| You've taken that great picture, and now you | | | | paper for photo printing are glossy and |
| want to take it and show it off. You can send it | | | | semiglossy. You can try both to see which gives |
| to a photo printing service and wait, or you can | | | | you the results you like best. |
| print it at home. With the increases in capability of | | | | If you're tempted to save money by purchasing |
| modern home printers, this is a more appealing | | | | cheap refill ink, you should think twice. There are a |
| option than it was even a few years ago. | | | | number of reasons that the original |
| There are a few simple things you can do to | | | | manufacturer's ink gives better results. Most |
| ensure your photo prints look their best when | | | | notably, it is generally a higher quality ink that |
| using your home printer. | | | | requires less to print a photo. And it also creates |
| First, you want to ensure you aren't trying to | | | | less ink build up in your printer. |
| print a photo on paper that is larger than what | | | | You should also take a look at your printer |
| the image resolution can support with sufficient | | | | settings once in a while. Most printer software |
| quality and sharpness. Typically, you want a photo | | | | comes with different settings from draft quality |
| to be a minimum of 200 dots per inch (dpi) but | | | | to high quality. You can modify these settings to |
| preferably 300 dpi. If you want to figure out the | | | | see how it affects the final photo quality. |
| maximum size you can print a photo, simply divide | | | | Finally, take the time to maintain your printer. This |
| the image dimensions by either 200 or 300. So, | | | | generally involves running a print head cleaning |
| for example, if your image dimension is 1200x800 | | | | routine (found in the printer software) |
| pixels, the largest you can print it would be 6" by | | | | approximately once a month. Keep it dust free by |
| 4". You can find out the dimensions of an image | | | | lightly blowing it off with compressed air. In |
| by right-clicking it and choosing Properties and | | | | addition, check the printer manual for any other |
| then Details. | | | | recommended maintenance. |
| You also want to choose a paper that is optimal | | | | These tips can make the difference between |
| for printing pictures. If you use plain paper, there | | | | good print quality and great print quality. You've |
| is a good chance that the ink will bleed and reduce | | | | taken a great picture, now make sure the print |
| the image quality. In general, the best types of | | | | looks great too! |