Printed Photos Vs. Onscreen Photos

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jokerswild

jokerswild

Chief Bottle Washer
Feb 11, 2007
18,776
1,288
Elkhart, IN
www.totalimpactdjs.com
While looking at my photos in this thread http://www.ourdjtalk.com/showthread.php?t=23525&page=2 I note that there is a grainy quality to all of them even the best of them.

Now I did have one huge factor going against me in those photos that being all the par lighting pointing directly at the stage and me.... I found my self using the Natural setting on my camera... mostly because I don't know enough about how to adjust WB and other things to achieve pictures like I see other's on this board taking...

What I'm wondering is, is there a difference between a digital photo being viewed on a PC screen vs. one printed like a regular photo?

I'd hate to take these photos to a photomat and be dissapointed in the results... when I could be perfectly happy looking at them on my PC screen.

I guess really what I need to do is take a photography class so that I can learn how to use my camera.... I will say this the color reproduction is awesome in some of the shots and even the short video's.
 
jokerswild said:
I guess really what I need to do is take a photography class so that I can learn how to use my camera.... I will say this the color reproduction is awesome in some of the shots and even the short video's.
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If I remember correctly we have the same Camera Rob an if that's the case save yourself a few bucks and read the manuel a couple of times. There is alot of good info in there it would be basically what they would teach you in a beginner photography class and more centered for your camera
 
Jeff Romard said:
If I remember correctly we have the same Camera Rob an if that's the case save yourself a few bucks and read the manuel a couple of times. There is alot of good info in there it would be basically what they would teach you in a beginner photography class and more centered for your camera
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Yeah.... but I hate manuals.... LOL

I have the Fuji Finpix S1000fd
 
jokerswild said:
Yeah.... but I hate manuals.... LOL

I have the Fuji Finpix S1000fd
Click to expand...

Yup same camera..

Honestly I hate manuals too but I put mine in "the reading room" and read it a couple of pages at a time. I found it was a big help. I have to reread it sometime soon to get a little more advanced
 
jokerswild said:
...What I'm wondering is, is there a difference between a digital photo being viewed on a PC screen vs. one printed like a regular photo?...
Click to expand...

Color is reproduced differently by monitor verses a printing process. So in a nutshell, yes there is a difference. Read the difference between RGB color (TV) and CMYK color (print) here...
http://www.copy-cd.biz/dtp-area/RGB-vs-CMYK.jsp
(or google RGB vs CMYK, that was the first thing that came up)

It is also why when you design printed marketing materials on you computer you need to adjust the colors before going to print. For example...deep blues shown in RGB on your screen will print bright purple in CMYK if not adjusted for.

EDIT...there is also a resolution difference. Printing allows for much finer resolution and a clearer picture.
 
Maybe it's just me.... but, every digital camera I've had the photos (almost fugged that up and put an apostrophy where it didn't belong) have always looked grainy to me on screen.... I've really only printed a few digital photos on inkjet printers over the years and have never taken them to a photomat or even one of those photo kiosks.....

I'm dieing to see these in print form as it will make them seem more tangable than just looking at them in the virtual world.
 
WaydeWest said:
Color is reproduced differently by monitor verses a printing process. So in a nutshell, yes there is a difference. Read the difference between RGB color (TV) and CMYK color (print) here...
http://www.copy-cd.biz/dtp-area/RGB-vs-CMYK.jsp
(or google RGB vs CMYK, that was the first thing that came up)

It is also why when you design printed marketing materials on you computer you need to adjust the colors before going to print. For example...deep blues shown in RGB on your screen will print bright purple in CMYK if not adjusted for.

EDIT...there is also a resolution difference. Printing allows for much finer resolution and a clearer picture.
Click to expand...

So by what you are saying what I see on my screen may vary greatly... better or worse?

Color I think in the case of these photos will be ok... I'm just wondering about the graininess of them.... of course I do know the only way to really find out is to print them at a photomat kiosk and find out for myself.

Thoughts?
 
I missed that you are using a digital camera (believe it or not, I still use film and convert to digital)...Depends what resolution you shot the pics on and what size you print them at.

A low resolution file will print grainy if printed too large.
 
WaydeWest said:
I missed that you are using a digital camera (believe it or not, I still use film and convert to digital)...Depends what resolution you shot the pics on and what size you print them at.

A low resolution file will print grainy if printed too large.
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Funny you should mention resolution.... I knew the above... but it brings a question to mind....

I set my camera to it's highest resolution but when I look at the image in PhotoShop Elements for example to resize it, it says that it is only 72 pixels....

Why is that? Shouldn't a digital camera be recording at a much higher pixel density? or is this common?
 
If you're shooting JPEG, look in the manual and make sure you're using the highest resolution....or if your camera allows.... shoot RAW....memory cards are cheap. :)

And like Jeff said "READ THE MANUAL!":sqwink:
 
Kirby Ball said:
If you're shooting JPEG, look in the manual and make sure you're using the highest resolution....or if your camera allows.... shoot RAW....memory cards are cheap. :)

And like Jeff said "READ THE MANUAL!":sqwink:
Click to expand...

I'll have to check.... but I don't think it has a RAW setting.... I do have it at it's highest setting in normal mode.... I think it also has a Soft and a Hard mode as well... (I'm sure those are the wrong terms but I don't have the camera in front of me nor the manual).
 
And when you open them in Elements, are you using Open or Open As, something in there may be defaulting to a 72 dpi file (or that is simply the size of your pics). Mine usually open (using Open) at 300dpi.

Open; opens the actual file using it's extension. A jpg will open as a jpg.
Open As; opens the file as a photoshop file (I believe the extension is .psd) and may default to a setting that you can adjust.
 
Rob, read the manual and take lots of pictures. The more you play with your camera the more you will learn about it.

Quit your job and get out there and take some pictures!:sqrolleyes::sqcool::sqwink:
 
After reading my manual a bit more it would seem that the P mode would give me the most control over image quality settings plus give me most of the Auto features of the Auto mode.

In the P mode I can select 10M F which is it's highest pixel size... and also Sharpness.... from Hard, Standard and Soft.... Hard being the sharpest... all other features have an Auto Mode....

Man so many features so little time.... and so much to learn!

Like Focal points, Light measureing.... ugh!

BTW Dennis good find on that book... I'll be referencing that to tatters, virtually speaking of course.
 
Sharpness works the same as it does on a TV, when you turn it up images will go way past being crisp and jump into an over-processed fake, pop art looking artistic rendition of what was once a nice picture. At first glance a highly edged image grabs your attention, but it gets annoying very quickly. I suggest leaving it and all other settings in fully automatic mode, leaving you concentrating on holding the camera steady, making sure that your subject is in focus right and slowly squeezing the shutter. You can correct almost anything else in software. A blurry image can't be fixed.

When I shoot with my real camera (Nikon D80) I process everything through DXO software to correct the lighting, color, lens distortion, etc. When I shoot with my pocket camera (Cannon SD1100) I edit in MS Digital Image Suite (shipped free with Office 2003) since there isn't much that DXO can touch.
 
its almost like Obama has a shining light emanating from him. I once saw the same when seeing the pope at Guam airport in the 80's.
 
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