printing photos

[Rob34]

Hello,

I have recently started printing some of my photos from a Canon XTI rebel. I got them printed by blacks photography and they came out good, although I would like to ask the experienced crowd what they do as far as printing. I realize some people have their own photo printer, perhaps people can advise what they found to be good for professional quality. Also if you don't print them yourself, where do you get them printed, do you use a certain kind of paper? Glossey or matte? I've read from a few places that they use Ilfoflex - Anyone have any advise on that?

Any advise on the printing process would be greatly appreciated!


Thanks!

[Geoff Wittig]

If you're starting from scratch, you can't go wrong reading Harald Johnson's Mastering Digital Printing (2nd Edition). This dead-tree book does a fine job of descibing the basics of digital printing principles, even if the hardware he discusses is becoming dated. The book will get you up to speed quickly on the subject, and from there you can take your own course.

If you print predominantly black & white, go for Amadou Diallo's superlative book Mastering Digital Black and White. It was just released and is very current regarding hardware. It also has an excellent & concise discussion of Photoshop image optimization prior to printing.

[rdonson]

I'll second Geoff's recommendations on those books.  They're great and I own them both.  A third book that's quite worthwhile in this space is "The Art of Digital Fine Art Printing" by Uwe Steinmueller & Jürgen Gulbins.  It's an e-book and available here.

There are a lot of people sending their work off to labs for printing.  You'll likely get a lot of recommendations from people on the various labs.

At the high end of printing are boutique shops with incredible skills and generally prices to match.

Many of us also print our own work.  I can't speak for others but for me its because I'm a control freak when it comes to printing.  I want my work to be "just so".  I also consider printing to be the final act of creativity and expression.

You'll need to consider what you want to do with your prints.  If you're going to put 4x6 prints in an album the labs will do an outstanding job for you at very reasonable prices.  If you're interested in larger and want to understand the printing process you'll likely want to start with a printer of your own that can handle up to 13x19" material.

Glossy, satin, matte, luster, etc. are all things you as an artist decide.  Its generally a question of which an image looks best on and which best suites your creative expression.

[Rob34]

I'll second Geoff's recommendations on those books.  They're great and I own them both.  A third book that's quite worthwhile in this space is "The Art of Digital Fine Art Printing" by Uwe Steinmueller & Jürgen Gulbins.  It's an e-book and available here.

There are a lot of people sending their work off to labs for printing.  You'll likely get a lot of recommendations from people on the various labs.

At the high end of printing are boutique shops with incredible skills and generally prices to match.

Many of us also print our own work.  I can't speak for others but for me its because I'm a control freak when it comes to printing.  I want my work to be "just so".  I also consider printing to be the final act of creativity and expression.

You'll need to consider what you want to do with your prints.  If you're going to put 4x6 prints in an album the labs will do an outstanding job for you at very reasonable prices.  If you're interested in larger and want to understand the printing process you'll likely want to start with a printer of your own that can handle up to 13x19" material.

Glossy, satin, matte, luster, etc. are all things you as an artist decide.  Its generally a question of which an image looks best on and which best suites your creative expression.
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Thanks for the information!