Semester 5 / Image Processing / Resolution and Aspect Ratio

Resolution and Aspect Ratio

Work in progress. This note is still being written and incomplete.

1 min read Last updated Sun Jul 26 2026 05:09:41 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
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visible image=f(resolution,size,aspect ratio)\text{visible image} = f(\text{resolution}, \text{size}, \text{aspect ratio})
  • Resolution
    Dots per unit length.
  • Image size
    Number of dots, or pixels, in the image.
  • Aspect ratio
    Ratio of rows to columns in the pixel grid.
  • Pixel aspect ratio
    Exact shape (Δx:Δy\Delta x : \Delta y) of a single pixel.

Physical dimensions of the image follow from these:

width=f(res,columns,pixel aspect ratio)\text{width} = f(\text{res}, \text{columns}, \text{pixel aspect ratio}) height=f(res,rows,pixel aspect ratio)\text{height} = f(\text{res}, \text{rows}, \text{pixel aspect ratio})

Changing geometry

  • Changing resolution affects image granularity, potentially causing a checkerboard effect when upscaling
  • Changing pixel count affects file size
  • Changing physical pixel size or aspect ratio affects object geometry, potentially causing distortion
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