Giclee printing: Is it worth it ?

[Former_Member]

I would like to be able to offer my art at a more approachable price point. Those of you who might be experienced printing your work please share your wisdom.
Thanks

[BingArt]

Well, I'm not experienced in prints by any means. I've just started experimenting with it and have added 15 small 8x10 giclee prints to my shop since January. So far one has sold.

I print through fineprintimaging.com (Recommended by S.K. Cole) and have loved working with them. I typically upload my photos and order through their Fine Art Express service (http://fineprintimaging.com/express/index.html) since it's more affordable and super fast.

Would love to hear from others with more experience on this subject :)

[Former_Member]

Thanks Rachel. I haven't printed anything yet but want to produce a few pieces to get my feet wet so to speak. I've always felt that I wanted to keep my work original but it radically limits what one can sell.

[BingArt]

That's exactly how I've felt, Tim. I love the idea of only selling originals and that was always my intent. Practically speaking, that has gotten to be quite difficult as of late.

Hopefully someone else will be able to chime in on this thread and share their experiences with prints as well :)

[Former_Member]

Great info. I'm going to that site.
Printing has been on my mind too.
I understand that some artists have their own printers.

[SKColeArt]

Prints are a good way of increasing your listing inventory. They always tell you the more things you list, the more views you'll get. I 've generally found this is true. (Although of course Etsy could be just saying that to get you to list more stuff so that they get the listing fees.)

I've been working on improving my inventory lately. I haven't tried the Express printing service yet, but I probably will later on in the year. Funny thing is that I posted a question in the forum asking readers to pick the paintings in my shop they'd most like to see in print form and the ones they picked were not ones I was even considering!

[Former_Member]

SK funny how that happens

Rachel
Where do you buy plastic sleeves for you prints and how do you ship them?

[SKColeArt]

Some artists do have their own high-quailty printers but I believe they cost in the thousands and take up a lot of room.

[MarkBairdFineArt]

amazon, just search for them...plenty of companies sell them.  I always buy in bulk, cheapest way for sure.  

[Former_Member]

I spoke with a few people about printing techniques, inks, printers, equipment etc... I know there are a lot of ways to go about this but none without quite a bit of investment either in capital or time or both. Was wondering what experiences one might have had in receiving an order for a picture, having the picture printed on canvas and selling it. How to list it, at what price point, size vs. resolution, to actually make a few dollars and retain the rights to the original......Also concerned about quality and a bit hesitant to send in photographs that don't hold muster lots to ponder...

[BingArt]

DonnaRose, I go to clearbags.com for all the sleeves and for cardboard backing. Then I ship them in a hard cardboard mailer that I get from Staples with a "Do Not Bend" phrase that I stamp on.

[Former_Member]

Thanks Rachel
I agree Tim lot to ponder
SK I think I did hear they were expensive......not getting one
Thanks for the input everyone

[ABitofWhimsyArt]

I've in the past pondered doing my own printing, but getting a high quality printer, not to mention the ink cartridges, paper etc.. were just too too pricy for me...

I've been using www.iprintfromhome.com for the past few years and I'm really happy with their quality and customer service. I order & sell their Giclee prints... I've once ordered a canvas gallery wrap from them as well and it was also really nice quality and the price for this was good compared to other companies. Gallery wrapped canvas can get pretty pricey (MPIX for example, nice, but really expensive).

Good luck!

[Former_Member]

Thanks Joanna
I will have to compare prices with our local shop.

[sherischart]

This pertains to the subject of discussion and a new found site for me.
ARTPAL. Anyone familiar with them?

Joanna ~ thanks for your feedback on your experiences with iprintfromhome.com I've been curious as to rather or not it was a good company.

Anyone familiar with UPRINT?



.

[sherischart]

EDIT: UPRINTING.com

[AllaPrimaLady]

I have invested in Giclee prints, still sitting in original box. This thread reminds me I have to promote them .. they won't sell themselves.
Donna, at dickblick.com they sell the mat along with the sleeve in different sizes, called Blick Roadshow.

[SandraBlackArt]

I've just recently ordered my first prints- ever! I used iprintfromhome and am very satisfied. In fact with some photoshop tweaking, I found that one of my pieces looks even better in giclee print than it did as the original!

I also heard that etsy has now changed their policies and are allowing drop shipping and iprintfromhome also participates. So I imagine you could order one "proof," and keep it listed. Then as someone orders you can place your order with iprintfromhome so you don't have to invest a lot of money in prints that may not sell. On the other hand, you are really trusting the company to not mess up an order!

[Former_Member]

More good info. Thank you

[MelidasArt]

Thank you for the information! I would like to try it also

[Former_Member]

Thanks everyone for your comments. Very helpful info here and some great sharing. Since starting this thread I have been doing some research. One gentleman who preferred to stay out of the conversation suggested that there are folks out there who specialize in full service. From photo to printer which makes sense because they are able to sync up all the equipment and it eliminates guess work. However, I'm about to work with a professional photographer who I trust with whom I will barter either services or goods. I know by doing this that I will end up with excellent color balance and proper resolutions that I can then send on to a printer for proofs. Definitely a learning curve but one worth experiencing

[ArtJiuJitsuLife]

Absolutely. A couple years ago I made all my prints through a basic print shop who didn't know the depths of what a good print job should be. I began to have erratic results from lack of proper calibration and sometimes my requests or orders would be completely ignored. I then realized it was time to upgrade who I printed with and why. I knew this would increase the cost of my prints, but then I could officially state my work in the realm of Fine Art and elevate my status not only as a shop owner but also taking pride in my work and knowing my value. Its worth the jump and people are willing to pay for the quality. Things have only gotten better since I upgraded. Hope this helps!