[drjaxon]

I've run across prof. printers or publishers who have been requesting images for print to be in high res at 300 dpi. All the jpegs I save from my K200d to my HP Vista machine show to be at 72 dpi. My old Kodak 2MP p%s images were saved as 160 dpi with this same computer and software (Windows Photo..)
My Q is, is the dpi setting for my jpegs a function of or operation of my camera or the software in my computer?

Now, I've used photoshop to change the dpi to 300, and I don't see any difference. I've printed plenty of images from the 72 dpi files, some in 8x11 size and they appear as sharp and clear. What's up with dpi in prints vs viewing on computer screen. Is it better for me to convert my images to 300 dpi before printing? Can I change any settings in my camera or computer so that they are automatically saved as 300 dpi? Or is 72 dpi good enough?

[drjaxon]

OK, now that I've posted this, I saw and read the related threads already answering my Q in adequate detail. The 72 is meaningless on the exif. I've learned now dpi is entirely a function of the print size to MP ratio, and all my 6 and 10 MP images will be more than 300 dpi for anything 8x11 or smaller. Shoulda searched the threads first.

[rhodopsin]

The printer is confused; they want 300 pixels per inch. So for an 8x10" print that's an image 2400x3000 pixels.

Actually, ppi and dpi are essentially equivalent; in the printer's world it's dpi, for digital media it's ppi.

[mtroute]

Aside from PPI vs. DPI you should consider the format as well. Personally I would capture them a RAW and then save them as tiff's with LZW compression. Jpeg is a lossy compression and if you print large prints you may see compression artifacts.

[artobest]

Don't forget to tag those images (with a colour space) or the printers will have to guess how your colours should appear.

You need to give them the file with 300 dpi at the canvas size you want it to print. Don't let the printer determine that. Most won't. I won't. You want me to put something it in it needs to be 300 dpi at the print size with 1/8" bleed.

[mysticcowboy]

drjaxon, My guess is that you're not printing with a top photo inkjet printer. With an Epson 1900 or a Canon 9000 or better, you will notice a difference. You will also notice a difference in toner usage. You can generally increase your resolution to 360 DPI (with a big enough file) and see a small but real increase in detail. If you're printing with a less expensive printer, chances are that you won't. Not saying there's anything wrong with everyday printers. Most people don't pixel peep and will find that they're more than good enough.