Picking the Right File for Print or Screen

If you’re unfamiliar with selecting the best file for print or screen, it may be hard to feel confident about deploying artwork. Don’t worry—we’ve got tips that will help guide you to the right decision.

Photography

If you’re sending us images for your project, we can accept most file types for photography and will want your largest file because it gives us options. 

Common file types include JPG, PNG, PSD, and more.

However, we recognize those parameters may still be too vague. The file size (from KB to MB to GB) may indicate your overall image size, but there are more informative details to look at during selection: DPI and Dimensions. They go hand in hand, so don’t be fooled into checking one without the other. 

Below, you’ll find our quick guide on what to look for. Keep in mind that these parameters will depend on the size of the piece and how many images are in use. When in doubt, check with a designer or production contact to confirm the asset size is what you need.

DPI

This is a print industry abbreviation for “dots per inch.” 

• Regular Printing (ie. Prints Up to 18x24 inches): An image roughly the size of an 8.5x11 sheet of paper at 300dpi is usually a safe bet. 

• Large Format Printing (ie. Prints 24x36 inches or above): Large format printing operates a little differently than regular printing: Depending on the size and use of the file, you may be able to get away with 150dpi or lower. For poster-size images, aim for about 18x24 inches or more at 150-200dpi.

PPI for Screens

Screens can be more forgiving than print. Your image only needs to be at 72–150 pixels per inch (PPI) in the final dimensions. Images around 1024px wide at 150dpi will usually do the trick. (Larger is fine, too since our team has experience in resizing images for screen. Just don’t go much smaller for best results.) 

Dimensions

This refers to the dimensions of your image, whether you’re using pixels for screen or inches for print. 

• For Print: It may be easiest to understand by example. Let’s say you have an image you want to use in a print piece. The image is 5 inches wide at 72dpi. The dimension may be the size you need—but not at 72dpi. When you adjust the DPI to 300 for print, the dimensions will get smaller. When images are smaller than you need, you have a few options: 

  • Change the photo size in the layout to accommodate the smaller dimension;

  • Find a different image that supports the original 5-inch size at 300dpi;

  • Check with your photographer (or the HALO 22 team) to see if the image can be enlarged without becoming too blurry or pixelated. Don’t rely on AI upscalers to do heavy lifting on image size, either. Often, they don’t produce the results you need for quality prints. 

• For Screens: Image dimensions are more flexible on screens. If you plan to force the image size to be larger than its original dimensions at 72dpi, it’s important to confirm that the image quality hasn’t diminished. This is where AI upscalers may offer slight improvements, but it’s still best to confirm with a photographer or designer.

Checking resolution and dimensions in Photoshop.

But how do you check DPI and dimensions if you don’t have Adobe Photoshop? Here’s a quick outline from WikiHow that shows different ways to find this information depending on your operating system. If those options don’t work for you or you’re out of time, check with our team. We always evaluate files before we use them.

Logos or Illustrated Art

Logos and illustrations should ideally be built with vectors rather than pixels. Why? Unlike pixels, vectors are infinitely scalable with no loss of resolution (i.e., they don’t get blurry or pixelated when resized as a photo would). For this reason, you don’t have to look for DPI or dimensions. We can use a vector-based file to output any size we need, even if the final file needs to be saved in a pixel-based format.

Common vector file types are AI, EPS, SVG, or PDF.

Barring that, we can also accept large JPGs or PNGs if this is the only file format available. In that case, we will need to confirm the DPI and Dimensions as we would for pixel-based photography. 

Sometimes, embedded images appear in vector-based files if the original creator didn’t intend to make full use of vectors. If we find that a vector file is limited in this way, you can expect us to reach out to discuss the options for moving forward.

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Follow these guidelines on all your projects, and you can expect better results for your artwork.

Need help picking the right image? Let’s chat.