Print Your Digital Wall Art at Home

Why bother printing at home?

Imagine this: you’ve just downloaded a shiny new piece of wall art from The Kobold Guild. A bold dragon curls across parchment, loot glints in the corner, and somewhere a cheeky kobold is scribbling its signature. You could, of course, send the file off to a professional lab and wait a week while the excitement fizzles. Or, and hear us out, you could become the hero of your own printing quest, slay the Ink Cartridge of Uncertainty, and hang that artwork on your wall tonight.

Printing at home is quicker than a kobold on caffeine, cheaper than a mimic’s handshake, and frankly great fun. It means:

• Instant gratification – zero shipping delays.
• Creative control – from paper texture to final trim.
• Budget-friendly – no surprise courier fees.
• Sustainability points – print only what you need, when you need it.

This guide is your kobold-approved map through the forest of DPI, CMYK, paper weights and colour management. By the end you’ll be brandishing gallery-grade prints without leaving your lair.

(Estimated reading time: one mug of tea and three custard creams)

Know Your File: Resolution, Ratios & Readiness

Resolution (DPI & PPI)

All Kobold Guild digital posters come in 300 DPI (dots per inch), the gold standard for crisp prints. When you open your file, double‑check it hasn’t been resized accidentally by an email client or messenger. In Photoshop or even the humble Preview app you can confirm pixel dimensions. As a rule of claw:

Print size (inches)  ×  300 DPI  =  Image pixels

So for an A3 print (11.7 × 16.5 in):

11.7 × 300 = 3510 pixels (width)
16.5 × 300 = 4950 pixels (height)

If the numbers match (or exceed) that total, you’re golden.

Aspect Ratios & Cropping

We supply multiple ratios, including 4:5, 3:4, 2:3, and International A‑sizes, so you can pick the perfect frame. Choosing “A‑size” keeps life simple for UK printers (A4, A3, A2, etc.). If you own a standard desktop inkjet that prints up to A4 and you fancy a larger statement piece, print A3 as a tiled poster (see Section 7) or pop to your local copy shop for the final blow‑up.

File Formats

• JPEG - Lightweight, universal, perfect for home inkjets.
• PDF - Keeps vector text razor‑sharp; opens in free Adobe Reader.
• PNG - Higher quality, transparent backgrounds (great for multi‑layer collages).

Always download the original files straight from your order email or account dashboard to avoid compression.

Gather Your Gear: Hardware Checklist

Item	Why It Matters	Kobold Tip
Inkjet printer	Best for vivid colour & fine gradients	Models with at least four individual cartridges trump cheap tri‑colour tanks
Fresh ink	Dull ink = dull adventure	Keep spares handy; kobolds hate half‑finished quests
Quality paper	The canvas of your masterpiece	Aim for 200 - 300 gsm photo or art paper
Paper cutter/guillotine	Clean edges, zero wobble	A metal‑rail trimmer lasts ages
Ruler & bone folder	Precision folds for greeting‑card sized prints	A butter knife works in a pinch

Budget tip: Libraries or community centres often have A3/A2 printers for public use. Take your file on USB and pay pennies per sheet.

Pick the Perfect Paper: Texture, Weight & Finish

Weight (GSM)

• 120–170 gsm – Lightweight; great for practice runs, planners, or pin‑board art.
• 190–260 gsm – Standard photo paper. Ideal for frames.
• 270 gsm+ – Fine‑art rag stock; feels luxurious, resists curl.

Finish

• Gloss – Punchy colours, reflective shine. Works beautifully for vibrant palettes (like our Goblin Graffiti series).
• Satin/Lustre – Subtle sheen, fewer fingerprints – a balanced choice.
• Matte – No glare; perfect for detailed maps or earthy fantasy tones.

Texture

Want that parchment‑scroll vibe? Look for inkjet‑compatible textured paper (sometimes branded as ‘watercolour’ or ‘linen’ finish). Test a small patch first – heavy textures can eat extra ink.

Calibrate Thy Colours: Monitor Magic vs. Real‑World Ink

Ever printed something that came out far darker than on screen? That’s your monitor brightness playing tricks. Two fixes:

1. Lower screen brightness to 50 % before editing or printing.
2. Run a printer colour‑calibration sheet. Most modern printers have a built‑in wizard (look in maintenance settings).

For mission‑critical colour (e.g., brand logos), consider investing in a cheap hardware calibrator like the Datacolor Spyder. It’s a one‑off purchase that saves endless ink.

Printer Settings: Commanding the Ink‑Golems

Every printer dialog looks different, but hunt for these key options:

Paper Type

Select the actual paper you’re feeding (Photo Glossy, Matte, Fine‑Art, etc.). The printer adjusts droplet size accordingly.

Print Quality / DPI

• Standard – Everyday printing, drafts.
• High / Best – Exhibition‑level detail (uses more ink but worth it).

Borderless vs. Bordered

Borderless expands the image slightly to bleed off the edge, perfect for posters going straight into a frame. If you need exact dimensions (for a mount/mat), choose bordered and trim manually.

Scaling & Fit

Untick “Scale to Fit” unless the artwork ratio matches your paper exactly. Instead, choose “Actual Size” or “100 %” to avoid squishing a proud kobold into odd proportions