Print quality of a 2mp

[jaydee]

I got another question for you guys, I have a Lexmark 45se with a resolution of 4800x1200,would the Canon A40 2mp have the same print out quality of a 8x10 as a 3mp would??????

Dave (aka JayDee)

[gibsonpd3620]

Dave

At 8X10, you will some improvement with a 3mp. 8X10 is about the max printing size for a 2mp picture.

[jaydee]

Any idea how much better the 3mp pic be % wise???? and would the diff be noticeable.

Dave (aka JayDee)

[jsmeeker]

It can bel very. very subjective. Personally, I think 8x10 is too big for a 2 MP imgage. I would say 3 MP is the minium for 8.x10. But some people will tell you it's just fine, and that their 8x10 prints from a 2.0 MP camera look awesome.

[BillDrew]

Originally Posted by jaydee

Any idea how much better the 3mp pic be % wise???? .

That is easy: 22.474487139%, the square root of the ratio of Mpixels. That assuming everything else about the cameras are the same - which it never is.

What isn't easy is saying what the largest size picture you can print with either one. As jsmeeker says, a big part of that is in the eye of the beholder. It also depends on the subject - the details of a butterfly wing or a misty lake shore. It also depends on the distance and how it is viewed. With some touch-up, an image from a 2Mpixel camera might work for a 15x30 foot/5x10m billboard that would only be seen while driving very fast. An 8x10inch photo from a 3Mpixel camera is likely to be snubed by someone with a 10 power loupe.