Photography Tips
A photo that appears sharp on your phone or computer screen won’t necessarily look as crisp when displayed in another size, on a larger screen, or in print. Here are some tips to make sure photos you select look picture perfect.
Orientation and spacing
For the majority of applications, a horizontal photo (a photo wider than it is tall) with plenty of space around the featured element is best. When creating profile images, a plain background or one pertinent to the purpose of the photo is best.
Plain background
With appropriate spacing around main subject
Work setting background
With appropriate spacing around main subject
Resolution
For photos to be resized for different spaces and/or print clearly, it is important to provide the photo in the highest possible resolution.
For digital images to display clearly, they should be 72 ppi (pixels per inch) at the dimensions they will be viewed.
For photos to print clearly, 300 dpi (dots per inch) at the dimensions they will appear in print is ideal, but photos must be at least 150 dpi. Most images on websites are 72 dpi. That is why photos you download from the internet likely won’t work in print.
When downloading or sending photos from your phone or camera, choose the largest size possible when prompted; in general, the bigger the file size, the higher the resolution.
To find the resolution of your photo on a PC:
Locate the photo file on your computer.
Right-click on the file name and select Properties.
Under the Details tab, view the horizontal and vertical resolutions (should be the same number). This is the dpi/ppi.
If the resolution is less than 300, select another photo if possible.
To find the resolution of your photo on a Mac:
Open your photo file in Preview (usually the default photo viewer).
Select "Tools" from the top menu bar.
Select "Show Inspector".
In the window that pops up, you should see the width and height as well as the resolution.
If the resolution is less than 300, select another photo for print (and digital) if possible.
Why dimensions matter
Another consideration is the physical size the image will appear in its final format.
For images to be used in a different digital space, they might need to be larger than the original image and most are already at 72 ppi. So if you take an Instagram image (1080 x 1080) and want to use it on Linkedin (1200 x 628), your photo won't be wide enough and you would need to trim about 40% of the image height. In this case, it likely wouldn't be possible to use this photo for both platforms. In other cases the resolution could be substantially lower and the photo will either appear blurry or could be trimmed in unflattering ways.
For print, a two-inch-by-three-inch photo at 300 dpi won’t work if it needs to be six inches by nine inches in print because when you increase the size of a photo, the resolution and therefore the quality of the photo is reduced. Double-check to be sure the photo is no less than 150 dpi when enlarged.
Examples:
Format
The preferred formats for both print and digital are jpg and tiff. A png file is also usually acceptable. Please do not submit photos in PDFs, documents, spreadsheets, or presentation slides.
How to send files
Large files
If a photo is too large to send as an email attachment, upload it to Google Drive or another file sharing platform and share a link.
From an iPhone
When emailing photos from an iPhone, select the ones you want to send from the photos app, click the send icon, and choose email. After you hit “send,” you will be asked to choose an image size. Choose “actual size.”
More about selecting photos for the website
Photos for 50/50, profile, testimonial, and slideshow components
In general, it's fairly easy to find and/or shoot photos for these components. There are two key tips:
Select photos taken in a horizontal—not a vertical—orientation and frame the photo as you normally would for a horizontal picture.
Send the photo in the highest resolution possible; anything under 300 ppi may not work.
The final dimensions of these photos for the website are as follows:
50/50: 570 x 350
Profile: 600 x 600
Testimonial: 540 x 395
Slideshow: 680 x 450
Photos for the banner or hero image (the one across the top of the page)
These photos have proven to be quite challenging. Most of the heros used for launch were taken specifically for that space or numerous stock photos or previously taken photos were tried before settling on the best image. Here are some tips:
Select photos taken in a horizontal—not a vertical—orientation; this is a MUST, none of the hero images you see on the site are from vertical shots.
Take the photo from a distance. The entire width of the horizontal photo will need to be used and approximately two-thirds of the height will be cropped. When previewing photos, look for 1100 x 415.
Send the photo in the highest resolution possible; these photos must be 300 ppi. Most standard cameras don't shoot a photo this wide; enlarging the photo to obtain the width will decrease the resolution, so it's important to start with a high-resolution photo.
Questions
If you have questions not addressed here, contact the Office of Marketing, Creative, and Web Services at mcs@hamline.edu.
Contact information
Office of Marketing, Creative, and Web Services
Hamline University