Dr. Hug's Photo Scanning Service

We Digitize Slides, Negatives, Prints

Wouldn't it be nice to HUG a memory?

35mm Film Resolution GIF

Digital image resolution is measured by PPI (pixels per inch). What is PPI? A pixel is the smallest unit of a digital image that can be displayed on a screen. One pixel of the digital image will appear as one pixel on your computer screen, phone, TV or other electronic digital viewing device. The PPI of a digital image can range anywhere from 1 pixel to any number. The PPI of an electronic digital viewing device is a set number and does not fluctuate. 300ppi is the recommended digital image resolution size for printing a high quality photo at 100% (the human eye cannot see any difference above 300ppi). So, if you view a 300ppi digital image on a 100ppi computer screen, it will appear 3 times larger than the print size. Screen size and display settings will also affect the viewing size of the image, especially on a phone. Please keep all of that in mind while viewing the images below. Read more information at FAQ.

Full Photo - 35mm Negative Film Scanned at 1200ppi

This is a 1200ppi scan of a printed amateur photo. It's difficult to simulate on a computer screen (or other viewing device), but the resolution of this is an approximation of what this photo would look like if sized to 4 inch by 6 inch then printed at 300ppi. The subsequent photos are zoomed in on the area inside the red rectangle.

Full Photo - 35mm negative film scanned at 1200ppi.

 

1200ppi vs 2400ppi 35mm Negative Film Scan Comparison

The photo below is animated. It should be switching between two photos showing the visual difference in resolution (PPI). In this scenario, the original 35mm film was scanned at 1200ppi and 2400ppi. After that, they were both zoomed in and resized to the 4"x6" format at 300ppi. Below is an approximation of what the printed photos would look like.

 

If the animation is not working, you can click HERE to see the two separate photos.

 

If you have a small screen, you may need to zoom in to see the difference.

Animated GIF of the same 35mm negative scanned at 1200ppi and 2400ppi and zoomed in to show to difference in resolution quality.

 

2400ppi vs 3200ppi vs 4800ppi 35mm Negative Film Scan Comparison

The photo below is animated. It should be switching between three photos showing the difference in visual resolution (PPI). In this scenario, the original 35mm film was scanned at 2400ppi, 3200ppi and 4800ppi. After that, they were all zoomed in and resized to the 4"x6" format at 300ppi. Below is an approximation of what the printed photos would look like.

 

If the animation is not working, you can click HERE to see the three separate photos.

 

If you have a small screen, you may need to zoom in to see the difference.

Animated GIF of the same 35mm negative. This time scanned at 2400ppi, 3200ppi and 4800ppi and zoomed in farther show to difference in resolution quality.