4 page character sheets: Web version [Archive] - Wizards Community

4 page character sheets: Web version [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Xeviat-DM
04-13-04, 02:25 PM I bought the 4 page character sheets from my local book store, and I really, really like them. The space for your familiar, companion, or frequently used wildshape forms was a great idea. My only problem with it is, it's been very, very hard to get decent copies of them. We tried scanning them in and printing them with our laser printer, but they come out very poorly (looking closely at the originals, they are pixelated, which is why the scan is coming out wrong).

And now we have the Psionic versions online. It's not the cost I'm worried about, it's the quality. Do you think we could get just the generic 4 page character sheet on a PDF, for us who are obsessed about quality?
Seeker95
04-13-04, 03:16 PM Ditto and seconded!
Sulaco
04-13-04, 03:41 PM Originally posted by Seeker95
Ditto and seconded!

The originals probably aren't pixelated but rather they have screen pattern dots from being offset printed. When you scan them you need to descreen the image (you should have the option in your scanning software).

Also, scan them at anywhere from 1.5 to 2 times your projected output resolution and manually reduce it afterwards. So if you want to run them off on you home printer you want them to be 150 dpi (anything more than that is a waste), so you should scan them at anywhere from 225dpi to 300dpi and them manually reduce it to 150dpi after scanning using Photoshop or a similar program.
Seeker95
04-13-04, 06:28 PM Sulaco, you talk like you're some kinda fancy graphic designer or something. :P

(Thanks for the tips!)
Xeviat-DM
04-14-04, 12:52 AM We scanned them at 300 dpi (which is the resolution of my inkjet), but the scanned image had many, many errors. My friend is cleaning them up in adobe photoshop, but it's takin much, much more work than neccissary.
Sulaco
04-14-04, 10:49 AM Originally posted by Xeviat-DM
We scanned them at 300 dpi (which is the resolution of my inkjet), but the scanned image had many, many errors. My friend is cleaning them up in adobe photoshop, but it's takin much, much more work than neccissary.

It doesn't matter what the resolution of you printer is. Unless you are sending your files out to be offset print (like a book or magazine), you don't need files above 150dpi. Every time you double your resolution you quadruple your file size for no appreciable increase in output quality.

In fact, if you are printing to an inkjet you are far better off using a lower resolution because of something called dot gain. The more ink they you lay down, the more ink that spreads out and blurs together, obscuring fine detail. This can be mitigated with the paper you use, but the better paper is much more expensive (coated and photo paper for example). The combination of dot gain and cheap newsprint is the reason that newspapers print at 85 dpi.

Trust me, I do this for a living.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Xeviat-DM 04-13-04, 02:25 PM	I bought the 4 page character sheets from my local book store, and I really, really like them. The space for your familiar, companion, or frequently used wildshape forms was a great idea. My only problem with it is, it's been very, very hard to get decent copies of them. We tried scanning them in and printing them with our laser printer, but they come out very poorly (looking closely at the originals, they are pixelated, which is why the scan is coming out wrong). And now we have the Psionic versions online. It's not the cost I'm worried about, it's the quality. Do you think we could get just the generic 4 page character sheet on a PDF, for us who are obsessed about quality?
Seeker95 04-13-04, 03:16 PM	Ditto and seconded!
Sulaco 04-13-04, 03:41 PM	Originally posted by Seeker95 Ditto and seconded! The originals probably aren't pixelated but rather they have screen pattern dots from being offset printed. When you scan them you need to descreen the image (you should have the option in your scanning software). Also, scan them at anywhere from 1.5 to 2 times your projected output resolution and manually reduce it afterwards. So if you want to run them off on you home printer you want them to be 150 dpi (anything more than that is a waste), so you should scan them at anywhere from 225dpi to 300dpi and them manually reduce it to 150dpi after scanning using Photoshop or a similar program.
Seeker95 04-13-04, 06:28 PM	Sulaco, you talk like you're some kinda fancy graphic designer or something. :P (Thanks for the tips!)
Xeviat-DM 04-14-04, 12:52 AM	We scanned them at 300 dpi (which is the resolution of my inkjet), but the scanned image had many, many errors. My friend is cleaning them up in adobe photoshop, but it's takin much, much more work than neccissary.
Sulaco 04-14-04, 10:49 AM	Originally posted by Xeviat-DM We scanned them at 300 dpi (which is the resolution of my inkjet), but the scanned image had many, many errors. My friend is cleaning them up in adobe photoshop, but it's takin much, much more work than neccissary. It doesn't matter what the resolution of you printer is. Unless you are sending your files out to be offset print (like a book or magazine), you don't need files above 150dpi. Every time you double your resolution you quadruple your file size for no appreciable increase in output quality. In fact, if you are printing to an inkjet you are far better off using a lower resolution because of something called dot gain. The more ink they you lay down, the more ink that spreads out and blurs together, obscuring fine detail. This can be mitigated with the paper you use, but the better paper is much more expensive (coated and photo paper for example). The combination of dot gain and cheap newsprint is the reason that newspapers print at 85 dpi. Trust me, I do this for a living.