Photoshop Help

[Schappy]

How do I open up a new photoshop file and have it be actual size.

When I change the settings to inches the size of the screen image changes with dpi.

I want to the screen image to be the same size as my enclosure so I can easily fit pots to size.

[Al Heeley]

tried using the rulers to size a rectangle properly?
Note: resolution, screen size and print quality are all interlinked.
I always use the rulers to get correct size enclosure with resolution set to at least 150 dpi. If its finer graphics set to 200 or 300 max. It will look bigger on your screen then (at 100% zoom) but will print out the correct size. Does that make sense?

[KazooMan]

I am not certain just what you are asking.  Dpi is a function of the printer.  Pixels/inch is the resolution in photoshop.  It should not matter what these are set for, the file should print correctly.

Let's say you had a box that is 3" wide and 5" high.  You would click on "file" new" and get the dialog box.  Enter a filename if you chose, then in the "preset sizes" box select "custom" then enter the width and height making certain that the units are in inches.  Then set your resolution in pixels per inch.  The higher the number the greater the resolution you will have, at the cost of larger file sizes and potentially slowing processing.  Click OK and you should see a blank file.  If you have the rulers turned on (under the view tab) you will see that the box is the dimensions you set.  If you then go back and select "image size" under the image tab you can change the resolution (have constrain proportions and resample image checked) and the dimensions of the window will remain the same.  If you print this it will be the size indicated.  

[Schappy]

Yes I meant pixels/inch.

What confuses me is that if I create a new document and size it at 5" X "7 it changes size with differing ppi settings.

How do I get it to appear onscreen at actual size?

[swinginguitar]

For printing, you should use 300 dpi

As for "shown actual size", you would have to determine how many pixels at a given resolution make up an inch on your specific monitor. how to do that, i do not know.

[KazooMan]

I guess I never worried about having the actual size on screen.  I always work with a much larger image and then do proofs with the printer.  It is easier to align objects with the larger scale.

There are probably some very elegant ways to do what you want, but this should work:

If you want it to appear on screen as the actual size, you would need to go to the image size screen and set the resolution at the number of pixels per inch you are using for your display.  Your graphics adapter may not give you that number directly.  To get a close idea, divide your screen resolution height/width number by the measured height/width of your screen.  Give that a try.  Use a ruler to measure what you get on the screen and then determine the correction ratio.  You should be able to hone in on the exact ppi setting you need pretty quickly.  Remember it for future use.

[Al Heeley]

Open new image
press ctrl +- R to get the rulers up.
Set the sliders on horizontal and vertical axes to the correct dimensions of your enclosure, using the guides - the thin blue lines.
You can snap to the guides, marquee the area then it will be exactly the right size when its printed out..it wont be exactly right size on the screen as lots of people have diferent size screens.
You can always play around with setting the px/cm so the rulers coincide with an actual ruler held up to the screen, but what you want really is to be able to print out a template at the correct size or measure circles for pots using same scale as the enclosure.

[.Mike]

Have you tried View -> Print Size?

[KazooMan]

Yep, I have tried "view print size" and the image on the screen is NOT the dimensions I was looking for.  You can still see the rulers and the dimensions as read off of them are correct, but the image, when actually measured, is smaller than desired.

The OP apparently wants the screen image to be the exact size of the printed output.  The only way I know to make that happen is to have the image resolution and the screen resolution match. 

[gmoon]

Resolution in Photoshop is just a "tag" or a label--an embedded instruction to other applications. It doesn't change the image, only how it's displayed (if resample isn't selected.)

Consequently, if you change the resolution but the number of pixels remains the same, then the overall dimensions will be different.

If you want to change the resolution AND retain the dimensions, then "Resample" must be checked. Doing so will upsample or downsample the image...

[KazooMan]

Yes, that is true.  You do need to check "resample" to maintain the original dimensions when changing the file's ppi resolution as I mentioned in my prior note.  But, no matter how you arrive at the final dimensions and resolution for your image file if the resolution of the file in ppi and the native screen resolution in ppi are not the same then the image on the screen will not be the desired, "real-life" dimensions that the OP wants.    It will be scaled by the relationship between the two ppi values.