Nikon D600 For Dummies

Planning for Perfect Prints

Images from your D600 can produce dynamic prints, but getting the best prints from your picture files requires a little knowledge and prep work on your part. To that end, the next three sections help you avoid the most common printing problems.

Check the pixel count before you print

Resolution — the number of pixels in your digital image — plays a huge role in how large you can print your photos and still maintain good picture quality. You can get the complete story on resolution in Chapter 2, but here's a recap as it relates to printing:

• Choose the right resolution before you shoot. Set resolution via the Image Size option on the Shooting menu.

  You must select the size before you capture an image, which means that you need some idea of the ultimate print size before you shoot. When you do the resolution math, remember to take any cropping you plan to do into account.

• Aim for a minimum of 200 pixels per inch (ppi). You'll get a wide range of recommendations on this issue, even among professionals. But in general, if you aim for a resolution in the neighborhood of 200 ppi, you should be pleased with your results. If you want a 4 × 6″ print, for example, you need at least 800 × 1200 pixels.

  Depending on your printer, you may get even better results at a slightly lower resolution. On the other hand, some printers do their best work when fed 300 ppi, and ...