How Many Pixels Per Inch for Printing Resolution?

Realtors and agents want high-resolution images, whether it's for print or uploads. This is why, for this guide, we're sharing how many pixels per inch can produce high-quality image resolution. I'm also teaching how real estate photographers and editors can determine the necessary PPI depending on the client's output requirements.

How Many Pixels Per Inch is a Normal Value?

The number of pixels per inch differs on various displays because pixels have varying sizes. There are multiple answers depending on what you're working on, as well as the screen type. However, it's common to have 96 pixels per inch on display or print.

Clients or your personal work might have different requirements. For this reason, I've going to discuss how PPI works in real estate photography and what you can do to compute the pixels per inch.

Understanding Pixels and Pixels Per Inch

A pixel serves as an area of color or illumination on an image or screen. It's also a unit of measurement used in web and graphic design. Since it varies in size, a good starting point for a display is 96 pixels or more.

On the other hand, pixels per inch (PPI) refers to the measurement of resolution in a digital picture or display device. It identifies the fixed number of pixels a screen can display or a photo's pixel density or amount of detail. 

The PPI also indicates how many pixels are there in an inch, which is 96 pixels or greater. It specifies the number of pixels available vertically and horizontally. For instance, a real estate photo with 300 pixels down and 300 pixels across translates to 300 x 300 PPI.

Applying PPI in Photos and Displays

When a client wants to change the resolution, you need to modify the standard 96 into the necessary number of pixels in every inch of the picture or display. This is why it's important you know how many pixels are there in an inch to resize images properly.

• Image resolution: Whether for digital displays or prints, a higher resolution requires greater pixel information. In effect, your visuals will show a more significant level of detail.
• Print quality: You also need the pixels per inch when preparing files or photos for printing. A higher PPI value translates to a greater pixel density.
• Digital cameras: Digital cameras also express resolution in megapixels. You can determine this by multiplying the vertical pixels per inch by the horizontal PPI. For example, a 1.92-megapixel camera can capture images with 1600 x 1200 pixels.

Calculating the Pixels Per Inch

Since the number of pixels per inch may differ and go beyond 96 PPI, I'm helping you do the simple math to determine the PPI of an image or display.

Use this formula:

PPI = (√(w² + h²)) / d

Where:

W = width resolution in pixels

H = height resolution in pixels

D = diagonal size of the display in inches

Suppose a real estate agent wants to display 4K house tour videos on a 60-inch television. This ultra-high definition display translates to 3840 x 2160 pixels.

Now, considering the variables and following the formula above:

PPI = (√(w² + h²)) / d

w² (3840² = 14,745,600)

w² (2160² = 4,665,600)

14,745,600 + 4,665,600 = 19,411,200

√19,411,200 = 4,405.814

4,405.814 / 60 = 73.43

Thus, to meet the requirements of your clients, you need to work on 73.42 PPI to display 4K videos on a 60-inch television. 

Following the Standard Pixel Sizes

A case study shows that image-based content marketing can significantly boost overall organic traffic by 175%. However, your work as a real estate photographer doesn't end at styling the scene or taking photos.

Post-processing real estate images is also a crucial part of the job, and this includes applying the correct pixel sizes depending on the platform or material. While the industry standards for PPI may change in the future, these are the most common PPI values you can apply in your works.

• Visual projection: Some clients may request visual projection for big events like product launches or company anniversaries. Note that the photos should match the projector's pixel dimensions. You can start with 768 pixels high for a vertical image and 1024 pixels wide for landscape orientation.
• Website images: 72 PPI is the standard resolution for web uploads. You can also use about 400 to 600 pixels wide for large pictures or 100 to 200 for thumbnails. Additionally, listing websites like MLS accept 300 PPI.
• Professional printing: It's vital that you follow the recommended resolution as this design error can delay your turnaround time. While high-end printers may require 600 pixels per inch, the optimal resolution for printing is 300 PPI. 
• Printing in a book or magazine: Magazines are typically at 300 or less. Newspapers should be less than 300 pixels per inch, while books should start at 300 PPI. However, this may still depend on the kind of paper used for printing.
• Non-professional printing: Non-professional printing can be for brochures, pamphlets, or calling cards. Since you might only use inkjet or laser prints, you can apply around 200 to 300 pixels per inch on your export settings.
• Screen resolution: In general, 90 pixels per inch and above is suitable for screen displays. Less than that, and it might be slightly pixelated for watching videos or playing games. For professional work, stick close to 110 PPI to ensure you have plenty of screen space to work on sharp details. 

Changing the PPI Value in Images and Displays

About 93% of consumers consider visual appearance a crucial factor when purchasing something. As a photographer, agents will rely on your expertise to provide the highest image quality. However, it's not enough that you use the best lens for real estate photography or apply the appropriate camera settings.

When editing photos in Lightroom, you can also work on the PPI values to further enhance images. Make sure to calibrate your monitor so that your outputs have accurate details.

• Organize your files in Lightroom and select the location where you want to export the photos.
• Choose the file type.
• Select Resize to Fit, then change the resolution to your desired PPI. For example, 72 pixels per inch.
• Click on Sharpen, then select For Screen.
• Click Export.

Another option is to change the pixels per inch value in Adobe Photoshop since the program sets up the PPI resolution once you create a new document.

• Head to Image > Image Size.
• From the Image Size window, you can change the width, height, and PPI resolution.
• Click on Resample and select Preserve Details.

Related Questions

What Is Dots Per Inch?

Dots per inch refers to the number of individual lines put in an inch, corresponding to the output resolution. The DPI uses tiny dots per inch to improve detail and overall quality, whether print or web uploading.

How Can I Determine How Many Pixels I'm Working On?

For Mac users, locate your file, click on it, and open the file info, which contains the pixel dimensions. If you're using Windows, right-click on the file, select Properties > Details, then look for the Dimensions.

Conclusion

The number of pixels per inch varies on the display size. However, the most common contain 96 pixels in an inch of the display. You can follow my computation guide to determine the PPI to ensure you can provide the best image resolution for real estate visuals.