Printing, Aspect Ratios and 10D

[shafiq]

Dear Forum members,

I have come to the realization that if I am going to print a picture on say 8x10 or 11x14 etc then I have to plan ahead of taking the picture.

I am told that the 1Ds comes with interchangeable eye-pieces (i think) that have guide markers for setting up these kind of shots.

What alternative technique is there for me with the 10D? I hate to take what I think is a great shot only to find that it gets cropped at the wrong places :roll:

Thanks for your comments.

Shafiq

[mosesd]

In Adobe Photoshop Elements I resize the canvas so the aspect ratio fits. Go to image, resize and canvas. There will be an area top and bottom or left and right that will be part of your picture (canvas) and will print, otherwise the printer will crop the image. The color of the canvas can be chosen. Use a custom frame or mat to hide the canvas. When I crop a picture I make sure it is the aspect ratio that I need for printing. P.S. Walgreens does a good job on 4X6 (2,3). If you order over 50 at a time the price drops to $.20 each.

[mosesd]

I'm a point and shoot photoghapher with a 300D SLR. I like to shoot Large/Fine JPG so I can crop or whatever and still have a good 4X6. The main reason I like SLR is TTL metering, fast shutter lag time, fast focus and a big (550EX) bounce flash (lumnaquest). The point and shoot's can't delever. Someday I'll grad to big prints. I'm hopefull the Dig projectors get improved and cheaper then I'll resize my pics to 1024X768 and show on a big screen.

[KennyG]

What alternative technique is there for me with the 10D? I hate to take what I think is a great shot only to find that it gets cropped at the wrong places :roll:

Shafiq

Crop in post-processing and then you will be sure that it will fit the size of print you want. If you crop the image yourself then you can be sure which bits are removed.

You can even do it in C1 on the RAW image before it is converted.

[mson]

I think Shafiq is looking for something that will help him before the shot it taken.

If these eye pieces for the 1D exist, wouldn't they also fit the 10D and 300D?

[MediaMagic]

I think Shafiq is looking for something that will help him before the shot it taken.

If these eye pieces for the 1D exist, wouldn't they also fit the 10D and 300D?

Unlikely as the viewfinders would be different sizes. The piece he mentioned is for the 1Ds, the full frame viewfinder. Doubtful it could work on the 1.3 or 1.6 viewfinders.

[defordphoto]

The easiest way to solve the problem is to print 8x12's and use the full aspect of the sensor. I'm not sure the history of the 8x10 and the 4x5 aspect of printing, but it's been around forever and we've been chopping the sides off all our prints for years. Anyone know why?

I bought 8x12 paper.

[CyberDyneSystems]

No... and it's a damn good question that has been driving me nuts too! :P

It allways seemed odd that the aspect ratio of these prints changes :?

[defordphoto]

No... and it's a damn good question that has been driving me nuts too! :P

It allways seemed odd that the aspect ratio of these prints changes :?

It's a good argument for Olympus' 4x5 standard proposal... Actually I prefer the 4x6 standard of 35mm film except that it such a pain to get some 4x6 aspect prints. COSTCO does 8x12's though which I love, but then their next size is 11x14! :?

[mattchase]

As was already said, print at compatible aspect rations such as 4x6, 6x9, 8x12, 12x18, etc, and you won't have to crop. Most printers can handle these, I have gotten both 6x9 and 8x12 prints done at Costco.

The quick explanation behind the 4x5 and 8x10 print formats stems from medium and large format films. A 4x5 (and 8x10) peice of film printed full frame is (duh) 4x5, then 8x10, 16x20, 24x30, etc. Medium format films also closely follow these aspects, though not exactly. The two most common medium format film sizes (6x4.5, 6x7) both format to 4x5, 8x10, 16x20, etc with a minimal amount of cropping from the sides. 6x4.5cm film is actually 4x5.3, 8x10.6, and 16x21.3, while 6x7cm film is 4x4.6, 8x9.3, 16x18.6. Since back in the early days most photographers were professionals using these type cameras, and most printers were custom shops (or the photographer themselves), these were the sizes that became standard.

With the introduction of 35mm film, the aspect ratio changed quite a bit, and to this day still causes some problems when printing. Not for me, cause I just print full frame! But often a client will ask for an 8x10 but will not want the image cropped, and I have to explain all about aspect ratios and all. In the end we often print a 6.6x10, keeping the 10" maximum but not cropping anything out of the image, and then trim the paper to have a white border to make it an 8x10 overall size. Not the best solution in the world, but we don't get many complaints about it either.

I do like that Olympus opted for an aspect which fits the 4x5, 8x10, etc ratio, since that is what is so commonly used and known by the general public. But at the same time, I like the in between sizes that you get with 35mm aspects (such as 6x9 and 12x18).

Of course, then I have a square format camera...

[TonyKInTexas]

I have shot with a Yaschica Mat D (old, old camera) and it was fun. Did not worry about composing too much because of the framing it had.

It was a wonderful system and part of my learning experience. :)

...

Of course, then I have a square format camera...

[mattchase]

Yup, that was my first medium format camera. Replaced it a couple of years ago with a Mamiya C330, still a square format, but has interchangable lenses. Great camera, fairly small, the lenses are good, and the system is pretty affordable. Plus it is all metal, so it will keep going, and going, and going....

[TonyKInTexas]

The Yashica had one lens adapater (telephoto I think) and it belonged to my father. We finally parted with it when we moved in 1998 (can't take EVERYTHING with you).

Yup, that was my first medium format camera. Replaced it a couple of years ago with a Mamiya C330, still a square format, but has interchangable lenses. Great camera, fairly small, the lenses are good, and the system is pretty affordable. Plus it is all metal, so it will keep going, and going, and going....

[MarkH]

Dear Forum members,

I have come to the realization that if I am going to print a picture on say 8x10 or 11x14 etc then I have to plan ahead of taking the picture.

I am told that the 1Ds comes with interchangeable eye-pieces (i think) that have guide markers for setting up these kind of shots.

What alternative technique is there for me with the 10D? I hate to take what I think is a great shot only to find that it gets cropped at the wrong places :roll:

Thanks for your comments.

Shafiq

Why not get 8x12 and 10x15 and 12x18 prints, I've seen all these sizes listed at pro printing shops.

[iwatkins]

It is something everyone comes across at some point.

Yes, you can get prints made at the same aspect ratio of the original shot, some places this is easier to do than others. The real problem comes when it comes to framing them.

In the UK, you can easily buy frames for 8x10 but not for 8x12. So if you want a frame you are looking at having some made (plus mattes). Not cheap.

I find it much easier to just take the shots with cropping in mind, print at standard sizes and buy an off the shelf frame for it.

The only time I don't is if the shot will actually be spoiled by cropping (to change aspect ratio) and this is when you need to spend the money for a custom made frame (or make them yourself, which I'm seriously looking into).

Cheers

Ian

[leony]

This is one reason to UP from 10D to 1Ds. You can crop, and still come away with a decent 11x14 print.

If you look at the people that shoot for magazines (mostly fashion) - they all shoot MF with digital backs: 15MP+ My favorite is Imacon 22MP (not my own, the guy I assist to has a couple.... He worked out a marketing deal with the company so they gave him 3 - total cost:$90,000

The reason being that magazine editors like to crop. A lot. More than you do.

After you crop a 6MP image by 1/3 you've got a photo-quality 4x6. Photographers like to be published on magazine covers, so you really need like 10MP+ image so that you can crop away without worry.

Here is how to shoot and crop in camera for 8x10 or 9x12 (popular for model's portfolios) - this is a 10D viewfinder, curtesy canon's site. This is just about 99% to scale, but keep in mind that 10D's viewfinder is not 100% field of view so you'll get some things "on the ourside" that will show up in your pictures.

http://www.pegasus.rutgers.edu/~leonidy/pf.gif