How to print a picture at a specific size and fill the whole space without distortion in Digital Image Pro and in Picture It! (842954)

MORE INFORMATION

To have an image print at a specific size, the image must be the correct proportions first. The following steps describe how to format and print the image.

Note This method applies to all versions of Microsoft Picture It!, however the steps may change depending on the version of Picture It! that you are using.

Note Work on a copy of the image, not the original. Therefore the original image is not changed.

1. Open a copy of the image in Picture It!.
2. Click Format, and then click Crop Canvas.
3. Select the proportions for the picture that you want to print in the Select a proportion list box. If the exact proportions that you want are not listed, click Custom, and then enter the proportions in the Width box and in the Height box.
   
   Note the width versus the height when you select the proportion. 4x6 is taller than it is wide, and 6x4 is wider than it is tall.
4. Click a starting point, and then drag the outline to cover the part of the picture that you want to print.
5. If you want to adjust the outline, use the yellow dots on the corners.
   
   This preserves the proportions of the outline.
6. Click Done.
7. Under Format, click Resize Image.
8. Click Resolution, and then type the dimensions for the picture in the Width and the Height boxes under Image size.
   
   Note The dimensions may adjust slightly when you click in the Height box. For example, 4" x 6" may be displayed as 4.04" x 6.00". This is expected.
9. Click Done.
   
   The image is ready for printing.
10. On the File menu, click Print.
11. If you are printing on a printer that is not the default printer, select your printer.
12. If you are using special paper or if you want to change the print quality, click Change printer settings, and then make the appropriate changes.
13. Select the paper size in the Select a print size box.
14. Click the page orientation that best fits the image.
15. Watch the print preview as you click to clear the Scale to fit check box, and then click to select the .Scale to fit check box.
    
    Set this check box to the setting that makes the picture look best in the preview.
16. Click Print.

Notes about printing

• You may want to make changes to a copy of the image in a "lossless" format. For example, .bmp, .tif, and .png are all lossless formats. Frequent editing of an image that is saved in a "lossy" format can cause image degradation. For example, if you edit an image in .jpg format, there may be loss of detail or fuzziness.
• You must repeat the steps that are listed in this article for each different size that you want to print. If you format a copy of an image for 4" x 6", you must repeat the steps to format a copy of the image for 8" x 10".
• You may want to name each copy of the image with the dimensions. For example, if you format a copy of an image for 4" x 6" format, save the file as ImageName4x6.png.