Image quality and resolution to make giclee prints?

[QuiltedBlissByNadine]

I have finally invested in an Epson printer but I need some help with making Fine Art prints of my original artwork. I have only ever sold originals (oil and acrylics) and have never dealt with art prints and really have no idea how to go about it.

I have ruled out using a professional printer early on because the scanning alone costs a fortune and I would like to have control over my prints, I want to be able to print whichever size and whenever I want.

So now I need to buy god quality paper, Hahnemuhle German Etching, right?

But how do I get the best kind of image to print? Do you use a scanner or a camera?

And what sort of image file are we talking about? I need to take good photos of my paintings first. What do I need to keep in mind? I don't have an SLR but my P&S has a good closeup program and I only want to print smaller sizes up to A4. How do you edit your pics in photoshop, lighting, contrast?

And what resolution should a good digital file be to print an art print?

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

[Former_Member]

You are really starting from scratch...I'd suggest the team leader to help you all this but to tell you how I started....

I hired a professional photographer to come to my house and tell me how to set up for photography, what equipment to buy. I bought the best camera, a tripod to hold it steady, special lamps to reduce glare. I used profession giclee printers before setting out on my own to buy a printer, which I havent used yet since I have all my cards already printed up professionally. And still...I use the words: 'giclee quality' for my cards like the team leader on this site told me to.

So, those are the steps I took to just start....

[SummerWeeds]

Nadine,

Lots of questions!! I wrote a blog post about giclee printing that I think would be helpful for some of your questions.

http://madebykimhoffman.blogspot.com/2011/03/giclee-prints-part-2-paper-and-ink.html

There are many great books on giclee printing and digital imaging that will take you step by step through most of the questions you asked.

Making a giclee print is NOT a matter of just having the right equipment and archival paper, it is also having years of experience in digital imaging, color correction and printer mechanics.

I realize that professional photography and giclee services can seem expensive but be careful when you invest in a printer because you can easily spend much more.

If you find the right professional giclee service, you will be in control of your end product. I've worked with hundreds of artists and gone through tons of proofs. You just need to be absolutely clear about what you want and ideally you need to work face to face with someone. Talk about your artwork with the service provider; explain what colors, textures, shapes, etc are important to you. Talk about the size(s) you intend to print before the scan is made. And always make sure you get your print file and the highest resolution image that was scanned on disk.

[amostroutstudio]

I am not very experienced, but I would highly recommend buying adobe photoshop elements- only like $100 bucks- online- and you can do many corrections there- my especial favorite is the resize option- giving your scan- or photo a larger resolution- good luck!

[CuriousArtLab]

I scan my work in an Epson scanner at 600dpi, tweak color & contrast in Photoshop, & print on an Epson R3000 on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag.

I've had many years of experience as an illustrator working with digital images, & it's still sometimes a challenge to get the color nuances of the original just right. It definitely takes time & practice to learn the ropes. Lynda.com has great Photoshop tutorials that might help.

[amostroutstudio]

best of luck! Lynda is great by the way!