High resolution images
Have you chosen quality images for your print?
There are high and low resolution images. If you’re including photos and images in your artwork to print they need to be a high resolution.
When looking at low resolution photos or images on screen they’ll look sharp but if you print them they’ll look blurry and pixelated, especially if you’re enlarging them.
DPI
‘Dots per inch’ is a printing term still used today, sometimes incorrectly, to refer to ‘pixels per inch’ which indicates the resolution of a photo at a given size. DPI/PPI along with the overall image size in mm is the measurement we use to determine how sharp an image is.
The higher the resolution, the more detail the image holds and therefore the better the quality for printing. Higher DPI images appear vivid, vibrant and detailed in print.
Images from Google or those you find on websites will be 72dpi, the correct resolution for an image displayed on a screen.
The resolution needs to be a minimum of 300dpi to print crisply and clearly.
You can change the resolution of an image in Photoshop and Word.
If you’re unable to change the resolution of images, then simply select high resolution ones.
Finding high res images
Our best advice on selecting images suitable for print is to not simply take them from an internet search! These are usually low resolution and can also have copyright implications.
There are however dedicated websites where you can get good quality, high resolution images free of charge or for a small price.
It’s worth taking time to select decent, good quality images.