G9/A720 question - Print sizes

I am thinking of purchasing either a G9 or an A720 and would like to make large prints of my pictures. How large could I print with either of these cameras and still have enough quality I would proud to hang them on my wall?

I want to avoid an SLR camera (due to their size) but if I am stuck printing 8x10s I may have to go that route.

I think that would depend to some degree upon the subject. Landscapes with a lot of small detail will print less well at quite large sizes (16 x 24 say), but other subjects should be able to be printed at this size with the proper normal distance for viewing. The largest I've actually printed was 11 x 17 (and that actually had a lot of foliage detail--it was a 'demo' for myself pitted against a 5D file of the same scene). When I place them side by side, I can see a difference--doubt most people can. I notice the difference in DR (but that's nitpicking) and in resolution in fine details, but had I not inspected closely, I would be well pleased with the print from the G9. I shot in RAW, processed in either ACR or LR (same RAW engine so am not sure which) with care for processing, capture sharpening and then output sharpening before printing on my Epson 3800.
--
Diane B
http://www.pbase.com/picnic/galleries

To get say a 20x30 portrait or similar style shot (black and white if it matters) do I need an SLR then or could the G9 likely do a solid enough job with that?

You won't get a shallow DOF with the G9 which is what most people want with portraits. You could pull your subject pretty far from the background and use as much tele as possible and get a reasonably shallower DOF. I suspect 20 x 30 may be pushing it---but not having printed one that large, I don't know what the limits are---the resolution (smaller pixels) will def. show up with more detailed photos. The largest I print is 16 x 24 as that's the limit of my 3800. Perhaps someone else can comment. I know others have mentioned sending their files to labs and having quite large prints done--but I have no experience with that. If you are planning to do a lot of these very large prints, if it were me, I probably would consider a DSLR. Normally one views large prints from a distance, so you may be fine. There are also other limitiations to small sensor cams besides resolution though. It all depends upon what you expect from it.

Perhaps later in the week as more people get back to posting here after the holiday, someone else may comment.

Diane
--
Diane B
http://www.pbase.com/picnic/galleries

Under good lighting conditions, the G9 will give you close to the quality of an entry-level DSLR. The limitations will be your skill as a photographer. Portraits can be printed really large, up to about 20x30. You want softness and not high resolution. You don't want to see each hair follicle and skin pore. You can also print in color or B&W.

I printed a couple of prints from my a720 at 20x30 at sam's club along with one taken by a Nikon D70 from my wedding. All of them look very good for enlargements.

If you inspect your enlargements like 4x6 prints there is not a 35mm or even 120mm that can stand up but if you view them at the distance that a print such as that should be viewed you will be very happy!

http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/article_pages/print_viewing_distance.html

chart in the middle of the page says 115 DPI should be viewed at 60 inches and a 20x30 of the a720 yields 108 in the 30 plane and 122 in the 20 plane.

the prints are only $12 at sams and done in 30 minutes. waste a little money and judge for yourself!

If you want something to admire on your wall, either camera should deliver good results. If you want something you can walk right up to and examine closely, then the A720 may not hold up quite as well as the G9.

bholmes4 said:

I am thinking of purchasing either a G9 or an A720 and would like to
make large prints of my pictures. How large could I print with either
of these cameras and still have enough quality I would proud to hang
them on my wall?

I want to avoid an SLR camera (due to their size) but if I am stuck
printing 8x10s I may have to go that route.

Click to expand...

The G9 has a 1/1.7" sensor, which means it's about twice as big as the A720 sensor.

So if the A720 makes a good 8 x 10, then theoretically the G9 will make a good 10 x 16.

If you really want to know, why not just download a test image from some review website, and print it out at 13 x 19? Then you will know for certain how good it is.

--
Big Mike
http://www.bigmikephotoblog.com

Do yourself a favor and check out the Nikon D40.

JMHO,
odell

BigMike1 said:

The G9 has a 1/1.7" sensor, which means it's about twice as big as
the A720 sensor.

So if the A720 makes a good 8 x 10, then theoretically the G9 will
make a good 10 x 16.

Click to expand...

The physical size of the sensor doesn't have a direct impact on print resolution. If that were true, then a 12MP full-frame DSLR would be able to print even more humungous pictures than the G9 (which it won't - both are limited by the 12MP).

Smaller sensors do mean smaller lenses, and diffraction starts to be an issue. But this is a secondary effect.

Ultimately, assuming the lens can resolve down to the pixel pitch of the sensor, the size of the prints you can make is determined by the number of pixels on the sensor, not it's physical size. The G9 still has an advantage over the A720, but it's because it has a 12MP sensor compared to the A720's 8MP, not because the sensor is physically larger.

The biggest advantage of a larger sensor is that the individual pixels can be larger, and this means they can collect more light and be more sensitive. The net result is less noise at higher ISOs. This is one of the big advantages of DSLRs with their much larger sensors.

BigMike1 said:

The G9 has a 1/1.7" sensor, which means it's about twice as big as
the A720 sensor.

Click to expand...

1/2.5 = 0.4"
1/1.7 = 0.588". Hardly double.

BigMike1 said:

So if the A720 makes a good 8 x 10, then theoretically the G9 will
make a good 10 x 16.

Click to expand...

That might be true if the sensor size was double, but it's not. The G9 loses this theoretical advantage because 12M pixels are actually more crowded on the G9 sensor than the 8M on the 720 sensor.

BigMike1 said:

If you really want to know, why not just download a test image from
some review website, and print it out at 13 x 19? Then you will know
for certain how good it is.

Click to expand...

There are some directly comparable A720/G9 photos in this comparator. http://www.imaging-resource.com/MFR1.HTM?view=Canon_reviews . No significant difference IMO, even when they the photos are 100% cropped

--
Dan

audiobomber said:

1/2.5 = 0.4"
1/1.7 = 0.588". Hardly double.

Click to expand...

You need to compare the squares of those numbers because we are talking about the area of the sensor.

0.4 x 0.4 = 0.16
0.588 x 0.588 = 0.346

As I said, twice as big.

--
Big Mike
http://www.bigmikephotoblog.com

BigMike1 said:

audiobomber said:

1/2.5 = 0.4
1/1.7 = 0.588. Hardly double.

Click to expand...

You need to compare the squares of those numbers because we are
talking about the area of the sensor.

0.4 x 0.4 = 0.16
0.588 x 0.588 = 0.346

As I said, twice as big.

--
Big Mike
http://www.bigmikephotoblog.com

Click to expand...

1/1.8 dimensions are 7.6mm x 5.6mm = 42.56 sq mm
1/2.5 dimensions are 5.76 mm x 4.29 mm = 24.71 mm

So it's 1.72X as big. More than I thought. Doesn't show up in IQ though.
--
Dan

audiobomber said:

The
G9 loses this theoretical advantage because 12M pixels are actually
more crowded on the G9 sensor than the 8M on the 720 sensor.

Click to expand...

My statement was incorrect. The pixel density is slightly higher on the A720 (The G9 is 1.72X larger, and 1.5X more pixels).

--
Dan