Resize creates blurry/pixelated image

Question

I have selected with the quick selection tool to cut out a little girl using a mask. Image size is 7" x 14" at 300 DPI and then tried to add it to my Card template (5" x 5" 300 dpi) but it's coming out blurry after I adjust the image size to a smaller size. Both are Adobe RGB - 16 bits. You'd think resizing wouldn.t after the sharpness but it is!

What I've tried...

1) Tried to drag and drop (including mask), resize via Image size (resampling unselected) and still blurry

2) Tried to flatten and save as PNG & TIF and then place it in my template. It creates smart object but image is still blurry yet if I click on smart object it opens to the sharp original file?

How can I get my cutouts into my card and keep the sharpness as this needs to be printed?

SteveWeinrebe · Answer

Are you viewing at 100%? Check your zoom in the document tab, and/or at the bottom left of the workspace. You can double-click the Zoom tool for 100% view. What you attached looks sharp on my screen at 100%.

That said, contrary to what might seem intuitive, reducing image size significantly can make an image lose sharpness. That's why when you go to Image > Image Size, one of the resampling methods is "Bicubic Sharper (reduction)", because when you reduce an image's size you often need to then also sharpen it.

Consider trying that resampling method, and also resize down incrementally, not all at once.

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