Enlarge an Image for Printing

Print exposes small images in a way screens never do. A picture that looks fine as a 1200-pixel-wide web image prints at 300 pixels per inch as a 4-inch strip, and stretching it across an A4 page or a 20 by 30 canvas shows every block. Enlarging the file first gives the printer more pixels to work with, and this page starts at 2x, the gentler of the two options: a 1500-pixel photo becomes 3000 pixels, enough for a 10-inch print at 300 DPI.

It is worth being clear about how this works. The image is resampled in several careful stages and then sharpened so edges stay crisp. No detail is invented. A clean photo, a logo or a screenshot comes out larger and still clean; a photo that is already blurry comes out larger and still blurry, and a tiny thumbnail cannot be turned into a poster. A 4x option exists for small graphics; doubling is the realistic choice for photographs. The output is capped at 8000 pixels on the longest side, which still covers an A2 poster at 300 DPI.

To work out your maximum print size, divide the enlarged pixel width by 300 for inches. After enlarging, set the DPI tag to 300 with the DPI Changer if the print shop requires it. Enlargement runs on your device; the photo is not uploaded.