Digital Prints

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Mastering Digital Printing
“I don’t have to keep up with products, materials, and inks, or make that significant investment,”
says artist Ileana. “Since I currently don’t sell prints in bulk, it would take me a
long time before I would see any return on my initial investment if I did it all myself.”
Some of the disadvantages of using an outside printmaker include the following:
■ Loss of some control and flexibility.
■ Reduced experimentation and spontaneity that goes with doing your own printing trials.
■ Time delays going back and forth.
■ Ongoing, per-print costs are usually higher.
Note that some imagemakers take both approaches, doing some self-printing and farming
other work out. I, myself, fall into this group.
How To Pick an Inkjet Printmaker
To select an outside print service provider, you have to do your homework and then ask
the right questions. To narrow the choices of potential inkjet printmakers, interview (by
phone, mail, or in person) all the candidates with the same set of questions. If you can,
visit the print studios or businesses in person to get a feel for them. How they answer your
questions is just as important as what they say. You are about to enter into a close, possibly
long-term relationship. You want to give it the best chance of succeeding up-front.
Following are several main points you should have on your questions list before you start
your investigating. (Use this list as a guide; add your own questions as needed.)
Printmaker Jim Davis places artwork
on the copy board in order to capture
the image on 8 × 10 film and then
drum scan it. “This file will range from
800 MB to 1.2 GB in size,” explains
Davis. “All the color balancing is done
at the time of the scan so there is no
additional tweaking needed in
Photoshop, only some minimal
cleanup. To get away with this, I run a
clean shop and make sure everything
from copy board to lighting is properly
balanced and aligned.”
Courtesy of Jim Davis
www.visual-artists.com