Large Scale Digital Printing Guidelines

Question

Hi,
I'm trying to get a getter handle on the principles and options for creating the best large and very large scale prints from digital files.  I'm more than well versed in the basics of Photoshop and color management but there remain some issues I've never dealt with.
It would be very helpful if you could give me some advice about this issue that I've divided into four levels.  In some cases I've stated principles as I understand them.  Feel free to better inform me.  In other cases I've posed direct questions and I'd really appreciate professional advice about these issues, or references to places where I can learn more.
Thanks alot,
Chris
Level one – Start with the maximum number of pixels possible.
Principle: Your goal is to produce a print without interpolation at no less than 240 dpi.  This means that you need as many pixels as the capture device can produce at its maximum optical resolution.
Level two – Appropriate Interpolation within Photoshop
Use the Photoshop Image Size box with the appropriate interpolation setting (Bicubic Smoother) to increase the image size up to the maximum size of your ink jet printer.
What is the absolute minimum resolution that is acceptable when printing up to 44”?
What about the idea of increasing your print size in 10% increments? Does this make a real difference?
Level three - Resizing with vector-based applications like Genuine Fractals?
In your experience do these work as advertized and do you recommend them for preparing files to print larger than the Epson 9900?
Level four – Giant Digital Printing Methods
What are the options for creating extremely large digital prints?
Are there web sites or other resources you can point me to to learn more about this?
How do you prepare files for very large-scale digital output?

Answer 1

While what you say may be true, it is not always the case. I would view a 'painting' as more than a 'poster' in terms of output resolution, at least in the first stages of development. Definately get the info from your printer and then plan to use your hardware/software setup to give you the most creative flexibility. In other words - work as big as you can (within reason, see previous statement) to give yourself the most creative freedom. Things like subtle gradations and fine details will benefit from more pixels, and can with the right printer be transferred to hard copy at higher resolutions (a photo quality ink jet will take advantage of 600ppi) if that's what you're going for.
Additionally it's much easier to down scale than to wish you had a bigger image after a 100 hours of labor...