Resources

The color management and file preparation resources below are to help you produce the best possible results with Pictopia's printing services.
Please contact the Photo Lab if you have questions.

Supported File Types

Most Pictopia customers upload their files in JPEG or TIFF format. TIFF files can include LZW compression for faster uploads with no loss of quality. We also accept the GIF and PNG file formats. Please note the following specifications when preparing your files:

• All files must be RGB
• Please flatten layed files before uploading.
• Files must be 8-bits per channel. We do not accept 16-bit files.
• PDF format is not supported, and needs to be converted to JPEG or TIFF.

Color Profiles

Files for Lightjet Digital C-print orders should be uploaded with either an sRGB or Pictopia custom ICC profile. Many Pictopia customers are happy with their color when using sRGB.

If you're experienced with color management and soft-proofing in Photoshop, our custom ICC profiles are available for download below. Make sure to convert your optimized file to the correct ICC profile before uploading to Pictopia. Since profile conversion changes pixels, consider saving a separate version of your file for printing with Pictopia.

If you're ordering Custom Lightjet Digital C-prints or Custom Archival Pigment Prints, your images can be submitted with one the following RGB color profiles: ProPhoto, Adobe 1998, sRGB, or a custom Pictopia ICC profile. Our Image Specialists will optimize your photos, and make the appropriate profile conversion for you before printing.

Black and White

If you are printing black and white or have converted to grayscale, do not use our color profiles. Save the file as grayscale before uploading.

Fuji Crystal Archival ICC Profiles

Gloss	Matte	Pearl
Download	Download	Download

Image Sizes and Print Quality

Pictopia uses our exclusive Up-Scale™ technology to automatically scale your file to the appropriate size for printing with no loss of sharpness. Upload the highest resolution original that you have -- there is no need to resize or interpolate the file in Photoshop. Profile and Calibration Setup Monitor profiling is the most important step you can take to ensure color consistency and color matching. Profiling your monitor establishes a common baseline for viewing images, and tells Photoshop how to interpret your particular monitor's color behavior. The Datacolor Spyder 3 series, and xRite i1 series are popular monitor colorimeter products. Diagnostic Image Upon request, Pictopia will provide you with a free print of our diagnostic image. The Pictopia diagnostic image is provided as a color reference tool: comparing this image on your monitor to the printed version will give you a sense of the difference between how color appears on your monitor and on prints from Pictopia. Diagnostic Image

Extra Sharp Sharp Moderate   300ppi 200ppi 150ppi Small   4x6 1,200 x 1,800 800 x 1,200 600 x 900 5x7 1,500 x 2,100 1,000 x 1,400 750 x 1,050 8x10 2,400 x 3,000 1,600 x 2,000 1,200 x 1,500 Medium   11x14 3,300 x 4,200 2,200 x 2,800 1,650 x 2,100 16x20 4,800 x 6,000 3,200 x 4,000 2,400 x 3,000 20x30 6,000 x 9,000 4,000 x 6,000 3,000 x 4,500 Large   24x36 7,200 x 10,800 4,800 x 7,200 3,600 x 5,400 30x40 9,000 x 12,000 6,000 x 8,000 4,500 x 6,000 Extra Large   40x50 12,000 x 15,000 8,000 x 10,000 6,000 x 7,500 48x72 14,400 x 21,600 9,600 x 14,400 7,200 x 10,800 The following chart will help you anticipate the levels of print quality you can expect from digital images of various pixel dimensions.

Range of Print Sizes

Customers can order photo prints from Pictopia as large as 50" x 120", and can choose their exact size in our online ordering tool to within one-tenth of an inch. However, all prints are hand-trimmed and can vary as much as .08" in each dimension in order to fully bleed images.