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Download our Simple Resolution Chart
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Shooting with a digital camera for the first time can be a thrilling event—as more and more of you are discovering these days. But trying to figure out how to set all of the camera’s controls in order to maximize both image quality and performance can be frustrating. For example, a typical 4MP camera user must choose from as many as eight resolutions, ranging from 640x480 pixels to 3200x2400 pixels, and at least four different compression levels. But a typical camera manual doesn’t tell you which setting to use to make a photo-quality 5x7- or 8x10-inch print or which setting best captures images for your personal web page or for e-mailing. Choose the highest resolution setting, and you’ll barely get a single image on the puny memory card that ships with the camera. Select a low-resolution setting, and you’ll get dozens of images on the card that can be e-mailed in a flash, but aren’t fit to print. How in blazes do you figure out which setting works best for the application you have in mind?
I’ve developed a simple resolution chart that you can use to choose the resolution and compression settings that you need. It starts with a column listing the most common pixel resolutions for a variety of digital cameras and their equivalent in terms of megapixel ratings.
To give you a visual comparison between a variety of megapixel resolutions and what you can expect from a properly exposed ISO 100 color print film, take a close look at the detailed enlargements on this page. The detail in the first five eyes comes from 11x16-inch prints made from their respective megapixel file sizes on an Epson Stylus Pro 7600 printer. The original images were accurately focused and exposed using a manually focused digital SLR. (On the other hand, a 4MP point-and-shoot camera with a so-so lens or focusing system might not capture as much detail as a good 2- or 3MP camera.) Compare the digital prints to the detail from a popular ISO 100 color-negative film optically enlarged to 11x16 inches by an automated minilab printer.
What most POPULAR PHOTOGRAPHY & IMAGING staff members noticed was the lack of grain and the pleasing skin tones on the 11x16-inch prints made with a 9MP camera. (The shot on the previous page was taken with the Super CCD-based Fujifilm S2 Pro digital SLR in 12MP mode.) However, as we reported in our S2 Pro test in the November 2002 issue, the 12MP setting delivers closer to 9MP resolution.) The higher detail reproduced in the film print wasn’t as noticeable when both prints were viewed at normal distances (arm’s length). In fact, when viewed more closely, its sharpness and noticeable film grain actually worked against it, which is why most pro photographers choose a higher speed, lower contrast film such as Kodak Portra 160NC Pro or Fujicolor NPS 160 Pro for portrait shots.
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