Printing Vector Art Based Poster at a Photo Center?

[Error Type -43]

Here's a curious question...

What would the end product look like if I had a vector art illustration printed as a poster at a digital photo center (i.e. Walgreens, Ritz Camera, etc)? The file would be saved as a high-res JPG in actual print size. I noticed these places charge much less for poster prints than a graphics house would. I'm sure there would be color issues but as far as sharpness and coverage, would the print quality be acceptable?

 

[ChrisA]

...would the print quality be acceptable?

If the JPG had enough pixels it would be as sharp as the printing process allows. The trick is to send them a JPG that would not have to be resampled. What DPI prints do they offer?

When you say "sharp" you have to specify a viewing distance. If you figure 3 feet distance than you need about 150 DPI

 

[design-is]

They may well accept the vector artwork... have you checked to see if you need to convert to jpg?

Otherwise, as ChrisA says, check with them about the requirements so you can meet them exactly and the results should be more than adequate

 

[Kwill]

It is also possible to save Illustrator files as PDF. This may be a file format more shops accept (while maintaining its ability to be opened in Illustrator also).

Results will come out sharper and any blends used will perhaps be smoother from an EPS file. JPEG aggregates colors, which can result in banding. If the EPS uses flat colors, this may not be much of a concern.