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Resolution is the degree of detail visible in an image. Images are composed of pixels - or, dots of color. High resolution means there are many dots per inch. Low resolution means fewer dots per inch, and poorer quality. All images in ads should be 300 dpi.

Resolution and image size are inversely proportional to each other. Enlarge an image, the resolution decreases. Enlarging an image makes its pixels more obvious since the pixels are stretched to cover more area. This lowers the quality of the image. For example: a 2 x 2″ image at 300 dpi (acceptable) enlarged to 4 x 4″ has a new resolution of 150 dpi (unacceptable).

The minimum resolution for printing is 300 dpi. Computer monitors generally have a display setting of 72 dpi or 96 dpi. If we indicate that some of your images have low resolution, they may not look bad on your monitor but will likely print blurry or jagged.

Things to avoid:
• Web images are predominantly low resolution (72-96 dpi) GIF or JPEG files. This resolution is good for quick transmission over the internet, but is not acceptable for use in printing.

• Upsampling is when a low resolution image is saved to a higher resolution with no changes in dimensions. Upsampling adds more pixels/dots per inch (dpi), but creates blurry images, ugly blocks of color, and high contrast in images. The only way resolution can be improved is by decreasing the image size, or by recapturing the image at a higher quality setting.