Tip #23: Cropping for Prints

In a previous tip, I wrote on cropping people. Photos often need to be cropped for display or printing, too. There are the typical sizes that we a familiar with: 4x6, 8x10, 11x13, 16x20, etc. Square formats are also trending, now.



If you know you are going to be cropping for a special size, fill the frame, when you compose the shot, but remember to leave enough negative space for your final, planned output.

For the web, most anything goes. I typically use a 2x3 or 3x2 width to height ratio, but I do mix it up for variety. Panoramas tend to be wider and have strange ratios, depending on the number of frames that I capture in a panorama. A Scott Kelby trick that I mimic is to use a 16x9 crop for a cinematic look.





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