combinning several pictures into one

[mot3999]

Hi,
I am having a problem and it's probably just a result of a "brain freeze" on my part:
1. trying to place 11 pictures into 1 final picture
2. cropped all 11 pictures to approcimately 4" x 4" size and opened all of them in Elements 6 ptogram
3. made a "new" blank file 80 inches by 200 inches (just to make sure it would be big enough to contain all 11 smaller pictures)
4. made the new file black color
5. "tried" to dragg all 11 pictures to the blank file (1 at a time, of course) and place them in the position that I wanted
6. ran out of space on the blank file (80 x 200 inches) before I could get all 11 pictures on the blank file (ran out of space horizontly)
7. why did I run out of space? they were only about 4" each & should have fit on a 50 - 60 inch blank file
8. by the way .... I had to resize each picture as I dragged it to the blank file because I could see they were not going to fit
Any help would be appreciated.

Mot3999

[Tina_B]

Check that you have everthing at the same resoultion. If you have the photos at 200 and the background at 72 things will not go together very good. I would look thre first.
Tina B

[ken1]

The third variable for a new blank file, beside width & height, is the resolution. At a resolution of 240-300px/in, which is what you want for a decent result for printing, the program will not allow a canvas of 200x80".

To get the job done, it is desirable to have the resolution of the individual pictures and the canvas about the same. In order to make the collage, either drag, or copy/paste the individual pictures into place, and refine the size and position using the move tool. This will require several "new files."

HTH

[frank abramonte]

80 inches by 200 inches is equal to 6 1/2 feet x 16 1/2 feet. How do you intend to print this document?
Your eleven 4" x 4" photos could fit on 12 inches x 16 inches, which is a lot smaller than the size you created.

My suggestion which will make things simple for you:
1. Make eleven new blank files 4" x 4" at the highest resolution your photo will tolerate.
Make sure that all are the same resolution 250 to 300 dpi.
2. Select each of the photos and drag them onto one of the 4" x 4" blank files.
3. Scale each one so it fits the way you wish on the 4" x 4" blank document.
4. Once your done with all eleven, they will all be the same size and resolution.
5. Create a document 12" x 16" the same resolution as the eleven 4" x 4" photos.
You can make it a little larger to allow for a border.
6. You can now select each 4" x 4" and drag it onto the 12" x 16" document.
Similar to the example below.
You can position them without them being too large or too small, they will all be the same size.


http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1ckTIsVus3RQrgdOkA43UnQLcocD_thumb.jpg (http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1ckTIsVus3RQrgdOkA43UnQLcocD)

[mot3999]

All pictures and the blank file are at 72/pix/inch so they all have that in common. Afraid I don't understand enough about the whole pixels per inch to even discuss it very well except to say that when I download pictures from my 10 megapixel camera they always start at 72 pix per inch.

The pictures that I am working with are from a lunar eclipse & I would like them lined out in an arc .... 1st picture near the bottom left with the 6th picture at the highest part of the arc, then decending in height with the last picture at the bottom right.

Was never planning to print this hugh picture in the 80 x 250 size ... just looking for a way to get all 11 pictures on 1 canvas .... always planned to change the size later.

Still looking for input on how to get this done???

mot3999

[frank abramonte]

Your camera may yield 72 dpi photos, but they are probably 17 or more inches wide.
You will have to reduce them to a more manageable size if your to merge them into a smaller document.
The moon photos should not only have the same resolution but also be the same size.
I suggest that you make each moon photo 1" x 1" or 2" x 2" rather than 4".
I assume you will be silhouetting them.
.
You have 2 choice:
1. Go to Image>Resize>Image Size enter the 4" in width window. Do not check the Resample Image.
This will include the entire photo right out of your camera, with a lot of extra background.
Your image will probably not reduce to a 4" square because the original from your camera is not square.

2. Follow my instructions from the previous post on reducing them to 4" x 4".
This will allow you to crop each approximately the same.

When you create your large document you will have to create an arc to which you will align your moon shots.

You may want to check the link to a moon photo done a few week ago, is this what your attempting?
Click on "Inspeqtor's PET Blueprints"

http://www.elementsvillage.com/forums/showthread.php?t=39834&highlight=moon+photos

Post back after you digest the above.

[TonyW]

Because you are using PSE6 when you drag from the Photo Bin into a blank document you are creating smart object layers so you really don't need to worry about resolution. Just use Ctrl-T on each image, scale it to the size you want and move it to the position you want. Only downside is the you'll finish up with pretty big file but once you have it right you can always flatten it (the images will be on separate layers). The big advantage of doing it that way (using the smart object layers) is that you can resize them up and down as often as you want to get it to all fit and you won't lose quality as you would if you did it the "old fashioned" way.

Tony