Try it yourself! The image at the top of this article has the right half reduced in resolution by half. So this gives us a guideline to estimate the amount of resolution required for a given output size. But if your image is 1250 x 840 pixels, what will be the format and aspect ratio With our calculator you can get this information easily. If you have an image with 300 x 300 pixels you know that it has a square format and aspect ratio of 1:1. Below is a quick table we’ve calculated the viewing distance and the maximum resolution that can be discerned under perfectly ideal conditions: Item Discover the image format and aspect ratio. So how do we determine a standard for how far the viewer is standing from the image? Fogra in their Process Standard Digital document suggests that a good standard to use is diagonal of the final product - the larger it is, the further you need to stand away in order to be able to view it in it’s entirety. As we view things from farther away, our ability to resolve detail diminishes. The maximum acuity in the human visual system is related to the diameter of the light sensing cones and rod on the retina, which mathematically translates to an angle (30 seconds of arc, to be precise). The ability of our eyes to discern detail is known as visual acuity. Similar to Colour Perception, for an explanation of viewing distance we need to focus on the human eye. The aspect ratio of an image is its width divided by its height. The guidelines for determining image resolution for large format depend on 3 factors: viewing distance, the viewing conditions, and the type of image. At 400 dpi an image at this size would be an almost unworkable 17.2GB file size (and there aren’t very many digital cameras that can take a 4,608 megapixel image to start with). If an image has a resolution of 72 ppi and is 2 inches by 2 inches in size (like the saffron flowers in the top illustration), then we can calculate its. An image with a 1:1 ratio will be square, as the height and width are the same. An aspect ratio is commonly written as the width followed by a colon and the height. Images on huge banners, wall graphics or fleet graphics on the side of delivery trucks can be 10 by 20 feet. The aspect ratio refers to the height of an image or video compared to the width. Higher than that and the file size increases exponentially without truly increasing quality, lower than that and you may see jaggedness in edges and areas of contrast.īut in the world of large format printing this question is far more difficult. It is always expressed as two numbers separated by a colon (x:y). In the world of small format printing, the answer to this question is usually pretty easy: the rule of thumb is usually twice the output linescreen, or about 300-400dpi. The aspect ratio of an image defines the proportion between its width and height. We are often asked ‘what resolution do my images need to be?’.

Aspect ratio calculator billboard