Upping Resolution to Project Imported to CS4 as Low Resolution jpeg?

[Len_G...@adobeforums.com]

I've got an extremely pixilated low rez jpeg that I imported to CS4 and saved as a .tif. Now I'm finding that, when digitally painting on this photo in CS4, only the widely spaced pixels are "painted" leaving me with the same highly pixilated low rez image I started with. What is the procedure for "upping the resolution" here so the low rez imported photo serves as a "launching pad" for a high rez CS4 painting that could eventually be printed out as a high quality 24" X 36" poster?

Thanks.

[Len_G...@adobeforums.com]

Just to clarify, the low rez jpeg that has been saved as a .tif is an image I'm not interested in "keeping" other than just as an undersketch to paint over in much higher resolution using CS4. Presently, my digital overpainting of this undersketch is being "translated" as the same blocky and pixilated style as my low rez photo/undersketch. I'm trying to paint over this undersketch as independently as if it were a photo on paper and I were physically painting on top of it with acrylics out of the tube. Does CS4 allow this or is the resolution of the underlying work inextricably tied to the resolution of the overpainting?

[Donald...@adobeforums.com]

I am not quite sure i get what you are trying, but have you tried going to image size and entering a higher number in the resolution box? what are your current dimensions? you will not gain any quality doing this,but it may help your project possibly.

[Buko]

If want to paint over a low rez image. and want the final result to be high rez. then you need to uprez the image before you start painting. If you don't you waste a lot of time on a low rez image that looks like sh!t when you enlarge it.

[Len_G...@adobeforums.com]

Thanks...

Buko, could you tell me the procedure to uprez a starting image which shows to have a Pixel Dimensions of 60.2k (width, 130 pixels, height, 158 pixels) to where the "overpainting" would produce a good quality print in the 24" X 36"ish range? If it doesn't lend itself well to a message board post, I can definitely do with a link to a related tutorial if you've got one...

[Ramón_G_Castañeda@adobeforums.com]

Pixel Dimensions of 60.2k

That figure is the Image File Size, not "pixel dimensions", and it's utterly irrelevant.

(width, 130 pixels, height, 158 pixels)

Now, those are the correct image dimensions. :)

could you tell me the procedure to uprez a starting image which shows

to have a Pixel Dimensions … (width, 130 pixels, height, 158 pixels) to

where the "overpainting" would produce a good quality print in the 24"
X 36"ish range?

Good grief! Even at a lowly 72ppi, you're wanting to upsample by a whopping 1640%. Good luck. :/

[Len_G...@adobeforums.com]

I know this sounds crazy but has anyone ever tried doing a RAW file photo off the computer screen as a workaround to this sort of thing?

[Neil_...@adobeforums.com]

Len,

Low res is low res, regardless of methodology. You can't invent image information (add detail) that isn't there. You can upres your tiny original, but you'll just wind up with a large soft image instead of large blocky pixels.

Either way, it's not pretty.

Neil

[Neil_...@adobeforums.com]

Len,

Low res is low res, regardless of methodology. You can't invent image information (add detail) that isn't there. You can upres your tiny original, but you'll just wind up with a large soft image instead of large blocky pixels.

Either way, it's not pretty.

Exception: get one of those noisy CSI TV show computers which can make license plates readable off bank ATM cameras at 100 yards. <g>

Neil

[Len_G...@adobeforums.com]

..."You can upres your tiny original, but you'll just wind up with a large soft image instead of large blocky pixels."...

True but what's got me still wondering at this point is what Buko said about upping the resolution on a deficient file as to provide a base of sorts for a high resolution project-from-scratch which is created on top of the "uprezzed originally low rez file/image". Now all I gotta do is find out what the procedure is for uprezzing the thing is....lol. The original, low resolution image is going to be destroyed by the overpainting and doesn't need to be of anything approaching even "fair" quality (except for the initial uprezzing which won't be intended to affect it....only the overpainting.) unless there's something else I'm missing in the translation here. The "throwaway image" being painted over (a jpeg photograph in this case) is like the gesture drawing underneath an oil painting..

[John Joslin]

This is not the way a purist would do it but it is maybe more understandable.

Go to File > New. Set the size in inches that you want the final picture to have, and the resolution to 300 ppi. Click OK.

Open the low res picture. Select the Move tool and, holding down Shift to keep it centred, drag the image into the frame of your new picture (it will be tiny).

Press Command+T and, holding Shift to keep the aspect ratio, drag the image out by the corners to fill the frame.

Create a new layer to paint on. You can discard the layer with the enlarged original image when you're done.

[Buko]

Painter would probably be a better choice for doing this.

[Len_G...@adobeforums.com]

Actually Painter (I'm using Painter Essentials 4 which came with the Wacom tablet.) seems like it will be a great adjunct to what I'm doing in CS4. Thanks for reminding me about it in another thread as it would've probably languished forever unused otherwise. The same roadblock exists in Painter Essentials 4 relative to what I've described in this thread though. I'll probably go with Joslin's recommendation next and see if that solves things. Honestly had no idea that source material resolution was locked into final project resolution to such a degree......Lots to learn!