5 steps to creating beautiful giclee prints
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Tips for Creating Beautiful Fine Art Prints
What is a Giclee Print?
• Giclee is the industry term for fine art printing using inkjet technology
• With giclee, the control of the printing process is put directly into the artist’s hands
• It’s the best way to accurately reproduce art one image at a time, on a wide variety of substrates, at a very low cost
http://www.americanframe.com/giclee-printing.aspx
One of our Epson giclee printers at work – a reproduction of an original watercolor on Hahnemuele Photo Rag paper
5 Steps to Preparing Your File For Printing • Calibrate your monitor
• Use all your colors
• Select your paper
• Preview your image with a ‘soft proof’
• Level and tone your image
www.americanframe.com/art-printing.aspx
Calibration
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Monitors need to be calibrated to industry standards to make sure that the image as you see it on your monitor
will match what the printer can print
Calibrate Your Monitor
• If your monitor is set too bright, then your prints may print too dark
• Calibration is the process used to align what is displayed on the computer monitor with what can be printed on paper
• Maps the white point, gamma, & brightness of the monitor to industry standards
www.americanframe.com/monitor-calibration-review.aspx
Our recommendation:x-Rite ColorMunki Display
www.americanframe.com/monitor-calibration-review.aspx
Use All the Colors Your Camera Can Capture
• We utilize all the color in your image when printing by converting directly to the color space of the printer/paper combination that you select
• Make sure your camera is set to RGB vs sRGB
Notice the difference in the color spaces. AdobeRGB 1998 can capture a much wider range of colors than sRGB.
the authenticity and accuracy
lovethe right paper, canvas and expertise to faithfully reproduce your original
Select the Right Paper for Your Image
• Papers vary in how they absorb ink and reflect light
• They also have different color properties
• So, selecting the “right” paper is a matter of personal preference and is dictated by price, quality and aesthetics
www.americanframe.com/images/PDFs/printing.pdf
Coated papers have a larger colorspace than matte papers and canvas
Sometimes the paper is capable of producing color beyond the color space
Think About Color, Texture, Feel
• Glossy and luster papers have a resin coating that makes images pop
• Fine art papers lend themselves to a soft, painterly feel
• Canvas is nice for reproducing muted images
• To offer a completely modern look to your prints, we now offer printing on Plexiglas® and Aluminum!
www.americanframe.com/PrintingOnPlexiglasAndAluminum.aspx
Preview Your Image with a ‘Soft Proof’
• When printing, the colors in your image are mapped to the colors of the printer/paper combination that you choose
• A soft proof is achieved by temporarily restricting the colors of your monitor to the smaller range of color that your printer/profile can produce with a defined rendering intent
original screen image
soft proof enabled
www.americanframe.com/soft-proofing.aspx
http://staging.americanframe.com/americanframe/printing-profile.aspx
Preview Your Image with a ‘Paper Proof’
• If soft-proofing is not an option, you can order an exact color proof on the paper you choose at americanframe.com
Receive an 8” x 10” full image color sample on the specific
paper of your choice
http://www.americanframe.com/FAQprinting.aspx (See Question 9)
After ‘Soft Proofing,’ make sure the image uses all the tones and make your final edits
If your print is to have a full range of values from pure black to pure white, then your image must
use the full range of tones in PhotoShop
print. frame. ship.
Files up to 50MB
accepted
Love the simplicity • And now, you are ready to print!
Simply upload your file and our easy to use web site will walk you through the steps
• Questions? Contact our printing department: [email protected] or (800) 537-0944 M-F 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. EST
www.americanframe.com/AmericanFrame/Printing.aspx
framing design, materials & assembly
get right to the heart of it all
http://www.americanframe.com/DIYFramingFundamentalsBook.aspx