How much can I crop?

[Cody Newman]

I have a few images that I am looking at trying to crop. My question is how much can one crop and still have a nice image? I am using a 7d so it would be a 18mp pic. Thanks

[Desmond Chan]

I have a few images that I am looking at trying to crop. My question is how much can one crop and still have a nice image? I am using a 7d so it would be a 18mp pic. Thanks

I think the best (and also the easiest) thing to do is just to crop and see for yourself. Your eyes should be able to help you :)

[Roger Clark]

I had a 50% crop 6 megapixe image (so 3 mepapixels) place in Nature's best highly honored in 2004:
http://www.clarkvision.com/galleries...ght.f-600.html
and it was printed full page. And 16x18-inch prints have sold in galleries.

So with a good subject in good light, I say you can crop to 3 megapixels. But I'll also say the the image would have been much better with 16-megapixels.

Roger

[Daniel Cadieux]

As much as you want!

Seriously though, there are many variables that come into play here...no definitive answer, and each individual image can withstand different crop amounts.

Just off the top of my head:

- What do you want the final product for...print (big or small?), web use?, personal use?
- What is your definition or standard of "nice image"?
- How big or small is the subject in the frame?
- Is it perfectly focussed (any softness will serioulsy diminish the amount of "cropability" of an image)
- ISO? (high ISO noise, to some degree, will also affect cropability)

There are many more, so the best thing to do is experiment and see for yourself:)

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

I suggest you take a look at this thread. My only other comment in support of what Daniel above me is saying that Doug is a professional - or at least professionally skilled bird photographer. So what is a good, useable crop for him may not work out for you. However, he demonstrates the possibility of what a highly skilled person is capable of. :)

[Jim Michael]

To add to Daniel's points, if you intend to print the image the crop will limit the print size to h/r inches, where h is the number of pixels in the final image on the dimension in question and r is the print resolution in dots per inch. Typical values for r are in the 200 to 340 range and 300 is pretty common.

[Jay Gould]

How much?

Too much results in a reduced IQ that, depending upon the subject, will definitely appear when you post!

You might even be told it looks "yukky" ;).

I know from personal experience.

The result: I don't shoot "postage stamps" either in the air or on a perch and then crop, crop, and more crop.

Now I rarely do 50% unless the subject can really handle it.

Of course, it is going to depend upon the body I am using. I crop more with my 5D2 than with my 7D which effectively crops in camera.

Perhaps if I had the sharpening expertise of Roger Clark - one of my heroes -
Study the **** our of his website and all of the wonderful information, I might consider greater crops.

[Rod Wiley]

Cody I enlarge in GF to a larger size and than crop the photo rather than cropping and enlarging. Most software will do a much better job enlarging a bigger file than a cropped file. Hope this helps. Rod

www.rjwileyphoto.com

[Cody Newman]

Ok, thanks guys/gals. Wow thats all over my head :confused:

[Cody Newman]

The Image for know is for personal use. I am just learning all of this so you could say its a experament. I would like to make larger prints at some point just to show better detail. Thanks