File Enlargement Software - Any Recommendations?

i heard nvidia's AI enlargers are pretty good. i don't have it myself, but the results seem interesting. i think it fills in missing details with some kind of patch match heal tool, then sharpens it.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

ON1 Raw photo editor has a built in module for enlarging photos. I do have a copy of ON1 but have not used the resize option, however, a professional landscape photographer contact (who has an MA in Photography) recently had your problem, tried ON1 and said the quality of the resized (upscaled) file was very good.

You can download a free trial version of ON1 Raw 2021, so perhaps worth trying that to see for yourself.

Regina, I use Topaz Gigapixel AI. Not all files are suitable for enlargement though, in fact IMO, the majority are not. Through trial and error, I've found that it's best to enlarge first, BEFORE doing any other edits, with the exception of removing chromatic aberration. Giga AI enlarges CA and artifacts to a ridiculous degree, so the cleaner the edges, the cleaner the output. It's also best to enlarge in small increments. Don't go for a 3X or 4X enlargement right off the bat.

Once you get the size right, be sure to zoom in to at least 200% and go over every inch of the file to see if there are any areas that need to be cloned.

Hi Regina,

You did not indicate if you used Photoshop or not. I do not very often enlarge images but have had very good results using the Image Size adjustment within the latest version of Photoshop CC.

Just for the heck of it I took a 16 inch wide x 10 inch high image @300 ppi and enlarged it to 20.8 inches wide x 13 inches high @300 ppi. I set the Image Size dialog box to the percent selection, placed 130% into each box and had Preserve Details 2.0 active at 3% in the same dialog box.

Original image pixel dimension was 4,800 x 3,000 and the enlarged image pixel dimensions were 6,240 x 3,900

After converting the image I compared the original with the enlarged one at 400% on my screen and could find no difference between the images other than their size. If you have Photoshop in its current version you may want to just try that option first and see what you get for a result. If you start with a good quality image I would think your result would be good.

I also have the very latest version of ON1Photo Raw (2021.1 15.1.0.10100) but have never used that software to enlarge an image.

Frank

PS: I had a few extra minutes so I processed the same image again in ON1 Photo Raw setting the pixels dimensions to 6,240 x 3,900, the same as other enlargement. I once again viewed both enlarged images at 400% and to my eye on my screen I would have to give the edge to Photoshop CC (latest version) but only buy just a tad little bit. I would think that at normal viewing sizes on a screen or normal viewing distances of the photo on the wall one could probably not detect any difference.

Another vote for On1!

Regina,

How big is big? 4 foot, 8 foot? What will it be printed on? Canvas? In Photoshop, try this. Go to "Image Size" and the box will dropdown. Will show the current size. First duplicate the original, so you're not messing with that image/file. Then in "image Size", next to "width" and right under that "Height", you'll see to the right, usually some numbers and usually "pixels", click on the drop-down arrow, and select "Percent", then change the 100% to 110% and hit OKAY. Then do this over again. You'll see the "dimensions" change and the pixel size. Keep doing this until you reach where you think you need to be and then stop and take a look.

I've sold 4 foot x 6 foot prints here when I first joined, from pretty small files, so this might be an easy fix, depends on WHO will print this? Your client or FAA? If YOUR CLIENT, then need to have your client find out from THEIR PRINTER what size file THEY NEED and if they themselves can upgrade to a larger file, which most pro labs can do.....
Rich

Thanks to all who commented and offered their wisdom and experience. I downloaded a Topaz trial and will also check out ON1. I do have and use Photoshop but an old version. Client is interested in licensing so I don't know what the final size be, just the file size requirement.

You didn't say how old your Photoshop version is. They do however include one of the best file enlargement algorithms.

https://www.imageenlarger.com/

WONDERFUL, 5 choices,all good,free SIMPLE!

Thank you again for the responses. Brian, I have PS CS6. Thanks VIVA for the link.

Hi Regina and all, I use Adobe Photoshop Express online, it's free and from what I can tell it does an awesome job. https://photoshop.adobe.com/resize

Regina - PS-CS6 is also what I use. As far as I know, it should work well for enlargements. You may want to search online for some instructions if you use it. Part of what I do is first change the image into a "Smart Object" before enlarging but there may be more to it such as Mode, pixel sampling options, etc.

Here's a video that should help...

Regina, Brian, I know most folk use Adobe, but, to 'use'/enlarge, or anything, you have to sign in, which I could but won't do anymore.
Once signed in, all I did/change, becomes pub.property via Adobe connection to Drive,etc.......just saying.

Absolutely positively Benvista. FAR better than any I have ever tried (sooo many), including On1. A little pricey but worth every penny.

There's a thread around here somewhere that includes an example I uploaded.

Edit: Found it

Regina,

If this is a "licensing" deal, not YOUR problem to increase size of this image......theirs! I've done BILLBOARDS and never asked to provide a billboard-sized file.....

Rich

VIVA - We're talking about PS-CS6 which was the last Photoshop version BEFORE the cloud takeover.

On1 Resize 2020 is the best.

Thank you, Brian, sigh, way beyond me now.

Brian,

Thanks for that video. I have Affinity Photo now with this sort of capability as well.

This opens up all of my art for use if I gain a better licensing deal.

Dave Bridburg
Bridburg.com
Post Modern Gallery

Thank you once more to all those who responded to this post and for the valuable information that you all provided. Brian thanks for the video. Susan thanks for the Benvista tip. Rich - you are right. However, I wanted to reassure the prospective buyer that the image could be enlarged by trying it myself using more than one software product. Actually, it turned out to be a good learning experience for me - so I'm grateful to all who shared their knowledge and experience. Since this is still generating discussion that may be helpful to others, I'll leave the thread open for a while longer.

Regina,

Glad to help!

Caution! I would not send them any file that you increased in size! They will do a better job than you can since they do this ALL THE TIME! Even worse, would be sending them a bad enlargement, than them thinking the file isn't any good! Communicate with them that you have your original file, let them know the file dimensions and whether it's a tiff or jpeg or if they would prefer the RAW file.

Next hurdle, the licensing.....

Rich

I just had to resize for a mural website. I used Reshade Image Super-Resolution. It is free and it seemed to work pretty good with a few adjustments on Photoshop Elements later.

Topazlabs GigaPixel!

Pure and Simple.

It's very easy in Lightroom (one of the option available when you come to export the pic to a jpg), and my limited, but not negligible, experience has been very good.

Brian,

Can I change a 100 ppi file into a 300 ppi file or up the resolution with extremely good results? Using PS?

Dave Bridburg
Bridburg.com
Post Modern Gallery

Dave,

I believe Matt, in the video addressed the changing of resolution but don't be confused by PPI vs DPI. One is only for printing which I believe is PPI.