How do YOU crop?

[Aylwin]

I've noticed that photos on the web are cropped to all shapes and sizes. In my case, I tend to stick to 3:2 because I figure that's the aspect ratio of my camera. Although I do crop to 4:3 also sometimes with portrait oriented shots. I guess I do this because when/if I print the photos, they will be in these "standard" ratios.

So how do you crop? Why?

[Ikinaa]

I normally crop 2:3 for printing as that's the paper size : I often go to the photoshop do to the printing, so that gives me 10x15cm, I could also have the other format 10x13, but I prefer the 'old' format. If the picture allows it, I do the crop right, so that I don't have any white borders on the pic or the printing-machine cuts the picture.
As for the Web, I normally try to stick to the 2:3 aspect ratio, but very loosely. Here the crop is 'more' important than the paper size...

[thomascanty]

I rarely print my pictures, so I crop them to look their best, whatever size that happens to be.

[ejwebb]

I crop in the camera's 3:2 aspect ratio for the web, unless a different crop would improve the picture. The 3:2 ratio works well for most of my pictures as I try to compose what I want with the camera to retain as much information as possible in my images.

Composing with the camera does not always serve me well in printing, however, as I usually have to cut the ends off to get my photo's into traditional printing formats. I need to be more aware of the print format when I am composing. Also, it is partly for this reason that I have purchased a mat cutter so that I can create custom mats for certain prints. Now, just to make the time to learn to use it...

[Scottes]

If I crop, I crop to 2:3 for print and web. I really struggle to get the most out of each picture, doing my best to crop with the camera, and I always figure that the end result should be planned for a print.

I have been burned by this in more ways than one, though. Suddenly I want an 8x10 and the crop hurts the composition. Many times I've cropped too close to the subject, then the printer loses a little bit, then the matte or frame covers even more, and I'm left with cropped feet or something. I've got to pay more attention to this.

[dtrayers]

I print 4x6 (2:3), 5x7 and 8x10 sizes (maybe A3 after Christmas!), so I typically don't crop until I print.

Lately, I've been leaving a white border on my 8x10's, so I'll crop to whatever works for the image and then resize the canvas accordingly to fit the print size.

[Aylwin]

I have been burned by this in more ways than one, though. Suddenly I want an 8x10 and the crop hurts the composition. Many times I've cropped too close to the subject, then the printer loses a little bit, then the matte or frame covers even more, and I'm left with cropped feet or something. I've got to pay more attention to this.

Good point! Composition and cropping can be tricky business. Traditionally, I thought proper composition is very important in photography. Nowadays, while I still believe composition is of no less importance, I think that it shouldn't be so tight. In other words, when I remember to do so, I try to leave some allowance when I compose. This is especially true for portrait shots where I prefer a 4:3 or 5:4 ratio.

On the other hand, composing loosely and then cropping later reduces the maximum resolution of your shot. This may become an issue if you have a great photo which you'd want to blow up. :roll:

Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts on cropping. I'm looking forward to hearing more! :)

[tofuboy]

I usually leave images as a 3:2 ratio for the web, and then crop to whatever ratio is needed for print...

[Tiger1]

:D Aylwin,

I crop images for printing rather than the web because I exhibit five different sizes of images in outdoor art festivals and art galleries. The five are mathematically proportionate size wise to each other so that one cropped image "fits all".

The only images that are different ot me are the panoramas which are usually printed 13" x depending. :D

Hope this helps.

Gene

[Jesper]

In my opinion, artistic reasons to crop (or do anything else to) a photo should always have priority above technical reasons, like "I crop to 3:2 because that's the format of my camera".

I crop to whatever makes the photo look as I want it to look. For printing, I just cut off part of the paper.

[drisley]

I always crop to the 3:2 ratio.

[Scottes]

I crop to whatever makes the photo look as I want it to look. For printing, I just cut off part of the paper.

LOL! I should try that. I always want as much detail as possible, so I try to cram everything in. For some reason I have this hangup about cropping as "cheating" - for me, mind you, I never put that onus on anyone else.

However, I also find 3:2 a very pleasing ratio. (I probably should crop to 1.618:1, eh?) I really don't like 8x10 at all - I find the aspect itself to be quite ugly - but finding 8x12 frames and mattes is a pain.

[Ikinaa]

It was well known that Cartier-Bresson did not want his photographs to be cropped by picture editors. John Morris remembers, "At Magnum there were two rubber stamps used on Henri's press prints. One said that the photo should not be altered by cropping; the other said that the photograph should not be used in a way that violates the context in which it is taken. One stamp for BEAUTY, of form; one stamp for TRUTH."

from http://www.nppa.org/news_and_events/news/2004/08/henri_cartier-bresson_dies.html

[Tomsk]

I crop to whatever size suits the picture. I may change the crop ratio to fit the page or album layout.

[G2Jim]

Unless I figured it wrong, I almost always crop to 4:3 (1.333:1) since most of my shots are not printed, and that ratio fits nicely on standard PC monitors as wallpaper. When in portrait mode, I crop to whatever looks best.

[pradeep1]

If I know I am going to print, I crop for 8X10, which is 75% of the prints I make. If I am not going to print and display online only, then I crop as I wish.

[Hellashot]

This has been asked before. Please do a search for your question.

[Conk]

This has been asked before. Please do a search for your question.

So :? I likely answered it then and will again. I crop to print.

[CyberDyneSystems]

I crop to please my beedy littel eyes... :wink:

[CyberDyneSystems]

This has been asked before. Please do a search for your question.

This IS the post that asked this before.. the post is well over a month old... :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

[commando]

How do you tell photoshop to crop with a 3:2 ratio? I crop using my eye, but i'd like to know how to do it to a particular ratio.

[Aylwin]

How do you tell photoshop to crop with a 3:2 ratio? I crop using my eye, but i'd like to know how to do it to a particular ratio.

In Photoshop, I use the Rectangular Marquee Tool. You can change the Style to Fixed Aspect Ratio and then enter the values you wish for width and height.

There might be a better way but this is what I know. :)

[commando]

That'll do me, thanks Aylwin.

[jgbeam]

I always crop to print. Usually 4x6, 5x7, 8x10, 11x17, 13x19 and 5x5 (for CD labels). I also like to creat pseudo panorama prints by cropping out the top and bottom and printing on 19 inch paper. This works great for stage performance shots and landscapes.

Jim

[chris.bailey]

Most people asking for prints want standard sizes 4 x 6, 7 x 5, 8 x 10 etc so I always crop and sharpen as a last operation and may well have different versions of the same pic for different size prints. The base tiff file is always uncropped.