Enlarging Photos - Four Steps to a Sharp, Detailed Image

In every photographers life there comes a time when you must enlarge your images. I know that with the newer ten plus megapixel cameras that are being sold today they product fairly large images when shot at the highest RAW or JPG settings. But, now I see more and more opportunities to enlarge my images to 20″ by 30″ and beyond. It seems that a lot of photo customers want larger images to display in the homes and offices.

I shoot my photos with a 15 megapixel Canon Digital Rebel T1i. It creates a file that is 13.2″ by 19.8″ (3168 x 4752 pixels). Complicating the matter further is the onslaught of camera phones. I own an Apple iPhone 3G which has a 2 megapixel camera. My friend has an iPhone 3GS with an upgraded camera to an earth shattering 3 megapixels. Now I find that I have to enlarge cell phone pictures for me and my friend before I can think about manipulating them in Photoshop or any other image editor.

Photoshop has some fairly sophisticated image enlarging functions built in. I have been using their bicubic algorithm for several years and was reasonable happy with the results, unless I got too greedy and tried to enlarge more than 200%

The enlarging process in Photoshop CS4

Step 1 Open your image in Photoshop CS4 >Choose Image > Image Size

Step 2 In Pixel Dimensions, change the Width or Height to the size you want, or In Document Size change the Width, Height, and/or Resolution to the size you want,

Step 3 In the Image Size Dialog box Check the following boxes: Scale Styles, Constrain Proportions, Resample Image; In the pull down box at the bottom choose from one of the following:Nearest Neighbor (preserve hard edges), Bilinear, Bicubic (best for smooth gradients), Bicubic Smoother (best for enlargement), or Bicubic Sharper (best for reduction)

Step 4 Press OK

The image will be transformed into a larger one, while keeping the same proportions. If you have enlarged less than 200% you will find very acceptable quality. Zoom in to the image to about 300% and you will start seeing the raw pixels (look at the edges for clues to problems). The most important options in enlarging in Photoshop is the Bicubic options and I always choose Bicubic Smoother, as noted, for enlargements. This means Photoshop uses bicubic interpolation (a mystical math algorithm that is way beyond my understanding) to produce smooth tonal gradations in the process of adding pixels.

Now, what would happen if you have to take that 2 megapixel picture you created on your iPhone, and needed to blow it up for an 8″ by 10″ photo? It will be a fairly low quality when done in Photoshop. You will need to look for another option. There are several companies that make image enlargement software.

One of those is Genuine Fractals, version 6. This is a program is part of the Plug-In Suite family from OnOne Software. Vincent Versace, an Award Winning Photographer has said “Genuine Fractals 6 was, is and will always be the best solution for enlarging digital photos.” Like Versace, I have been using Genuine Fractals since version 5.

Genuine Fractals can increase the image size of a photograph over 1,000% without the loss of sharpness or detail. It uses a patented, fractal based interpolation algorithm to perform the magic inside the computer. I am going to describe the use of the Genuine Fractals plug-in for Photoshop CS4, but you can also install it as a plug-in for Lightroom and Aperture.

Using Genuine Fractals

Step 1 Open an image in Photoshop.

Step 2 Edit your image for all parts except sharpening. You will want to sharpen after you enlarge the photo.

Step 3 Choose File > Automate > Genuine Fractals Professional 6.0 Edition.This loads the Fractals window. From the right hand panel I usually choose a preset (it is “none” by default).a. Presets include the following media types: SQUARE, for sizes like 8″ by 8″, 20″ by 20″, PHOTOGRAPHIC, for common photo sizes like 8″ by 10″, 11″ by 14″, 24″ by 30″ and more, PAPER for sizes common to laser and ink jet printers, 8 ½ by 11 Letter, 11″ by 17″ Tabloid, VIDEO, for common video windows like 640 by 480, 1024 by 768, CUSTOM to create your own beyond the over 60 built-in sizes.

After selecting a preset or custom a red mask will be placed over the image to show how your image will be cropped. After moving the crop window to where you want it (you may have uncheck the “lock Crop” box to be able to move the window around. If you uncheck the constrain proportions box you can create a brand new custom size. Once you have the crop where you want it there are several other option such as Texture Control, Sharpening, Film Grain, Tiling and Gallery wrap.

Step 4 Press Apply when satisfied with your selections.

The program displays a progress bar and when finished returns you to Photoshop. You can now perform your sharpening, if you did not do it in the Fractals box.

Photoshop and Genuine Fractals have good functions to enlarge your photos. Genuine Fractals can take the size much larger with less degradation of the image. Either solution will meet your needs in a marketplace that desires giant sized prints.