Many images must undergo some form of cropping when they are printed. This is due to the sometimes differing width and length ratios between common print papers and film sizes. Different film sizes (for example, 35mm, 6x6 - commonly called square format, 4x5, etc.) have different width to length ratios and necessitate different cropping actions as the image is printed. For example, the ratio of a 16"x20" print is 4:5. The ratio of 35mm film is roughly 4:6 (or more precisely 2:3). Therefore, some cropping (roughly 17%) will occur in the longest dimension when a 35mm image is made into a 16"x20" print.  Cropping is the only way to fit a 4:6 ratio film image onto 4:5 ratio photographic paper.

We feel it is important that you know images will often undergo some cropping when they are printed. This is standard photographic practice and necessitated primarily due to differences in film and print paper size ratios. In the example demonstrated above, a 35 mm image is cropped at the bottom to fit an 8x10 print size. As you can see from this example, cropping can often improve the overall appearance of a print.

Here is a list of film sizes and the print sizes that can be produced with little or no cropping or with some (but usually not dramatic) cropping.

As you can see from the table above, where an image and a print have the same general size ratios there will be little or no cropping when making a print of the image. However, when the print and image have different size ratios then there will be some significant cropping of the image to fit it into the desired print size. Luckily it is generally possible to crop an image so it fits into a standard print size without much problem. In rare circumstances the cropping cannot be done without losing significant detail in an image. If you order a print in which this will occur, we will consult with you regarding the best course of action to take before making your print.

Images that have a square format (and therefore a 1:1 ratio) can not be printed directly onto rectangular print paper without significant cropping. The question is, which part of the square image should be trimmed and which part should be preserved on the finished print. Should the image be cropped to produce a vertical print or a horizontal print.  Should the upper portion of the print be preserved while sacrificing the bottom, or is it better to keep the center part of the image.  There is no simple answer that applies to all images.  If you are fond of a square image but want it printed in a rectangular format, please give us a call and we'll work with you to obtain a viable print of your selected image.

Whenever we crop an image we always consider the best way to provide an artistic print that preserves as much of the original image as possible.  We will crop the image in such a way as to enhance its appearance and presentation.  If we find that your selected image can not be cropped to produce a viable print, we will call you before producing your print to determine the best course of action.  We may suggest different print sizes that can be produced using your image or similar images to consider.  Our goal is your complete satisfaction and producing a non-viable print as the result of a cropping action is not in anyone's best interest. You can be confident that we will produce an excellent print of your selected image or we will call you if that is not possible.

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