* printing diagrams in a photo book

[polkat]

I made a photo book with Photobox that included 2x ancestor diagrams ( 5 and 6 generation) and 6 x descendant trees. 4 were 2 generation, 1 x 3 generation and 1 x 7 generation. All were created using VIEW - standard diagram types - then either all descendants or all ancestors - no box. I saved them as JPEG images (landscape ) and assumed that they would then transfer to Photobox ready for printing. However, I found I had to fit them to one page before saving in order to get them to fit the photo book but obviously lost print quality and all are blurry, some unreadable. If I scale them up, they are totally the wrong sizes to print in the book. I have tried saving in a variety of ways, including as a PDF then converting to a JPEG. I have even printed them out and scanned them in but so far have had no success. Trying to resize the images in an image editor would be the next step unless there is something obvious that I am missing. Can I achieve the necessary resolution and save the diagrams in standard photo print sizes somehow?

[quicker]

This may or may not help, however: I made a photobook using CEWE a few years ago, and included various ascendant and descendant charts - though whether as jpg or bitmap I can't now remember.
The online preview showed them as blurred and out of focus, but when I got the book itself, they were absolutely clear. Whether that would be the case for you, I don't know.
I ordered just one copy of the book to make sure, before ordering others - which was useful in allowing me to correct various small errors.

[polkat]

Thank you. I do have a hard copy of the book and most of the trees are blurry, especially those which have most people and thus a smaller font size.

[tatewise]

That is an interesting challenge.
You are correct that saving Diagrams in graphic (JPG, PNG) format often produces low-resolution images.
Using PDF and converting to an image (JPG, PNG) format is the way to go but there are some pitfalls.

In FH use Diagram > Save Diagram As > PDF File (.pdf)... and accept the default setting to adjust size to fit one page.
When the Printer dialogue for Family Historian PDF appears click the Properties... button and check the settings.
The Page tab Graphic Resolution (dpi) defaults to 300 and can be increased if later results are unsatisfactory.
The Graphics tab Predefined mode is best if set to None so there is no compression or downsampling.
Click OK repeatedly to produce the PDF file.

To convert the PDF to JPG/PNG I used the popular free IrfanView file manager.
Its Options > Properties/Settings > Plugins > PDF Options need Set DPI: 300 or higher instead of 96.
Open the PDF and zoom in to check resolution is high enough.
Then use File > Save as... and save it in JPG/PNG format.

I found that preserved 300 dpi throughout but higher resolutions are available.

[polkat]

Thanks for the easy to follow instructions.
I can produce the PDF file with no problems and zoom in with no loss of quality when viewed in FH or in Edge or Chrome.

The problem comes somewhere in the conversion stage. I tried XnView which I already had installed but despite changing the dpi setting still ended up with a poor quality image so I downloaded Irfanview and followed your instructions. However, the resulting jpeg images all end up with a resolution of 96. I have tried saving the original tree at various higher dpi settings, and experimented with different dpi values in irfanview but all the images end up at 96 dpi.

[tatewise]

Yes, 96dpi is the default setting in IrfanView.

Did you use Options > Properties/Settings > Plugins > PDF Options and Set DPI: 300 or higher as per my instructions?

[polkat]

I did.

[tatewise]

You then have to open the PDF file in IrfanView after changing that setting.
Changing the Set DPI: setting does not affect a PDF file already open within IrfanView.

Once changed, IrfanView remembers the setting, and you could try a higher dpi.

If that still does not work we perhaps need to compare notes more closely.

[polkat]

I did exactly as you said but the resulting jpeg file is still showing as 96 dpi.

[polkat]

I have found the problem. The pdf opened at 96 dpi in Irfanview and I had to alter the value to 300 then click change in the image information box before converting as well as set the pdf value to 300 through the plugin menu. One problem solved!

[tatewise]

Excellent, although I did not need that extra step. Strange!