Photographic print sizes

Now, when we take photographs we pay attention to composition in the viewfinder, but did you know you should be paying attention to how the image will look in different print sizes that are available?

A lot of cameras today record photographs in roughly a 3:2 ratio. This means that the long side is 1.5 times as long as the short side is. That's the reason 4x6 has become a popular print size today. Now, when we look through a viewfinder it is this size that we see and generally compose our pictures with it. But the ratios are not the same for all standard print sizes and that means you image will be cropped to some extent.

An image at 5x7 or 8x10 size has ratios are different than the 4x6 format print. Now, prints at the 5x7 size have a 3.5:2.5 ratio print size. Note that the long size is 1.4 times as long as the short side is. Photographic prints at the 8x10 size have a 5:4 ratio print size. Here, the long side is 1.25 times as long as the short side is. It's often easier to think in terms of the length multiplication factors instead of the actual ratios of the sides.

If you are shooting images (such as portraits) where enlargements are likely, you need to leave some extra room on the long side of your image so that important items are not cropped out. When you plan for the squarest ratio (the 8x10 print), you should almost always be able to crop a nice image out of your original. Many standard prints are not exact matches to one of these three ratios, but few are below the 8x10 length multiplication factor of 1.25, so shooting for 8x10 format should allow room for nice cropping.

Here are the standard Print Sizes and their length multiplication factors:

• 4x6 - 1.5
• 5x7 - 1.4
• 8x10 - 1.25
• 10x13 - 1.3
• 11x14 - 1.27
• 10x20 - 2
• 16x20 - 1.25
• 20x24 - 1.2
• 20x30 - 1.5

Now, how you have your image processed and printed can be just as important, or more important, than the image. The print is your presentation of your image. Always make sure its a good presentation by understanding your different considerations.

Who will print your photographs is a huge decision to make. The biggest difference between amateur photographers and professional photographers was the labs they used. A professional's negatives and raw images looked little better than an amateur's because of the lab. Labs that offered individualised processing and cropping made the images match the photographer's vision of the image. Some photographers prefer to process their own images so they retain complete control over the creation. Remember, photography processing should not be taken lightly or decided upon quickly.