What are the sizes of photos for printing. Standard sizes

13.02.2022

Page 1 of 3

Article chapters:
JPEG format
TIFF format
RAW format
PSD format

1 Photo file format
2 Main photo file formats
3 File formats for displaying photos

Any digital photograph is essentially a program file that stores information about the image obtained by digitizing each of its points and about how and when it was taken. The data structure of this information is called photo file format or otherwise file photo format.

There are many such formats, and they all belong to the graphic type. They differ in the information compression algorithm, specification and purpose. Each photo file format has been designed for its own purpose and is better suited than the others. For example, for storing images, processing or posting them on the Internet.

There is only one way to get the original digital photograph. It is necessary to project a frame of a future photograph onto a matrix consisting of many light-sensitive photocells, measure the signal level of each of them and write all these values into a photograph file. Such a division of a photograph into separate points - pixels is called a raster, and its file format is called a raster (Fig. 1).

Fig.1 Any digital photograph consists of individual pixels, information about which is stored in a raster format file.

You can make a raster format photo file with two main devices - a digital camera or . But at the same time, the number of formats in which you can save photo files is limited. To obtain photo files of a different format, they must be converted in a special program (Fig. 2).

» Table of standard photo printing formats

To prepare files for printing in one of the standard formats (from 10x15 to 30x90 cm), you can use this table.

format name		linear dimensions, cm	file sizes in pixels
format name		linear dimensions, cm	300dpi	320dpi
10x15		15.2 x 10.2	1795 x 1205	1915 x 1285
11x15	*	15.2 x 11.0	1795 x 1299	1915 x 1386
15x15		15.2 x 15.2	1795 x 1795	1915 x 1915
15x20	*	20.3 x 15.2	2398 x 1795	2557 x 1915
15x22		22.4 x 15.2	2646 x 1795	2822 x 1915
20x30		30.5 x 20.3	3602 x 2398	3843 x 2557
21x30		30.5 x 21.0	3602 x 2480	3843 x 2646
30x30		30.5 x 30.5	3602 x 3602	3843 x 3843
30x40	*	40.3 x 30.5	4760 x 3602	5077 x 3843
30x45		45.7 x 30.5	5398 x 3602	5757 x 3843
30x90		90.0 x 30.5	10630 x 3602	11339 x 3843

* An asterisk indicates formats with an aspect ratio of 4:3. Pictures from digital cameras can have an aspect ratio of both 4:3 and 3:2, depending on the manufacturer and the characteristics of individual models.

File sizes in pixels are calculated based on the print resolution of equipment that prints standard formats - 320 dpi.

Urgent photo printing and photo book printing are performed with a resolution of 300 dpi.

Note:

A small part of the image will always be bleeded, regardless of the values of the "crop" parameter. This is due to the technical tolerances of printing machines for paper play. We do not recommend placing significant image fragments (for example, signatures) closer than 2 mm from its edge.

In cases where the aspect ratio of the image and the selected print size are the same, we recommend choosing the bleed (borderless) cropping mode. This will avoid narrow white streaks around the edges of the printout, which can occur due to natural play when the paper is fed.

In order to print an image "pixel by pixel" without scaling, you must select the "real size" cropping mode. In this case, to compensate for paper backlash, we recommend preparing files with a margin for width and height, but no more than plus 60 pixels on each side.

Welcome to my blog again. I'm in touch with you, Timur Mustaev. It is possible that everyone had to deal with such a situation: you took a picture, on the screen the picture looked clear and of high quality.

Then you went to the salon and printed it out, and it looked completely different from the one on the monitor screen and had a lot of digital noise. What is the problem? Today I will talk in more detail about this problem and what are the photo formats. Let's start studying.

Basic terms for understanding the topic

Pixels - small square dots, colored in a certain light, which make up a single whole - an image.

When you look at a photograph, the eye does not notice the specific dots of the raster, since they are very small and their number can reach tens of thousands, they merge to form one picture. Only when magnified can you see them.

There is a feature: the higher the number of raster dots, the more details are drawn and the photograph is better.

Linear dimension is the width and height of the printed image, expressed in millimeters. They can be recognized using a regular ruler. For example, the linear size of a picture with parameters 10*15 cm is 102*152 mm.

Parameters in pixels are data about the width and height of the digital image.

There is one feature. Digital cameras take pictures of the same sizes: 640 * 480, 1600 * 1200, and on the monitor we see 800 * 600, 1024 * 768, 1280 * 1024. That is a significant discrepancy.

Consider examples. If the picture has a size of 450×300 pixels, then the picture will be rotated under the album, that is, it will be placed horizontally. What does it depend on? The width of the image is greater than the height.

If we take the size of the picture 300 * 450, then it will be located in portrait orientation, that is, vertically. Why so? The width is smaller than the height.

Resolution is a number that relates values in millimeters and pixels, measured in dpi(from the English "dots per inch" - the number of dots per inch).

Experts advise setting a resolution of 300 dpi, designed to obtain high-quality photographs. The minimum resolution is 150 dpi.

The higher the score, the better the photo quality.

But, it is worth noting that if you make a photograph larger than the original, that is, “stretch the dots”, then the quality drops.

Resolution may vary depending on different camera models. What is the secret? Manufacturers of photographic equipment indicate an inaccurate number of megapixels, for example, 12 MP. In fact, it may turn out to be 12.3 or 12.5 MP. But the print quality will not deteriorate from this fact.

Standard sizes

What are the photo formats? Let's find out.

The most popular print size is 10*15 cm. It is used to form a family archive.
The next one is 15*20 cm or A5.
A4, 20 * 30 cm or 21 * 29.7 cm. Used to decorate walls with photographs. Since A4 is the size of office paper for printing, printing is not difficult, since printers are mainly designed for A4 production.
30*40 cm is a complex format. It has two other names: A3 or A3 +. Why complex? Because there is confusion. A3 size has parameters 297*420 mm, but you cannot pick up such photo frames, they are not on sale. The closest photo frame to this photo is 30*40 cm. Be careful when ordering. Photo frames are made with glass.

Custom sizes

Often we have to order a photo not of a standard size, but of a unique one - non-standard.

13 * 18 cm. It is used extremely rarely. Printing is difficult.
40 * 50 cm or 30 * 40 cm. Pictures with these parameters will help decorate the interior, since they are quite large. Therefore, the quality must be high.

How to calculate dimensions for high resolution

Let's take a closer look at a photo with parameters of 10 * 15 cm.

The linear values of these parameters (usually indicated in special tables) are 102 * 152 mm.
Multiply the width of the image (102 mm) by the resolution we want to achieve, in our case it is 300 dpi.
Divide the result of the last step by the number of mm in one inch - 25.4.
Let's get the number of raster dots of the original image in width 102*300/25.4 =1205.

We will carry out the same algorithm for the height.

152*300/25,4 = 1795.

So, we conclude that for any photograph, the size of which will be greater than 1205 * 1795 pixels, when printed on a format of 10 * 15 cm, the resolution will be more than 300 units.

Sometimes it turns out that images with resolutions of 150 and 300 units look exactly the same. Why is this and what does it depend on? Depends on the genre of the picture and the distance from which it will be viewed.

The documents

Document formats are measured in cm!

For different types of certificates - 3 * 4 cm;
For visas - 3.5 * 4.5 cm;
For a passport - 3.7 * 4.7 cm;
In a personal file - 9 * 12 cm;
Residence permit - 4 * 5 cm;
For passes - 6 * 9 cm.

Another range of formats

The main thing is that the photo frame matches the photo. Therefore, manufacturers produce special paper with certain sizes:

A8 (5*7cm);
A7 (7*10cm);
A6 (10*15 cm);
A5 (15*21cm);
A4 (21*30cm);
A3 (30*42 cm).

Why choose the right paper? As a result, you don't have to look at an incomplete, cropped image, or crop white margins that are redundant. Usually, the photo salon presents formats for printing with examples.

Order Features

If you place an order via the Internet, the system, when sending the image, says which parameters would be more appropriate for obtaining a high-quality image. If you choose the format of your choice, and not recommended by the program, then the administration does not take responsibility for getting poor quality.

It would seem that in the modern age of digital technology, why print photographs, because most photos are viewed in digital form. Knowledgeable people say that a photograph comes to life only when it is printed on paper, has a frame and hangs in a room to decorate the interior.

Remember that before printing, you need to select certain options that will affect the quality of the printed image.

Subscribe to blog updates and share your knowledge with friends on social networks.

All the best to you, Timur Mustaev.

I propose to consider what kind of animals these are - JPG and RAW photo formats, what they affect and when you should pay attention to them. What is the photo size and file weight, how they are measured and what they depend on.

Almost all photo cameras can save photos in JPG format (even phone and tablet cameras). In all SLR and non-SLR cameras, as well as in advanced compacts, in addition to JPG, there is at least RAW and RAW +, and sometimes TIFF.

To deal with the formats, first you need to agree on what is meant by the concepts of "size" of a photo and "weight" of a file (photo). I propose to consider these concepts on more tangible objects ... for example, on goodies.

1 | What is a pixel:

The size of objects is measured in meters, the size of a photo is measured in pixels (px).

If you measure the size of this vase with berries, then it will be about 10 centimeters high and 13 centimeters wide ... approximately. That is, we are accustomed to measuring objects in centimeters (meters, kilometers, and so on). If we talk about the photo of the same vase, then the original size of the photo is 7360 pixels (px) wide by 4912 pixels (px) high. This is the maximum photo size my Nikon camera is capable of. To place this photo on the site, the size of the photo is reduced to 1200px by 798px (why, I'll tell you a little later).

What is a pixel? Photographs taken with digital cameras or digitized on a scanner are a combination of tiny colored squares - pixels. If you zoom in on any photo, you will see these pixels. The more such pixels in the photo, the more detailed the picture.

A fragment of the photo magnified a thousand times - squares of pixels are visible.

2 | Is it possible to convert pixels to centimeters:

This is exactly what happens when you need to print photos on paper. One more indicator is needed here - the pixel density (resolution) that the printer (or other photo printing machine) can print. The printing standard for photographs is 300 dpi (dpi is the number of dots per inch). For example, for printing in beautiful glossy magazines, photos with a resolution of 300 dpi are used.

So that you do not puzzle over dividing the photo size by resolution and do not convert inches to centimeters, any photo viewing and editing program (for example, Photoshop) has a function to view the size of the photo image in centimeters. You will need it to understand what is the maximum size of a photo in good quality (with a resolution of 300 dpi) that you can print on paper or other material.

For example, this photo of Frangipani tropical flowers can be printed in the size of 61 cm by 32 cm.

Photo size in pixels and centimeters in Photoshop

To find out the size of a photo in pixels and centimeters in Photoshop, you need to press the key combination Alt + Ctrl + I or go to the menu Image (Image) Image size (Image size).

Let's get back to the reality of digital photos - to pixels and photo sizes in pixels. What happens if you reduce the number of pixels in a photo? The answer is that the quality of the photo will deteriorate. For example, I took the photo of the same bowl of berries at the beginning of the article and reduced the size of the photo to 150 pixels wide. With such a decrease, the program destroys some of the pixels. The photo has become miniature:

Now let's try to "stretch" the photo to the entire page:

Stretched picture looks blurry and fuzzy

As you can see, the detail is not the same, since some of the pixels (and details along with them) are missing.

Of course, if you use this thumbnail as a small icon or a small image in a Power Point presentation, it will look quite normal, but for printing in a half-page magazine it is clearly not suitable.

3 | What photo size (how many pixels) is optimal:

If you plan to someday print a photo, then save photos in the highest possible resolution, which only your camera will allow (carefully study the instructions for your camera to correctly adjust the photo size).

In some cases, you need to reduce the size of photos. As I wrote above, for the site, I reduce the photo size to 1200 pixels on the long side. If you upload a photo in full size, the pages of the site will take a very long time to load, and many visitors may not like this (not to mention Google and Yandex search engines).

The size of photos is measured in pixels (px). The size of the photo on the monitor screens depends on the number of pixels, and what size the photo can be printed.

4 | File size or "photo weight":

Now let's deal with the "weight of the photo". It so happened historically that there is a lot of confusion in this matter and the file size is quite often called the "photo weight", which is more convenient than correct. File sizes are measured in megabytes (MB) or kilobytes (KB). And here it is worth remembering that, unlike kilograms, where 1 kg = 1000g, 1 megabyte = 1024 kilobytes.

How it looks in practice: imagine the situation that your camera has a memory card that says 64GB (gigabyte). If you look at how many exactly these bytes are there (select "properties" on the computer with the right mouse button), it turns out that there are 63567953920 bytes on this memory card and this is equal to 59.2 GB. How big your camera creates files will determine how many photos will fit on that memory card. For example, I have 830 files with photos in RAW format (read about formats below).

What determines the file size:

Firstly, on the size of the photo (what is measured in pixels): the file with the first photo of the berries (photo size 7360x4912 px) is 5.2 MB, and it, reduced to 150 px, will "weigh" 75.7 KB (in 69 times less).
Secondly, from the format (JPG, TIFF, RAW), which you can read about below.
Thirdly, the file size (or "photo weight") depends on the number of details: the more details, the "heavier" the photo (which is most relevant for the JPG format).

Lots of details - more photo weight

For example, in this photo with monkeys from Sri Lanka, there are many small clear (in the language of photographers, "sharp") details and the file size with this photo is 19.7MB, which is significantly larger than berries in a vase on a white background (5.2MB).

If you ask what size photo I can print from a 2MB photo. No one can answer you until they know the number of pixels. And it’s better, of course, to also look at the photo, since some craftsmen like to get a photo from the depths of the Internet, increase the number of pixels programmatically, and then want to print it on the cover of a magazine. It turns out as in the example above with a stretched photo of a vase 150 px wide.

File size (often referred to as "photo weight") is measured in megabytes (MB) or kilobytes (KB) and depends on the format, pixel size, and detail of the photo.

5 | Photo formats:

And, finally, we come to the issue of image formats and the type of file compression, which also determine the size of the photo file.

Almost all photo cameras can save photos in JPG format(even the cameras of phones and tablets). This is the most common image format and is "understood" by all computers and image viewers. In JPG format, photos can be uploaded to social networks, posted on a blog, added to Word, Power Point files, and so on. JPG can be processed in Photoshop, Lightroom and other image editing programs.

From my practice: if I want to take a photo for a social network and quickly upload it, then I either take a picture on my phone or put the jpg file format in my camera.

The thing to remember about jpg format is that it is a compressed format and it has compression levels. The higher the compression ratio, the smaller the file size by reducing the detail and quality of the photo. Therefore, multiple editing and re-saving (re-compression) of the same photo in jpg format is not recommended.

When saving a file in jpg format, the compression level is selected (example from Photoshop).

In all SLR and non-SLR cameras, as well as in advanced compacts, in addition to JPG, there is at least RAW, and often also TIFF.

A little theory:

TIFF(Eng. Tagged Image File Format) - a format for storing raster graphic images (including photographs). TIFF has become a popular format for storing high-color images. It is used in printing, widely supported by graphic applications.
RAW(English raw - raw, unprocessed) - a digital photograph format containing raw data received from a photomatrix (the thing that replaced film in digital cameras).

Personally, I never photograph in TIFF format. I can’t even think of why I need this if there is RAW. I can use uncompressed TIFF to save photos that I still plan to finalize in Photoshop.

6 | Advantages and disadvantages of the RAW format:

I almost always have a RAW format in my camera, since I'm going to process (edit) photos in Lightroom or Photoshop. RAW has a number of significant disadvantages:

There is no way to view files without prior conversion. That is, to view photos in RAW format, you need a special program that supports this image format.
Larger file size than when saving in JPEG (from my Nikon D800 camera, the file size with a photo in RAW format is 74-77 MB). This means fewer photos will fit on the flash drive.
RAW cannot be uploaded to social networks, a blog, and sometimes even sent by mail. First, RAW needs to be converted with a RAW converter (eg Adobe Camera Raw) that supports the file type of your camera model.

Why do professional photographers often prefer RAW over JPG? Because RAW:

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gives more options for image correction: white balance, contrast, saturation, brightness and noise level,
allow you to more accurately correct images without the appearance of defects,
allows fine correction of lens imperfections (vignetting, chromatic aberration).

So, if you plan to carefully process pictures in Photoshop or Lightroom, subtly feeling "artifacts" and halftones, "overexposure" and "dips" in the shadows, then shoot in RAW. Just remember that in order to get a good result, you will need to understand the settings and operation of RAW converters. Think about whether you need this headache? Maybe you should shoot in JPG and devote more time to rest, and not to the computer?

We are often asked: - "Can you print A4 photos?".

Of course, we can print photos in almost any size, but this question needs clarification.

Photo paper formats differ from international ISO formats, but most often in everyday life we operate with terms and sizes that are familiar to us, such as A4, drawing paper, etc. Although photo paper sizes and conventional sizes are quite close, they are still different from each other.

The main photo formats have an aspect ratio similar to the matrices of modern digital cameras 1:1.5 (2/3) or 1:1.33 (3/4). Standard international paper sizes have an aspect ratio of 1:1.4142, meaning they do not match in proportion. When printing on Noritsu minilabs, photo standards are used. Also, such familiar photo frames and photo albums for storing photos correspond to photo standards.

This table shows the ratio of photo formats that we print to standard paper.

Photo format we print	Photo size in px	Photo size in mm	Aspect Ratio	ISO standard	ISO size in mm
10x15	1217x1807	103x153	2:3	≈A6	105x148
15x21	1807x2492	153x211	3:4	≈А5	148x210
20x30	2409x3614	204x306	2:3	≈A4	210x297
30x40	3614x4972	306x421	3:4	≈А3	297х420
30x45	3614x5410	306x458	2:3	≈А3	297х420
30x60	3614x7217	306x611	1:2	≈А2	420x594

Photo format we print

Photo size in px

Photo size in mm

Aspect Ratio

ISO standard

ISO size in mm

10x15

1217x1807

103x153

2:3

≈A6

105x148

15x21

1807x2492

153x211

3:4

≈А5

148x210

20x30

2409x3614

204x306

2:3

≈A4

210x297

30x40

3614x4972

306x421

3:4

≈А3

297х420

30x45

3614x5410

306x458

2:3

≈А3

297х420

30x60

3614x7217

306x611

1:2

≈А2

420x594

Now let's look at each of the photo formats in detail. The popular 10x15 format is 2 mm smaller on one side than the standard A6, and 5 mm larger on the other. Therefore, if you need exactly A6, you should order a photo 15x21 and cut off the excess manually.

Below you can see how the 10x15 format compares with the well-known A4.

A 15x21 photo will be slightly larger than an A5 sheet. On one side by 5 mm, on the other - by 1 mm. Therefore, if you need exactly A5, feel free to order a photo 15x21, cut off the excess.

Below you see the ratio of 15x21 to A4.

The 20x30 format is almost A4, but the photo is 6 mm smaller on one side and 9 mm larger on the other side than A4. 20x30 and A4 are disproportionate.

Below is the ratio of photo 20x30 to A4.

If you need A3, then choose a photo 30x40. 30x40 by 9 mm on one side and 1 mm on the other side more than A3. Calmly order and cut yourself =).

Below you see the ratio of 30x40 and A3.

Photo 30x45 is larger than A3. This can be seen in the picture below.

Photo 30x60 is difficult to compare with plain paper. 30x60 is much smaller than A2 (whatman paper) and much larger than A3. But this does not prevent 30x60 images from being popular among photo artists.

Below you see the ratio of the photo 30x60 to A3.

Below is the ratio of photo formats to each other.