7. Recommended print size for data from Digital Cameras.

In principle, digital photos can be sent for printing exactly the way they were produced by the camera and then transferred to the computer. However, to be able to print specific sizes, you should make sure that the number of pixels matches the information given by the online print lab. For instance, it makes no sense to have photos from a beginner's camera with a resolution of 640 x 480 pixels converted into a poster-size print, because they don't offer nearly enough digital image information. However, if you work with a 2 to 3-megapixel camera, you have virtually the entire range of standard print formats at your disposal, from 9 x 13 cm to 20 x 30 cm. The web sites of the labs tell you what number of pixels you need for specific print formats.

If you stick to these values, hardly anything can go wrong. The values in the following table can serve as a rough guideline: