Craft Edge

I tend to draw / design my images in Inkscape then export as .png (either 600dpi or 1000dpi if small images) and then import into SCAL and then print.

However I've noticed that the print quality from SCAL5 (I've got both the Pro and Standard versions) is different on occasions. Sometimes the images are clear and sharp and none-pixelated (as you would expect from an image that originally was a vector and was exported at high dpi) but other times I can definitely see pixelation in there.

I can't find anything on how SCAL deals with imported images in terms of the resolution it deals with. For instance does it reduce everything down to 600dpi? If I export and image from Inkscape and it's oversized so I shrink it down in SCAL and then print it, does this make a difference?

Is it best to export images from Inkscape at the correct size, or export oversized and then shrink down in SCAL? For example I'm designing a lot of small stickers that are often 10mm by 10mm in size (or thereabouts). Should I design and export at this size in Inkscape or export larger and resize in SCAL? Would either approach make a difference / give better results?

I'm just trying to get an understanding on how SCAL handles imported images and the best way to maintain the original high-quality and avoid pixelation when printing.

Thanks in advance!

Okay so I've noticed an odd issue, maybe a bug. The image degradation I'm getting seems to be "triggered" by placing a vector shape around an imported image. I've done this to provide some overbleed around a small sticker I was printing out. The sticker is green, so I placed a rectangle around it, sent the rectangle to the back of the layers and made it the same colour as the green in the sticker.

When I print this out the image I imported (the sticker) is pixelated. But when I delete the vector rectangle I placed around and behind the sticker (in SCAL5) and then print it out, the sticker is not pixelated.

It seems that placing a shape (a vector in SCAL5) around my imported image causes the image to print out at a lower quality. Seems like a bug?

Could you possibly try using a rectangle that has a Fill color set to None and then make the Stroke whatever thickness you need to provide the bleed. Just as a test.