BIG PRINT ORDER from old digital file

[Dave Gurtcheff]

Hello all: If you go to my web site you will see that I do mostly seascapes and offer prints in 13"x19",  20"x24",  and 20"x30". When I first switched from my chemical darkroom to digital printing, many of my images were scanned film, using a high end medium format film scanner at 3000dpi scan resolution, so big prints were not an issue from 2 1/4 film images. . I got a print order today for a 20"x30"  print made from a file from my first digital camera: a Canon 10D with APSC size sensor and 6 MP resolution. (I presently use a Fuji GFX 50R and Sony A7RIV).    Panic Time.    I used PK SHARPENER and applied "Capture Sharpen", then I used "BLOWUP 2"  to up res, then "PK SHARPENER" again to apply "output sharpen". Looking at the image on my calibrated monitor at both "Print Size" and "Actual Pixels" it does not look all that bad. The subject matter does not require needle sharpness, so I think the buyer will like it. I have not printed it yet (Epson 7890). If I am not happy, I will contact the client and offer to print something similar made at a later date with higher res equipment. I am an 84 year old amateur. (Having Fun).

Thanks for looking, stay safe.

Dave in NJ

WWW.MODERNPICTORIALS.COM

[Wolfman]

You might want to try Topaz Gigapixel AI. It's slow but sometimes outputs an amazing file: https://topazlabs.com/gigapixel-ai/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=brand_search&attribution=true&gclid=Cj0KCQiAvP6ABhCjARIsAH37rbRNiXU8H39MJkVmqB22cNMeWEK0o78HKWrkBTczlm0S8ZzwHxM9-F8aArJ7EALw_wcB  Worth a try with demo.

Another thing you could try is upsizing with photoshop's Preserve Details 2.0 in the image size dialog window.

[langier]

I've printed images up to about 24x36 from my D2h (about 4 MP) and 30x45 from the D200/D300 (10-12 PP) files and an occasional D100 (6MP) at similar sizes.

With an image that's properly crafted and not full of detail and careful Photoshop processing, quite large prints are possible with just a few megapixels but not every image.

Most of my files for the large prints were interpolated up in Adobe Camera Raw and occasionally within PS if the image was already crafted and mastered. Today, I usually have a few megapixels to spare when I shoot but then when I need big, the images are even better.

The best way to tell that your image will look good is to simply get it printed to size and if you are happy, the client will most likely be, too. In my experience, if it makes the grade at size to my eyes and I print regularly, 99% of everyone else will be quite happy. There will always be one of those one-percenters out there who will have an issue no matter how good the print looks and hopefully it is your customer :-)

[Rhossydd]

The 10D was a great little camera. Michael's review here on Lula challenged a lot of prejudices and made many people sit up and take digital SLR cameras seriously.
Even now looking back, the files from the camera were very good and make great prints. Modern RAW convertors get even more out of the files than when it was new.

[kers]

i would not try to make it a sharp as possible- makes some test prints with different methods and let the client choose...
I agree that 6MP is still a lot of information. Depends on the subject if it is enough.

[Paul_Roark]

I find Topaz AI Gigapixel to be an excellent tool for making small files look more like they were larger ones.  Beware, however, that in the raw conversion of the file you don't have the sharpening at the default -- if on at all.  AI Gig will sharpen halos if there are any.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com

[Richard.Wills]

It is the 35mm vs 2 1/4 vs 5x4 thing. If it looks good, then don't over do the uprezing, but rather embrace the existing information. I produced a series of 60x40" prints from a Leica M8, shot at 6400 iso. There was grain, there was noise, but in the gallery, they looked like photographs. I've run 4' prints from well handled D2h files. Are they as detail and information rich as modern captures? No, but they were good photographs, and the prints looked good.

Claude Monet got away with some damned big pixies on his water lilly pictures.

[krseals]

Dave, do you think the new Super Resolution now available in ACR would help in this situation?

[nemophoto]

My 2-cents, ditto on Gigapixel AI. It does a great job on lower res files. (Interestingly, not so great on higher res images.) I have used it with great success on files from my ancient Olympus E10 (4MP - sort of) and my early Canon D30 (3MP) as well as the original 1D (4MP).

The substrate you print on will make a big difference. Printing on glossy paper will likely be the least successful. Printing a a slightly textured matte will do better. Better still will be something like glossy canvas. I did art shows for six years and printed all my own work with a Canon iPF 8300 then iPF 8400 printer. as I refined my process and what I presented, these lower res early files worked well to 20x30/20x24 -- but printed on canvas. Essentially, the texture of the paper or canvas hide some of the imperfections while still delivering a spectacular print.