What is ISO standard?
An organisation called ISO (International Organization for Standards) sets recognised standards for a variety of items, including paper. While there are several paper standards, the ‘A’ series, which is the norm in offices, is the most prevalent and recognisable one (Unless you live in North America where their own system is still used).
A4 is the typical office document size, however “A” size sheets can be available in sizes as large as A0 or as tiny as A10. The ISO system has the benefit of scaling, with each size being either twice as big or half as big as its neighbouring paper size. For instance, A4 paper is precisely twice as big as A5 paper, but only half as big as A3.
How does this relate to photo paper?
There are various sizes in the “A” series that are frequently used for picture sheets, even though the majority are for office paper. Glossy, matte, and other coated papers in the A4, A3, and A2 sizes are frequently used for picture printing. Additionally, A3+ size is frequently offered in picture sheets, but what is that? As the name implies, A3+ paper is larger than A3 size, but there is no official standard for it, thus producers may use slightly varied measurements, but they often come in 13″ x 19″ sizes (329mm x 483mm).
If you’re going to frame a big picture, selecting A3+ can enable you to print an A3 image in the centre while maintaining a border, or alternatively, this provides you the option of shrinking to A3 size, requiring you to purchase only one size of paper for both uses.
While you might find the majority of these sizes available when purchasing prints online, it’s more typical to just find the smaller 4″x6″ and 5″x7″ sheets at your local office supply store.
Planning your prints around widely accessible media sizes is a smart idea, therefore we suggest keeping with 64, 57, A4, A3, A3+, and A2 sizes. Most of the media from producers like Canon, Epson, HP, and Xativa is available in this size range, and your professional picture equipment will have these sizes as default selections in the printer driver by default. If you wish to print on a non-standard paper size, you can usually utilise a custom paper setting in the driver to handle practically any size. Check your personal printer’s max/min paper size choices for more information. Professional photo printers have the benefit of being media flexible.
