How do I make a vector image of a photo to put into a very large print poster

[kdwpilgrim1]

I am making a large (6 ft by 2 ft) banner and need to put images based on photographs into the image. I cannot get large enough image files for the resolution needed. Hoped I could create a vector image using Illustrator that should be scaled to fit into the poster. I saw how to image trace the image, but cannot find information on what I do with it now. Again this is for a print product, not a webbased or screen product.

[Myra Ferguson]

Do you mean you like the traced result, but now you don't know how to work with it? If that's the case, then got to Object > Expand...

[kdwpilgrim1]

Thanks. I need to send the final image file to the vendor in a jpg file. How do I put the Illustrator image into Photoshop to make the final jpg?

[Myra Ferguson]

You can export to jpeg from Illustrator. File > Export... and you can use any of those options (Export for Screens..., Export As..., or Save for Web (Legacy)...) to export a jpeg.

[Bill Silbert]

You can actually export it directly from Illustrator with File>Export>Export As... and choose .jpeg. You can also open an .ai file through Photoshop and do a Save As as a jpeg.

[kdwpilgrim1]

Thanks, but this is where I get confused. I would need to save a jpg image at the resolution I would need in the banner, correct? (12Kx1k pixels) if I open the ai file in Photoshop I can scale it to the right size there?

[kdwpilgrim1]

Here is the banner I am making. The two photographs are not high enough resolution. I can use AI to make these into vector images and insert them into the PSD file?

Thanks so much for your help!

[Bill Silbert]

You can copy and paste them into Photoshop from the .ai file and when asked say that you want them imported as "Smart Objects". They will then keep all of their Illustrator vector attributes and will still work at the larger size. The rest of the Photoshop file would have to be created at the large size to begin with to keep the resolution. I am wondering why, though you need the psd at all? Why not just work from the Illustrator file on its own? Then resolution will not be a problem.

[Doug A Roberts]

you could make them into vector images, but it's very unlikely you'll get anything more usable at larger sizes than the original raster images. image trace is just tracing pixels, it's not a magic wand.

also, do you mean 12k x 4x for 6ft x 2ft? That's 167 dpi. you could probably get away with a lower resolution on such a large banner.

[kdwpilgrim1]

That image resolution is just for the smaller part of the poster, not for the whole thing. They want 360 dpi for the whole poster.

So you are saying that bottom line, I still need super-high resolution images to make a large poster? How do they make billboard with photographic images on them?

[kdwpilgrim1]

Okay, that simplifies things considerably. Just look for super-high resolution images.

[Doug A Roberts]

they don't make them at 360 dpi, that's for sure!

360 dpi for something that big sounds insane.

[kdwpilgrim1]

It is insane. I feel like I am missing something really obvious.

[Kris Hunt]

300 ppi is sufficient for small format. The larger the print, the less resolution you need. Billboards only need maybe 50 ppi.

[Bill Silbert]

I agree with Kris and Doug a large poster doesn't need resolution that high. Discuss this with your printer. He or she may be saying that they want, for instance, the job built at 25% of final size with 360 dpi art which when enlarged would be 90 dpi which would make sense.

[kdwpilgrim1]

I will go back to the vendor and see if they will discuss it with me. I created the image I included earlier at the resolution they wanted, but they rejected it. Like I said... a conundrum.

[kdwpilgrim1]

So why is the vendor requiring 360 dpi for a 2ft x 6ft poster? How do I find photographs with high enough resolution for that? The ones I've found for purchase, i am sure are generated to that size. These are conundrums that I don't know how to resolve.

[Kris Hunt]

Maybe they're assuming you're designing at a reduced scale.

> they rejected it

<eyeroll>

I guess you could always upsample to 360 ppi just to appease their ignorance.

[kdwpilgrim1]

I DID upscale it. They saw through my deception. The image was 18 mbytes.

[Dynamic Office]

Heres a website with lots of images all royalty free;

https://pixabay.com/

[WILDCAT54]

And here is a couple more:

Beautiful Free Images | Unsplash

https://www.pexels.com/

[kdwpilgrim1]

Thanks for the sites for images. I didn't know about these.

[Bill Silbert]

No. If you make it a jpeg then you are back to square one which is resolution dependent. The whole point of converting to vector is to be able to enlarge your image without degrading quality.

[kdwpilgrim1]

That is what I thought. (I've tried watching the tutorials, but they don't seem to get around to telling me what I need to know... or I don't know what questions to ask. I do appreciate all your input!)

[kdwpilgrim1]

Partly because I know Photoshop and don't know Illustrator. When I have time I will go back and learn how to do the whole poster in Illustrator.