How can I change my figure view so I can see more on a smaller figure?

I am modifying my figures for a 2 column A4 paper. Basically this means the widths of my figures have to be around 8.7cm. However, when I make the figure this size in matlab it becomes really small and hard to work with. Is there a way to zoom in on the whole figure (not just the data in the axis) so that a size 12 font looks larger than size 12 on my screen but when I output it, it will be the correct size?

Here are some images for help: http://imgur.com/a/hMzjj