How to use the crop tool without losing pixels?

[Guest]

5616x3774   /   72 res is what CS5 says my Canon 5d2 large jpeg is out of camera.

Can I use the crop too to make a 20"x24" image and keep all those or most of those pixels?

Do I leave the resolution box blank?

The lab I send the file to for the print, says they want 300 res files (just to complicate thing a bit more)

Thanks!

[Noel Carboni]

kevin4545 wrote:

I understand trial and error, but man, you think if PS says sharperner is better for reduction and smoother is better for enlarging, you would that is the end of the story. no?

Your homework assignment is to define the word "better" in this context, and for YOU.

-Noel

[Guest]

kevin4545 wrote:

Honestly guys, even though I'm a photograhper with a good eye, but I don't know if I can see the subtelties between those bicubics!

Here we are on post #50+ and the issue was settled way back by post #10.  You seem to want some magic answer, but unwilling to try the suggestions offered to see what works for you.  If you are a photographer with a good eye, and you can not see the difference, then others probably won't either.

Photography is a form of art and each person perceives it differently.  Different subject matter with various lighting and colors may need different treatment.  What looks good to JJ, Noel, or someone else,  my look bad to you or vice versa.  So reread this long thread, jot down the suggestions, and experiment to see what works for you.  That is the plus with PS, it is easy to experiment and you can delete versions that look poor.

[JJMack]

No. When you leave the crop tools  Resolution field empty the crop tool will not resample the remaining pixels it will just set the DPI. Like image size does when resample is not checked and you set a size. In other words it calculates what the dpi has to be for the number of pixel you have to print the size set.

If you need 300 dpi the Crop tool can resample the pixels.  First Make sure you set your Photoshop Interpolation defaults to  the method you want used.  As I wrote I don't use the crop tool. If I did I would leave the resolution field empty.  If I needed the crop resampled I would do it with Image size where I have more control over how its done.

[JJMack]

kevin4545 wrote:

5616x3774   /   72 res is what CS5 says my Canon 5d2 large jpeg is out of camera.

Can I use the crop too to make a 20"x24" image and keep all those or most of those pixels?

5616x3774 pixels means your image has a 3:2.  If you use Image Size un-check RESAMPLE and set the print width to 24" you will see the Photoshop will set the height to 16.128" and the print resolution to 234DPI.

20" x 24" is a 5:6 aspect ration.  If you want to print your image 20"x24" you need to Crop you image or distort your image to a 5:6 Aspect ratio. When you crop you discard some pixel.  Since 3:2 is a wider aspect ratio the 6:5 this means some pixels must be removed from the image width. You will retain the images 3774 pixel height but the width will be reduces to 4529 pixels.  So you will lose at least 1087x3774 pixel a total of 4,102,338 so from your 21,194,784 image you lose 4.1Mpixels wind up with a 17.1Mpixel image that will print 24"x20" at 188.7DPI