Printing Graphics :: Graphics (Getting Started)

Getting Started

Printing Graphics

You can print a MATLAB figure directly on a printer connected to your computer or you can export the figure to one of the standard graphics file formats supported by MATLAB. There are two ways to print and export figures:

Use the Print or Export Setup options under the File menu
Use the print command to print or export the figure

See Preparing Graphs for Presentation for an example.

Printing from the Menu

There are four menu options under the File menu that pertain to printing:

The Page Setup option displays a dialog box that enables you to adjust characteristics of the figure on the printed page.
The Print Setup option displays a dialog box that sets printing defaults, but does not actually print the figure.
The Print Preview option enables you to view the figure the way it will look on the printed page.
The Print option displays a dialog box that lets you select standard printing options and print the figure.

Generally, use Print Preview to determine whether the printed output is what you want. If not, use the Page Setup dialog box to change the output settings. Select the Page Setup dialog box Help button to display information on how to set up the page.

Exporting Figure to Graphics Files

The Export Setup option in the File menu enables you to set a variety of figure characteristics, such as size and font type, as well as apply predefined templates to achieve standard-looking graphics files. After setup, you can export the figure to a number of standard graphics file formats.

Using the Print Command

The print command provides more flexibility in the type of output sent to the printer and allows you to control printing from M-files. The result can be sent directly to your default printer or stored in a specified file. A wide variety of output formats, including TIFF, JPEG, and PostScript, is available.

For example, this statement saves the contents of the current figure window as color Encapsulated Level 2 PostScript in the file called magicsquare.eps. It also includes a TIFF preview, which enables most word processors to display the picture:

```
print -depsc2 -tiff magicsquare.eps
```

To save the same figure as a TIFF file with a resolution of 200 dpi, use the command

```
print -dtiff -r200 magicsquare.tiff
```

If you type print on the command line,

```
print
```

MATLAB prints the current figure on your default printer.

For More Information See the print reference page and Printing and Exporting in the MATLAB documentation for more information on printing.

Images Handle Graphics