Will it look sharp,
or soft?
Enter the size you are printing at and either a viewing distance or the image’s pixel dimensions, and see whether the resolution holds up.
A reference tool, not a quote. Sizes and rules of thumb here are general prepress and USPS conventions — confirm specifics for your job by calling (763) 475-1826 or requesting a quote.
This is a rule of thumb, not a hard physical law — 300 dpi is the safe default for anything viewed closely.
Not sure whether a photo will hold up at the size you need? Send the file and ask.
Request a quote Call (763) 475-1826Dpi is a ratio, not a fixed number
Dots per inch describes how many pixels of a digital image get packed into each inch of the printed piece. The same 2,400-pixel-wide photo is razor sharp printed at four inches wide and visibly soft printed at twenty-four, because the pixel count did not change — only how far it got stretched. That is why this calculator asks for a print size, not just a resolution.
Viewing distance changes what “sharp” requires
The human eye resolves less detail the farther away it is standing, which is the whole reason a billboard can print at a fraction of the resolution a business card needs and still look sharp from the road. 300 dpi is the long-standing default for anything held close — a card, a brochure, a page — because that is the distance at which the eye can tell the difference. Large-format work viewed from across a room or a street can drop well below it without looking soft at the distance it is actually seen from.
None of this changes what a file physically contains; it only says whether the pixels already in it are enough for the size and distance you have in mind.
File checked out?
Send it over.
Upload the artwork and prepress will look at it before anything goes to plate. Or call (763) 475-1826.