Can Lightroom export settings reduce print size or image resolution?

Question

I exported a JPEG from Lightroom after converting a Fuji X-T1 image to black and white, and a print lab said their software would only allow a very small print size before it became pixelated. The exported file was 4896×3264 pixels and looked sharp at 100%. The original camera JPEG worked when the lab converted it to black and white themselves.

In Lightroom, I only changed the export resolution to 300 ppi. I’ve read that this setting is mostly metadata, so I’m wondering: is there any Lightroom export setting that could actually reduce the usable print size or image resolution, or is this more likely a problem at the lab?

user95237 · Answer

My guess is the problem was operator error at the print shop.

Specifically, the operator was right clicking on a thumbnail and downloading that instead of the linked image.

It probably started working automatically when a different person at the print shop downloaded the image.

My working premise is that print shops often use less experienced operators for tedious work like downloading images. Less experienced operators are less likely to recognize their own errors. They are also more likely to suggest trying other file transfer platforms to fix the problem because they imagine everyone else is as inexpert as themselves.

The in-house conversion to B&W may just have been someone less clueless looking at the problem and downloading your original file. Since that would be simpler, faster, easier, and give you exactly what you asked.

It also fits the facts.

Can Lightroom export settings reduce print size or image resolution?

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