How can I enlarge a low-resolution image so it looks smoother and less pixelated?
Asked 12/26/2011
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I need to upscale a low-resolution image for larger viewing or printing, but I know enlarging it will make pixelation and artifacts more visible. I’m not expecting to create real missing detail, but I’d like to reduce the blocky look and make the result appear smoother without adding obvious glow or changing the image too much.
Are there effective Photoshop methods, resampling settings, or dedicated tools for enlarging images while keeping them as natural-looking as possible?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
18
If you've tried enlarging in Photoshop, the first thing is to experiment with the resampling algorithm (photoshop suggests bicubic smoother as the best for enlarging, but I have found it to be image dependent (if you have an image with a lot of edges vs a portrait or landscape).
Rather than smoothing, blurring I would suggest using a denoise program next, because they are smarter than any layer tricks, and can denoise while retaining sharpness.
Or you can use a product that is made specifically for this purpose, like Genuine Fractals. It promises up to 1000% enlargement without loss of quality.
Jeff Atwood has a blog post about this here: Better Image Resizing
Originally by user4191. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4191
14y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
You can’t truly recover detail that isn’t there, but you can often make an enlarged image look better.
A good starting point is to try different resampling methods when resizing in Photoshop. Bicubic Smoother is often recommended for enlargement, but the best result can depend on the image—photos with lots of edges may respond differently than portraits or landscapes.
After resizing, avoid heavy blur/overlay tricks if you want a natural look. A better next step is noise reduction/denoise software, which can smooth artifacts while preserving edges better than simple layer effects.
There are also dedicated enlargement tools designed for this job. Community suggestions included Genuine Fractals and super-resolution tools such as waifu2x and QE SuperResolution. These attempt to predict or reconstruct missing detail and can produce better-looking results than standard resizing alone, though results vary by subject.
In short: resize with a suitable resampling algorithm first, then apply careful denoising, and consider specialized upscaling/super-resolution software for the best apparent improvement.
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