Picture prints grainy after exported from Photoshop

[angeliqueg98195371]

I created a Christmas card in Photoshop CS4 and exported it as a JPEG to my desktop. When I print it on my EPSON Workforce Pro from my Mac's picture previewer the image turns out grainy but the background & print look just like they do on my computer. I have tried getting rid of actions, using a different photo, & making sure the file is imported as the original... Still grainy... I have used PicMonkey (when it was free!) to edit photos & printed them on my printer at home & they come out perfect. Anyone know why I can't get the image to turn out clear?

This is my first attempt. It won't let me upload my last try...

[Abambo]

Well, the frame is grainy, so it should print grainy!

For the rest, I see a nice picture that could need some faces lightened up and having a little more contrast, but I do not wee a grainy picture.

Did I understand your request correctly: only the preview looks grainy? If that is the case, there is no need to be afraid. Some previewer do not preview the picture at high quality.

[angeliqueg98195371]

No, it looks as shown above on the previewer but it the picture prints grainy. The frame doesn’t change in appearance from the previewer to the printed page. The other picture I tried is lighter but it wouldn’t let me upload that one  

[Nancy OShea]

I never convert images to JPG unless I'm using it for screen viewing like on a website. 

Start with a big canvas and plenty of pixels/inch

I always keep my original PSD files and Save As a PDF with a High Quality Print Preset.   This will preserve much higher Dots Per Inch or DPI that your printer can support.  

[Abambo]

https://forums.adobe.com/people/Nancy+OShea  wrote

Start with a big canvas and plenty of pixels/inch

May I contradict this. As I'm OK with you to keep the original files as Photoshop PSDs or TIFFs (with the layers intact), I wouldn't start with a big canvas but with a design size canvas. When taking a digital picture like this, I would use either the picture size of my source file or the size of my design, whichever is higher. You rarely need higher resolution as 400dpi. I design even the most demanding artwork at 300dpi.

I also save my final outputs as JPEG sRGB for printing when I'm not printing directly out of Photoshop. I use PDFs only in mixed artwork created with Illustrator or Indesign. I never save a photo to PDF if I'm given alternatives.

[Nancy OShea]

My print professional asks for PDF in High Quality CMYK.   I normally use 300 DPI as well.

[Abambo]

angeliqueg98195371  wrote

The other picture I tried is lighter but it wouldn’t let me upload that one  

That's strange. At least if it is a JPEG file... Please share your Photoshop file via Dropbox or similar.

Even at 500% I do not see anything grainy in the major parts of the picture.

And the picture resolution is good.