uprezzing

[sbug]

So... say I have a neg scanned and I want to print it big but the file I have is not large enough to get the required DPI, is uprezzing the file in Photoshop the solution? How much can you uprez before things get ugly and should I uprez and then sharpen or the other way around? Help! 😱

 

[JoeFriday]

without answering your questions.. lemme ask, what DPI was your neg scanned? and what type of film?

 

[sbug]

No, no, no. That's not how it works. I ask a question, you answer. THEN you ask a question and I answer. 😉

Ok, the file I'm starting with is a 35mm scan, maybe 1600-1800 on the long side. I'd like to get up to an 8x12 print at ~240-260dpi. If you do the math, I have approximately 1/2 the file size I need. I could get the neg re-scanned at a higher quality or get my own dedicated film scanner but I want to try the uprez first. The higher quality scans double my film processing costs and I'm not ready to drop $500+ on a film scanner.

Film? Kodak Portra 160VC, 400UC and a mix of traditional and C-41 black & white.

 

[JoeFriday]

I highly doubt you'll be satisfied with uprezzing and printing with that scan.. it'll be noticeable on the print.. go for it if you must.. but you'd be better off giving the neg to a guy with a Nikon Coolscan V if you happen to have dinner with him tomorrow

 

[Gid]

The final result will depend on the quality of the source material. 1800 on the long side is going to give you a 6 x 4 printed at 300 dpi. Uprezing to 3600 to give you a 12 x 8 is no problem - I've uprezed 300% and had very good results. I have read that 400% is the maximum you should consider, but can't comment on real life examples greater than this - there's also a whole minefield relating to viewing distance etc.

There are a couple of things to consider, the first is that if you're using 35mm, then, 1800 really isn't getting the most out of the negative, so you may be sacrificing quite a lot of detail and the second is that uprezing gives you no more detail, just stretches what you started with.

Hope this helps 🙂

 

[sbug]

I highly doubt you'll be satisfied with uprezzing and printing with that scan.. it'll be noticeable on the print.. go for it if you must.. but you'd be better off giving the neg to a guy with a Nikon Coolscan V if you happen to have dinner with him tomorrow

Sure, I could dig up the negative before I see you and your Lori tomorrow but that would mean that I would have to actually FIND the negative. 😉 Plus, I'd like to get several shots printed so that means several scans. I’ll see what I can find and get you a neg or two and then get both the higher resolution scan printed as well as the resized lower res scan. It should be a good comparison.

 

[JohnL]

One more thing ... I'd strongly recommend uprezzing with a dedicated program like Genuine Fractals or S-spline Pro (this is the one I use, but I think the marketing types have given it a new name now). You can easily find both of them and maybe others with a bit of googling.

 

[sbug]

The final result will depend on the quality of the source material. 1800 on the long side is going to give you a 6 x 4 printed at 300 dpi. Uprezing to 3600 to give you a 12 x 8 is no problem - I've uprezed 300% and had very good results. I have read that 400% is the maximum you should consider, but can't comment on real life examples greater than this - there's also a whole minefield relating to viewing distance etc.

There are a couple of things to consider, the first is that if you're using 35mm, then, 1800 really isn't getting the most out of the negative, so you may be sacrificing quite a lot of detail and the second is that uprezing gives you no more detail, just stretches what you started with.

Hope this helps 🙂

That's what I've heard. Resizing can work and I know about the viewing distance variable. You're also right in that 1800 isn't approaching the limit of detail in a good 35mm negative. It works just fine for anything on-line and small prints though. However, now that I want some stuff printed larger, I'm faced with the rescan option versus the resize option.

 

[sbug]

One more thing ... I'd strongly recommend uprezzing with a dedicated program like Genuine Fractals or S-spline Pro (this is the one I use, but I think the marketing types have given it a new name now). You can easily find both of them and maybe others with a bit of googling.

S-Spline Pro does have a new name (no free trial available).
Genuine Fractals looks impressive and there is a free trial but my version of Photoshop Elements is too old to work with it. Dang!
I'll give the PSE resize a try and offer my completely subjective thoughts on those prints compared to prints form a better original neg scan. We shall see...