Step #1 : Transfer Images from Camera to PC
All cameras will have their own software to perform this task. If you plan on printing pictures you are taking it is best to set your camera to save the pictures at the finest resolution. If your using WinXP it has many camera drivers built in so you can simply plug your camera in and your PC will recognize the storage in your camera as a separate drive. Simply copy the files to a folder on the PC to continue.

Step #2 : Crop Pictures to Proper Dimension
Next you have to crop your picture to the proper dimension you want to print. A 4x6, 5x7, 8x10 all have different ratios. Activate your Standard Selection tool in your photo editor and select the "Fixed size" checkbox. Then enter some dimension for width and height that is equivalent to the dimensions you want to print. To print a 5x7 enter 50 and 70 for width and height. Clicking on the picture in the photo editor should create a crop box. Now activate the Transform tool and you can stretch the selection to adjust the area of the picture you want to crop while keeping the same proportions. Complete the crop with the photo you want to print.

Step #3 : Set Resolution of Picture
Now you have to set the Resolution of the picture. For displaying pictures on the web a 72 dots per inch resolution is efficient but you will notice printing color photographs at that resolution will produce some very poor results. Adjust the resolution, in Ulead PhotoImpact it is in the Image Size option. A setting of 300 dots per inch should be sufficient for a good quality print, though feel free to experiment with different settings. Once the resolution is set you then need to resize the picture for the actual size of the print. When you cropped the print you only set it for the proportional size, now you have to set the actual size of the print at a selected "dots per inch" DPI setting.

Step #4 : Clean Printer Nozzles
After you setup your page to print especially with ink jet printers you will want to go to the Properties box. Run a Nozzle Check and perform Head Cleaning if recommended. You will also want to do a Print Head Alignment to prevent streaks on the paper. If it has been more then a week since you used the printer you will most likely want to perform these tests.

Step #5 : Print Photo
Prior to printing make sure the proper type of paper is selected in the Printer Settings that you are printing to. Different types of printer paper require different amounts of ink. Good luck!