|
When you need to print multiple images in Photoshop CS3, use the Picture Package feature to save time and paper. For example, suppose you need to print a dozen images, each at 4 x 5 inches. Printing each on a separate sheet of paper takes 12 sheets and 12 print cycles. Choose File --> Automate --> Picture Package to put four 4 x 5 images on a single page, and you use three sheets of paper and wait through only three print cycles.
 | Photoshop CS3 Picture Package creates zones on a sheet of paper and places copies of the selected image, sized to fit within the area of the layout you select, in each zone. You can click each of the zones to select a different image or leave Picture Package set to print multiple copies of a single image. |
Here are some tips for working efficiently with Picture Package:
- Pick the Page Size first. The layouts available are all based on the page size. The Layout pop-up menu shows only layouts designed for the selected dimensions.
For Page Size, use the printable area of the page (the area within your printer's minimum margins), not the paper size.
- Click each zone to add an image. By default, Picture Package uses multiple copies of the same image in the Layout area. Click each of those images to change the photo assigned to that spot.
- Create custom layouts. Click the Edit Layout button to create custom arrangements to suit your needs. Click a zone and drag its bounding box to resize and move, or work numerically for precise zones.
- Check your resolution. If you intend to print your Picture Package page, you probably want a resolution of 300 ppi or perhaps 240 ppi.
- Decide whether to flatten or not. If you don't select the Flatten All Layers check box, you can further manipulate the result, perhaps adding any necessary adjustment layers to fine-tune a specific image. Maintaining layers also lets you realign the images to make cutting them apart later much easier.
- Check your font size. Make sure that if you add a label, you use an appropriate font size. If your label is too small, nobody can read it; conversely, if it's too large, you might disrupt the feel of the image.
- Consider using Contact Sheet. If you have a large number of images to process, you might be better off using Contact Sheet II because it automatically generates multiple pages from a single folder.
 | Picture Package won't crop your images for you; it can't make such artistic decisions. Before opening Picture Package, make sure that you have copies of your images that are in the correct aspect ratio (the relationship between width and height) for the print size you want. Your digital camera, for example, might capture using a 3:2 aspect ratio (the long side is 50% larger than the small side). That image doesn't fit properly in an 8 x 10 or a 5 x 7 zone in Picture Package, although it will completely fill a 4 x 6 zone because 4 x 6 is also a 3:2 aspect ratio — or, for clarity, a 2:3 aspect ratio. |
|
