Q: How big of a print can I make with a 5 megapixel camera?

A: To answer your question quickly: you can make a quality 8×10 image from a 5 megapixel sensor.

Now to get into it a little deeper:

When buying a camera at a electronics store, don’t always assume one with a higher megapixel count will always equal better quality.

It also depends on the size of the sensor and whether or not it has an Optical zoom or a digital zoom (which is just cropping out some of those megapixels you just spent the extra money on).

As for printing:

Most people agree that 300 DPI (dots per inch) are needed for true photo quality. But in general, prints will still look like photos and won’t suffer from noticeable pixelization or jagged edges down to about 150 DPI if you print with high quality printing software.

You can see below what are the general sizes for printing a 300 DPI print (intended for viewing up close).

These are the mega pixels needed for each print size.

4×6 about 2 MP
5×7 about 3 MP
8×10 about 6 MP
11×14 about 14 MP
13×20 about 23 MP

For a 150 DPI print (viewed further away)

4×6 about 0.5 MP
5×7 about 1 MP
8×10 about 2 MP
11×14 about 3.4 MP
13×20 about 6 MP

Remember, the quality of your photos depends on your abilities as a photographer, and your ability to utilize your tools (cameras). I’ve seen amazing photos from 3 MP cameras that beat photos from 6 or 8 MP cameras, or Point and shoot cameras that have knocked me off my feet because they were better than my “professional” camera.

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