Will Resizing a Small Photo Get Me a Higher Resolution?
If you aren’t familiar with editing photos, then you might think it’s easy to resize an image to a higher resolution, even though your image might be too small. But if you have worked with resizing images to make them larger, then you know how difficult and spotty it really is to get good results. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but you are better off with a larger image always… now go and try our new free image Upscaler here at stockphotos.com.
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If you only need to quickly resize a picture for Instagram or other platforms, there is no easier way to do it by using Canva Magic Resize or Shutterstocks resizing tool, for example. Both tools allow you to resize social media posts without stretching or cutting off images and make them look professional with every post.
You can opt to use a user-friendly AI photo editing tool to automatically enhance image resolution/image quality as well.
Gigapixel AI by Topaz Labs – Unlimited Upscaling
Another great tool to get bigger-sized and higher-resolution images in no time is Gigapixel AI, an intelligent image upscaler with unlimited access for a one-time fee. You can try it for free by registering on the site with your email and process one image free of course.
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For example, if a customer gave you a small image that was 500 × 500 at 72dpi and wanted it 4000 × 4000 at 300dpi, then you are going to have a rough conversation with your client! Suffice it to say, it’s not going to be pretty, in fact, it probably won’t look as good as you want. So what's so different, why is 300 dpi vs 72 dpi such a big issue? 72dpi is a web size resolution while 300dpi is the lowest standard resolution for something like a photo or brochure that is printed.
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What is a high-resolution image?
A high-resolution image is anything that has at is 300 dpi high resolution with a larger pixel dimension, for example, 5000 × 4000 pixels. If you have an image that is 640 × 40 at 72dpi, you definitely have too small of an image!
Listen …
If you want to avoid the hassle of learning how to get a higher resolution for a low-quality image, definitely check out stock photos that are already high res and ready to be used. Just click on the search button below and summon millions of high-quality (XXL) images from the Stock Photo Secrets Shop!
… here’s the deal:
Our image subscriptions INCLUDE all image sizes up to XXL size (meaning you can print confidently at A3 size with 300dpi or 6’ x 6‘ with 72dpi). We currently have a membership deal that gives you 200 XXL photos for $99 (that’s only $0.49 per image).
Do you want to know where else you can buy large images? Then check out our latest recommendations to find the best large stock photos.
How to Make a Picture Higher Resolution
If you don't know how to increase the resolution of a photo, then we have put together some ways you can try increasing the resolution of your small image. Trying to make a digital image larger often results in quality loss and pixelation. While you cannot typically make the image bigger and maintain the same quality, there are things you can do to achieve a higher resolution image.
We have resized the image above for free at imglarger.com from 500 pixels to 2000 pixels. The results are pretty good and usable for most usages and prints.
How to resize your images free:
- Go to Stockphotos.com Upscaler – a free image resizing service using AI
- No need to sign-up (but you can if you like to upscale more than 3 images, or at super high resolution) – just drag and drop your image into the upload form
- Confirm the terms and then pick the resize options below
- Pick times you want to upscale (up to 4x or 8x times if you use our banner offer) and resize
You can resize any image up to 5 MB in file size and less than 1200×1200. The resize is free for 3 images up to 2000 pixels x 2000 pixels. Make sure to use the correct type i.e. Artwork, Photo, Face, or High-Grade (what we chose for our example below).
If you need to resize a smaller image up to 8x the pixel size. Or if you need to convert many images then sign-up and pick an upscales pack –super low-priced at $0.20 and $0.10 per image–. But for a limited time, you can grab our special offer for 10 free upscales right here!
Gigapixel AI by Topaz Labs – Easy Image Enhancing
If you have a lot of images to enlarge/enhance, then Gigapixel AI is the perfect tool for you. This AI-powered image upscaler lets you blow up and enhance your images in batches, it comes with its own apps for Mac and Windows, as well as a Photoshop plugin, and it's a one-time purchase that gives you unlimited access, forever!
You can try Gigapixel AI for free for one image, all you have to do is register with your email on the website to unlock the trial, and your processed image will be delivered to your inbox, completely free of charge.
We have a whole list of the best image upscalers on the web for you to explore!
If you don't want to use them, then the best place to start is to ensure that you are picking a large enough size image from the get-go. Evaluate what size you need prior to purchasing the rights to an image from a stock photo agency.
If you are creating a poster, you will want an image with a dpi of no less than 300 and dimensions that are big enough for your poster.
If you are using the image for your website, you don't need anything above 72 dpi, but you will still need an image that has the dimensions at or above your needs.
When You’ve Run Out of Options…
By now, you have a better understanding that image resizing isn’t some magic alchemy that can easily increase the size of a small photo. So how do you solve this issue if you or your client downloaded too small of an image, or only has a small photo that will look horrible when resized?
Well, you can repurchase a larger version of a stock photo if you or the client bought too small of a photo, or you can use a special software program that may or may not be able to resize your image.
Having an image, to begin with, that has a big enough resolution is the best recipe for resizing an image effectively and will mean better quality when increasing its size. At the Stock Photo Secrets Shop, our stock photo image sizes are big and definitely big enough for you to print confidently at A3 size with 300dpi or 6’ x 6‘ at 72dpi.
Top Tips on How To Increase Your Image Size
A technique that may work for you is to try “stair interpolation.” This concept has you increase the size of the image in small increments instead of one big change.
Instead of increasing the size from 100% to 300%, try increasing the image by 10% at a time and repeat this process until you have the size you are looking for. There is also a free program that can help you called IrfanView. Unfortunately, it appears that there is no version for Mac.
Or you give imglarger.com a try – a free image resizing service using AI. You can resize up to 2000 pixels at 4x the size of the source image.
Working with what you've got will require using editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop, the top industry standard in professional image editing. Did you know, that you can now try it out for free? The Photoshop free trial gives you full access to the software, for one week, completely free of charge! Definitely worth taking advantage of.
One option is to resize the image, not to be confused with resampling. By resizing, you are changing the image print size, but maintaining the pixel dimensions. You will have good image quality, but in turn, you will be sacrificing your print size. If you use resampling, which changes the pixel dimensions, you will have a loss in quality when you resize.
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Best Software Options
There are other software programs, such as Vector Magic, that will take your raster image and convert it to a vector. Once an image is converted into a vector, you can resize the image in any way you need, but changing your image into a vector image isn't necessarily a good solution for all of your photos. You may want to start with the free download prior to purchasing the software to see if it is right for you.
Good Luck Blowing it Up!
Unfortunately, you may not always get the biggest size image that you need, whether it is from a client you are doing a project for or perhaps a mistake you made when purchasing from a stock photo agency.
Sometimes it might be better to go back to the drawing board and get a large image that will allow you to play with image resizing without affecting its quality. If you are looking for something economical, we have a great deal right now that gives you 200 XXL stock photos, vectors, and fonts for just $99, which will allow you to print confidently at A3 size with 300dpi or 6’ x 6‘ with 72dpi.
While software options are available, it doesn’t guarantee you’ll get a good enough image without pixelation. Use image-editing programs like Photoshop, AI Image Enlarger, or Blow Up 3, and if it’s a graphic, try using the Art setting at AI Image Enlarger. All of these might work for you, but don’t expect them to be higher resolution image sizes!
Click here to join the 99 club now and get 200 images for only $0.49 per image!)
Image: Spiderstock/iStockphoto.com
