Help change resolution

[dispatch]

R.S. from Middletown, NY, using Photoshop 6 with Win 98 2nd edition/ and XP, writes in with:

I desperately need to figure out how to use Adobe Photoshop to prep JPG and BMP photos for silk screening.

I used to use Paint Shop pro on Win 98 and my printer driver options gave me the ability to choose to print the file at 150dpi. On Win98 second edition and XP this is no longer an option. So now I need a way to change the resolution of the photos digitally in order to print onto my transparency paper for silk-screening.

Basically I print personalized messages with photos onto latex balloons for birthdays and other occasions, but I can't get the photos down to the 150dpi needed for the emulsion process to work.
I'm new to photoshop so any tips will be appreciated!!!

If you can help, click "Post Reply" below! Thank you!

[posted by PS 911 dispatch on behalf of DTG reader]

[Tips]

In your situation, I would set up a template for each different screen you want to burn.

Open a new file (File > New) and get the "New File" dialog.

Set the dimensions you need for that particular print job...
say, 10 x 10 (720 pixels by 720 pixels)

Set resolution: 150

Set Color: CMYK (Assuming you use CMYK for serigraphy, or "silk screening" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serigraphy))

If you have special requirements for the stencil product you use, or the substraight you plan to print on, then ...

Click the "Advanced" arrow, and set the color profile and dot pattern.

Since you are using serigraphy, I assume you probably will want the
"Newsprint" setting. You can keep the square pixel.

With all your settings the way you want, notice in the right-hand column of the dialog box there's a button for "SAVE PRESET... "

Clicking that, and providing a clear name, will save this set-up for future projects.

Name the project, and Click "OK"

NOW... for the image.

Open the image for the project and drag it into the new template you just created.

What happened?

If the image was way too small, that means your original image doesn't have sufficient resolution to print via these settings. You'll need to increase the resolution of that image. For a good clear print, you should start with an image at least 300 ppi. In reality, 600 ppi would be ideal.

If the image was way too BIG, then it's a simple matter of scaling the image to fit the size.

Zoom out to reveal lots of the gray pasteboard around the image.

Hit: Ctrl/T (Mac: Cmd/T) to activate the "Transformation" handles.
You'll see them in the gray areas of the pasteboard.

Now, with the Move tool (which should already be active, or tap "V")
hold the SHIFT key and click on a corner and drag it down to scale the artwork.

Now your image is ready for separations.

Note that with extreem scaling, you may want to do it in stages, sharpening between stages, or use the Image > Image Size dialog in the original art file to bring the image to the size you need.

See our excellent tutorial on scaling using Bicubic, video produced by "Watch and Learn" in the Tutorials Forum (http://www.dtg-forums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=29)

;)