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What is the best resolution for my photos?
What is resolution?
What resolution is best for which products?
How cropping affects resolution
 
What is resolution?
Resolution is an indication of the quality of your photos. The higher the resolution, the clearer and more detailed your photo -- and the more options you have for printing or creating photo gifts.

Every digital image is made up of pixels, or tiny, light-sensitive squares. The number of pixels determines the resolution. The more pixels your photo has, the clearer your photo remains as you increase its size (for prints) or print it on a gift. At the same time, the greater the resolution, the more memory is required to store the image.

Most digital cameras allow you to change the resolution, so you can select the quality of your photos as you take them.

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What resolution is best for which products?
The table below lists the optimum resolutions for each print size and product that we offer.

Note: We always check the resolution of every photo when you order a print or photo gift. If we think the photo isn't large enough to produce a quality image, we'll let you know.

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Print Size/Product Minimum image resolution required
4 x 6 540x360 pixels
5 x 7 630x450 pixels
8 x 10 900x720 pixels
11 x 14 Posters 1260x990 pixels
12 x 18 Posters 1620x1080 pixels
16 x 20 Posters 1800x1440 pixels
20 x 30 Posters 2700x1800 pixels
Wallet Prints 270x180 pixels
Photo Gifts 900x600 pixels
4x8" Photo Cards 640x426 pixels
5x7" Photo Cards 640x480 pixels
5x7 Folded Cards 840x600 pixels
5x7 Postcards 840x600 pixels
4.25x6 Postcards 720x480 pixels
4x6 FlipBooks 540x360 pixels
5x7 FlipBooks 630x450 pixels
Photo Books Hardcover Photo Book    1639x1233 - 1280x1024(+/- 1 pixel)
Photo Books Paperback Photo Book    1639x1233 - 1280x1024(+/- 1 pixel)
Photo Books Set of (3) pocket books    580x435(+/- 1 pixel)
Notebooks 480x480 pixels
Notebooks with full photo cover 1350x1000 pixels
Notepads 370x370 pixels
Stickers 370x370 pixels

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How Cropping Affects Resolution
Whenever you crop a photo, you decrease its resolution by reducing its number of pixels. While cropping a photo often makes a photo look better, cropping also affects the photo's suitability for certain sized prints or gifts.
Whenever you crop a photo with Snapfish's 'fix & enhance' tool, we'll let you know if you've cropped so far that your image is no longer suitable for the print size or gift you have selected.
   
 
 
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