What is scale? Scale of photos, scale of maps

We all know what scale is. This is the ratio of linear dimensions on a conditional graphic image to the true values of the depicted object. That is, it is compliance with certain proportions during the drawing of any drawing image or editing a photo.

What is the scale, and why is it needed?

A similar method of image transmission is used in everything from maps and drawings to ordinary photos. Yes, that's just not always the right image can be reproduced in full size. In this case, the scale comes to the rescue. Thanks to him, the images can be reduced or enlarged, while observing the necessary proportions, which are indicated in the drawings. What is the scale we already know, so let's talk about its two types.

Magnification scale

This type is used in the case when the image in its full size is much smaller than in the drawings. In this case, the proportions of the given image are indicated in a special graph (2: 1, 8: 1, 16: 1, 150: 1 and so on). The proportions should be understood as follows: the right digit indicates that the entire drawing must be divided by centimeters (for example, 1 centimeter), and the left one - by how many times the object is reduced by 1 centimeter of the drawing image. That is, if we have the designation 2: 1, then it means that per centimeter of the drawing line is 0.5 centimeter of the object.

Scale of decrease

This view is used when the object to be displayed is much larger than the drawing. In a special graph of proportions, we indicate how many times the object exceeds the image (for example, 1: 2, 1: 250, 1: 1000, and so on). The left figure indicates how many centimeters it is necessary to divide the drawing (for example, by 1 centimeter), and the right one - how many measuring units are per 1 centimeter. For example, we have a map with a scale designation of 1: 2,000,000 cm, which means that there are 2,000,000 centimeters of terrain (or 20,000 meters, or 20 kilometers per 1 centimeter) per 1 centimeter of the map.

How to scale photos

It is very easy to understand the compilation of maps or drawings, but what is the scale of photographs is difficult to understand. Such images have other measurement parameters, namely the resolution, which depends on the number of pixels in the image. Scaling photos, you need to pay attention to the number of pixels, because significantly increasing the size of a photo with a small number of pixels, we are deteriorating its quality and vice versa. There are various programs with which you can perform these operations, while the image quality does not get worse. Their principle of operation is based on increasing the number of pixels in a particular photograph, resulting in an increase in resolution, that is, the size of the image being reproduced. Such programs can be found in special shops or downloaded from the Internet, but it's best to buy licensed discs, and not to download pirated copies that can worsen the performance of your computer and make it impossible to process photos on it.