# Discernable print differences



## chauncey (Nov 10, 2015)

I just finished rereading an article...https://luminous-landscape.com/canon...t-performance/
in which Keith Cooper laments that non-photographer folks who are shown prints from a Canon 1Ds3 
and a 5Ds are unable to discern any differences.

To those that have upgraded to any of the high MP bodies, be it Sony/Canon/Nikon, agree with that?


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## sanj (Nov 10, 2015)

I agree.


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## privatebydesign (Nov 10, 2015)

After doing exhaustive testing using non photographers as my subjects I concluded that 240ppi was my acceptable print resolution, and you can make some of those up in PS.

Bearing this in mind I wouldn't expect 'average people' to see a difference between the two until well over 16"x24".

Having said that, I don't think that is what Keith is really getting at. I think he is actually saying the content of the image is far more important to everybody except some photographers who obsess about technical details. His reasons for getting the 5DS are sound and justified, he prints big, he crops, he manipulates perspective in post etc etc, these all lend themselves to more MP.

Bottom line, don't get a 5DS/R because you think it will make you images more compelling to others, it won't, what it will give you is more technical abilities that your photography might, or might not, benefit from.

I have been pondering getting a 5DSR (I print bigger than most, do crop and straighten, and correct perspective in post) but just finished a short travel trip with my 1DS MkIII, so far the images I get the coo's over are all the same, irrespective of ppi........


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## Famateur (Nov 10, 2015)

Well said, PBD.

High MP is for printing large, cropping heavily or noise reduction through downsizing to lower resolution. If one doesn't do any of those, then there's not much return on the invested disk space. 

And none of those extra capabilities will make compelling images from the mundane (except maybe cropping, if extra crap in the frame has ruined an otherwise compelling image).


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## PhotographyFirst (Nov 10, 2015)

It's tough for many to do, but it is important to not get so caught up in pixel peeping and gear that one starts turning into an audiophile-like member of the photography field. The Leica guys seems to fall into that trap the most from what I have experienced. 

This article by smugmug sums up what I have seen with selling and showing prints to people. Internet experts would have you believe that image sharpness is the number one thing that kills or makes a good print. In reality, it is very low on the list. Color and subject are vastly more important. 

http://help.smugmug.com/customer/portal/articles/93358

With that said, higher resolution doesn't hurt, except for storage space.


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## Sporgon (Nov 10, 2015)

But...but...what about the 120 mp camera Canon are developing ? ;D

For anyone interested Tim Parkin from On Landscape magazine (www.onlandscape.co.uk) has been out recently using a Canon D30 - 3 mp, and the results are, well, alarming really ;D


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