetings,

  I’m about to prepare a composite image for print and I could use some advice on a proper DPI workflow. The final image size to be printed is 20″ x 30″ at 400dpi, Lambda C print.

  The image I am making is essentially a collage of video stills…these stills exist as TGA 1440×810. These default to 72 dpi when exported from AE.

  If I bring these targas into the 20×30 400dpi photoshop document, they are far too small for my composting purposes.

  Therefore, should I composite in photoshop with the 20″x30″ document set at 72 dpi, and then scale up to 400dpi when I’m finished? Or should I make the targas 400dpi in phoroshop first and then drop them into the larger document? (seems like no final difference, except that I’m then working with larger files)

  Also, I noticed that photoshop doesn’t explicitly have a “dpi” setting, rather “ppi.” Can I take a 72ppi document in photoshop and save it as 400dpi without expanding my resolution?

  Thanks a bunch in advance!

  Weston Jones replied 17 years, 1 month ago 2 Members · 2 Replies
• 2 Replies

• 

  Richard Harrington

  July 15, 2009 at 2:38 am

  Short answer.

  There is no way in heck to blow up postage stamps to a fine art print.

  A video frame

  TGA 1440×810 (have no idea where that size came from)

  at 400 ppi = about 3.5 X 2 inches

  SO…. if you are making a collage that has seven rows across and 15 high, you are all set.

  But I suspect you don’t

  ALSO… if you plan on working at 20 x 30 and 400 ppi…. I hope you have a fast computer, a huge scratch disk, and a hell of a lot of RAM.

  Richard M. Harrington, PMP

  Author: Photoshop for Video, Understanding Adobe Photoshop, Final Cut Studio On the Spot and ATS:iWork
• 

  Weston Jones

  July 15, 2009 at 4:54 pm

  hah yeah I figured there was no way around it.

  The printer takes 200dpi, so that will help some.

  Thanks for the advice.

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