Starting a Print Studio; advice please

[E Slagle]

I'm considering starting a top-of-the-line print studio with some gallery space here in my home town. Some background:

I live in a trendy (Californicated) middle-sized Rocky Mountain town in the Northern US. Just like similar communities there is a glut of pro-photographers and wannabes (I place myself squarely in this mix). A whole bunch of "artsy" people have moved here for the quality of life but also need some Bohemian job to pay the bills and photography ranks highly in the "things-I-can-do" list.

Although I have a good, but very competitive, niche for some of my professional work I'm thinking that perhaps it might be smart to cater to the pro and amateur community by offering a print studio rather than competing directly with them. The long term goal, I hope, is a sustainable business that allows me to focus on Fine Art imaging rather than fighting tooth and nail for a smaller and smaller piece of the pie.

Over the past couple of years I've become quite enamored and fairly good at printing although I still need to hone my skills before charging $.

There are two local establishments that advertise 'giclee' printing (sorry) but both use old equipment: Epson 4000, 7500, 7600, 9600s (nothing more recent) and offer very limited paper selections. Neither seems to place much emphasis on customer-oriented archival printing.

I wonder..is a high-end printing service with a small "Main Street" gallery a viable business model? I intend not to compete on-line, but rather focus locally. Is the reason that these two local business place so little emphasis on archival printing is because there's no money in it or is it that they really don't care to learn the intricacies of inkjet printing and marketing it as such.

I realize there will have to be some speculation but personal experience will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Eric

[mballent]

I am not sure that right now is the best time to jump in with both feet... People are beginning to feel the pinch from the economy... So artsy folks may want prints made by you, but if they cannot move product, then you cannot sell.  That being said, how plugged in are you in the art community?  Do you know if they are interested offering Giclee archival prints of their work?  Where are they getting that type of work right now?  The printer is a big capital investment as are all the different papers that are out there.. There may be a reason why the local companies that offer printing are not offering those options...  The paper is not cheap and it may sit on your books for a while, plus the cost ink, plus maintaining a supply in house so you can make that print at midnight in case you run out.  

If your clientele is extremely picky then you may need to make multiple re-prints to satisfy them, so you need to build that into your prices, and if it's too much you run the risk that they will go to an online shop. Just some things to keep in mind.. and I have been thinking of the same thing as well.  I look forward to the other folks jumping in as well.

[BobDavid]

If you want to make high-quality fine art prints "giclees" be prepared to spend a lot of money and time to get the business off the ground. Don't even expect to be profitable for a couple of years. The printer is the smallest part of the investment equation. You will need to have the IT infrastructure to support commercial workflow, including a high-end monitor, such as an Eizo CG211, and a decent profiling package to calibrate your monitor and output, not to mention a computer loaded with memory, redundant storage, and speed. You'll also need to find a supplier or two that can support your business to ensure that you will be able to acquire ink and paper cost-effectively, quickly, and consistently. Be prepared to handle canvas, hot press rag, cold press rag, and alpha cellulose materials.  

Output is only half of the equation. Artists generally don't take professional reproduction quality photographs of their artwork. You really need a scanning back at the very least, or a multi-shot medium format camera equipped with a high-end digital lens to capture the full range of color and tonality of two-dimensional artwork. Lighting and grip equipment for shooting artwork is another topic altogether, and it is certainly not trivial.

Once you've acquired the means of production, you'll have to work hard at getting the word out. I guarantee, artists will not flock to your shop as soon as you hang up a shingle. On a sustainability level, you'll need a market that is large enough to support your business. A couple hundred artists in a small town may not be enough for your business to reach critical mass.

[neil snape]

I don't think the printer is a major investment compared to the rent you'll pay for a space to contain the set up for printing. The learning curve is not that big in terms of printers like the Z 3100 as it calibrates, profiles etc all that is needed to produce gallery ready prints. What you do need though are mounting tables, framing gear, shipping materials etc. That is where the true service becomes invaluable for a printer.
Some of the other details are important too like digital backup arrays, etc.

Many have supplemented their income with occasional printing for others. Seems simple enough to do before becoming a full time printer.

[larryg]

I owned a art gallery (in small town) along with my digital lab.  I had the equipment but the standards of those wanting reproductions were very high.

Many times it took reprints and much time to match the color tones of the original print.  I finally decided I just couldn't charge enough for the kind of time this would require (to do it right).

I must say I am not an export with Photo Shop and probably took more time than someone who has a strong working knowledge of the program.

What makes this arrangement work the best is for photograpers/artists who want multiple prints from the same image.
Usually the artist is intending on selling prints of their original (oil/watercolr etc)

I visited a gentleman who was doing high quality reproductions. He had over 100,000 in equiptment to get the job done (had large focusing rails, proper lighting and more).

Good luck on your venture

[Peter Gregg]

Looks like the people that know are not talking. Photography has broken into a much friendlier environment in the past number of years and sharing and networking has busted open in ways that was not the norm 10 or more years ago.

Seems like this field though is still tight lipped and closed mouthed. If you take time and look around at Michael's articles though, he shares quite a bit and will thrust you forward in your search for some solid answers.

First, the entire process is all about workflow. How you capture, how you color manage, and how you output is all key. Much like a chain, the weakest link will determine your output. You have to determine if "pleasing color" is acceptable to your clientel or if precise targeted color is what they are looking for.

You also have o be a businessman more so than being good at your craft. Students and artists that want exact color but want to play "pleasing color" prices will only work you to the bone and steal the profits as you try to reproduce the exactness of their original. After you get frustrated, you will determine that you need certain pieces of equipment to get that exacting color on a consistent basis. If you don't make them pay for the new equipment then you will only be spiraling towards going out of business. Kind of the cat chasing his own tail.

A good thing is to be aware of the different levels of service and output and be ready to move into another level if your market is demanding it. For example, if you employ a pleasing color system and the market demands an exact museum level system for your output, you should know ahead of time what it will take, what it will cost, and the price increase you will need to demand to offer the top level compared to the middle level.

The equipment is simple. a capture device, a storage system, and an output system. Obviously you wouldn't open a print studio to offer the lowest level of reproduction, so it seems logical that the middle tear would be a good place to start. A Canon 1Ds MK2 or even better a 1Ds MK3 would be the middle capture device in my opinion and that very well might suffice. The print end would be an Epson xx80 printer. To move up to the higher end of reproduction you would move from the 1Ds MK2/3 to the Betterlight capture and add a ImagePrint RIP to your printer. Color management is also discussed in many of Michael's articles, including some very high end color management. This is a combination of skill and knowing the best stuff to apply to your systems.

Hope that helps,
Peter

[Peter Gregg]

double post - sorry

[SeanPuckett]

I'm two years into this as a full-time gig.  Capture and repro supplement my income as a photographic artist, as does teaching.  So, I can speak and have something useful to say.

Peter: There's no secrets being kept intentionally.  Most of us are just too damn busy to post all the time.  I have a few minutes before a meeting and haven't been to LL in a week and so now I have a moment to contribute.  

OP: I'll speak frankly: having and knowing how to operate the equipment is perhaps the least important aspect of the job.  People skills are key -- knowing how artists think and what they're looking for, answering questions before they're asked, reassuring them when they are nervous, even just wearing a pair of white cotton gloves to handle their work even though they say it doesn't matter -- it's a service you're offering, so to a huge degree it's how you service your customers that dictates whether they'll come back and  more importantly if they'll refer you.  Because like any specialized and costly service, capture and repro is one where advertising is almost meaningless, and reputation and word-of-mouth is just about everything.

And you'll lose money on some jobs, reprinting over and over to make someone happy.  And on other jobs, it all comes together and it's like printing cash.  And some of the art is bland, and some is fantastic, and sometimes you just can't do it justice no matter how hard you try.

I like it, but it isn't for the faint-hearted.  You better know how to operate every aspect of your machinery and software with total cold confidence, because you're going to be doing it in front of people who are paying you for your time, and "oops" is not something they want to hear.  

I might not have answered your question exactly, but now I'm out of time... Good luck!

[E Slagle]

You also have o be a businessman more so than being good at your craft. Students and artists that want exact color but want to play "pleasing color" prices will only work you to the bone and steal the profits as you try to reproduce the exactness of their original.


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This is a helpful distinction; something I can chew on.

If I understand the responses accurately much of the contributions are focused around non-photographic art reproduction. Perhaps this is a necessary component of the sort of business model I have in mind--in truth I really did not consider this aspect--I was solely locked onto photographic printing. Perhaps I'm too naive in thinking of photographs only.

By nature I'm a hard-core "tweaker"; my color management is fairly good now but if I decide to open shop my CM would be exact as possible and my workflow extremely efficient.

Sean, I'm in complete agreement with you that people skills are the MOST important quality. Learning the tech side is accessible to many; working well with people is more of an "art" (so to speak). This is in large part why I think it's possible to make it happen in my home town: the two local business not only used outdated equipment but they have a reputation for poor customer support.

Thanks for your input so far; more welcomed! Eric

[papa v2.0]

hi

how many prints would you need to sell a year to break even.

its that figure realizable in your town. are there enough interested artists. do they want your product. do they need your product. can they afford it?

is the latter a reason your competitors do not offer that service.

what if your competitors decide to re-equip and offer the same services as you.

maybe starting off from home (garage or converted room) first to test the water along with newspaper advertising, cheaper that renting premises. would this type of work walk in off the street?

build a data base of potential clients and leaflet drop them of phone them telling of your forthcoming plans, to test the water.

market research -this was the advice I received before working for myself.

[E Slagle]

papa v2.0: The sorts of questions you raise are the exact questions I would like first-hand feedback on. I can speculate--and have--about all of your points but some of this I just won't be able to answer without actually moving forward. Zoning prevents me from operating out-of-home (besides I have no place for a 44+" printer anyway). Leasing a commercial space is the only option.


The simple question is: has anybody else successfully developed a printing studio under similar circumstances?

Eric

[Geoff Wittig]

papa v2.0: The sorts of questions you raise are the exact questions I would like first-hand feedback on. I can speculate--and have--about all of your points but some of this I just won't be able to answer without actually moving forward. Zoning prevents me from operating out-of-home (besides I have no place for a 44+" printer anyway). Leasing a commercial space is the only option.
The simple question is: has anybody else successfully developed a printing studio under similar circumstances?

Eric
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Tyler Boley posts here on occasion; he runs a highly respected print studio in Seattle. One of his recent posts indicated that the business had become ruthlessly competitive. Sounds like it might make sense to dip your toes in the water without risking more than you can afford to lose.

 I've made prints for other photographers on occasion, and while it's interesting and artistically rewarding to see someone else's take on what they see as a "fine print", it can also be exhausting trying to satisfy their concerns.

[BobDavid]

I think Peter Greg's comment, "Looks like the people that know are not talking," is unfounded.

I was the second person to jump in and respond to the initial post.

About 30% of my business is fine art repro. I've been offering fine art repro as a core service over the past two years. I have invested heavily in time and equipment in order to provide my clients with top-notch quality service.

I've been following this thread closely. I think most of the posts are thoughtful and on target.

About the only things I disagree with are the suggestions that a Canon DSLR is a good starting place as a capture device and that down the road a RIP is a good idea.

A Canon DSLR does not have the dynamic range nor the color fidelity required to capture accurate color. Also, anti-aliasing filters employed in DSLRs make it necessary to use sharpening techniques in post that degrade the integrity of the printed image. As far as RIPs go, HP and Canon printers do not produce higher-quality output through RIPs than they do through their drivers. Epson is another story; a CMYK RIP will enable the user to limit individual ink channels as well as linearize the printer. If you really know what you are doing, and have spent endless hours and material tweaking the process, a CMYK RIP will render a better print. How much better is subjective. Most people that go down the CMYK RIP road are compelled to do so because they are proofing prints for prepress and have extraordinary pressure to present dead-on accurate proofs.  Wedding photographers like RIPs because they enable them to "nest" printing jobs, the same for senior portrait and event photographers. These photographers are reproducing "pleasing color" instead of accurate color. Believe me, their clients aren't as picky about color accuracy and sharpening artifacts as artists.

[Craig Murphy]

I have also been doing some photography of flat art and then printing for artists in my area.  In general its a big PITA to get things anywhere near right.  Much more difficult than many, especially the artists, would assume.  Seems that Bob D has it set right.
     I do use a DSLR and I know that its not the right tool.  My readings tell me the MF Sinar 54H is the one to use.  Betterlight not such a great idea since it requires continuous light.   Lots of money to spend on something that requires much incoming work to pay off.  My experience is that about $12 a square foot is an average price for canvas reproduction.  At least in my area.  Better be doing a lot of it.
     BTW.  My switching over to the NEC2690 has caused me some trouble.  I mean,  I'm seeing color saturation on the monitor using the ProPhoto color space that is not even in the originals.  Anyway.  Art reproduction is complicated.  For the artists that I am shooting for I'm telling them that my repros are not going to totally match their originals so don't be doing so much complaining if that certain red color is a little too saturated, etc.  Now that I think of it.  Here is a good continuing ed course for someone to teach. 'Art Photography and Reproduction'. (smiles)

[neil snape]

I have also been doing some photography of flat art and then printing for artists in my area.  In general its a big PITA to get things anywhere near right.  Much more difficult than many, especially the artists, would assume.  Seems that Bob D has it set right.
     I do use a DSLR and I know that its not the right tool.  My readings tell me the MF Sinar 54H is the one to use.  Betterlight not such a great idea since it requires continuous light.   Lots of money to spend on something that requires much incoming work to pay off.  My experience is that about $12 a square foot is an average price for canvas reproduction.  At least in my area.  Better be doing a lot of it.
     BTW.  My switching over to the NEC2690 has caused me some trouble.  I mean,  I'm seeing color saturation on the monitor using the ProPhoto color space that is not even in the originals.  Anyway.  Art reproduction is complicated.  For the artists that I am shooting for I'm telling them that my repros are not going to totally match their originals so don't be doing so much complaining if that certain red color is a little too saturated, etc.  Now that I think of it.  Here is a good continuing ed course for someone to teach. 'Art Photography and Reproduction'. (smiles)
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Continuous light sources are a little pricey yes. You still need light though for lights for a digital back if you do want to do digital.
Learning to do fine copy work is well described in the Kodak book on copying for repro. Very dated of course but accurate. It isn't any more difficult than lighting correctly for repro of advertising photography for film but those who only know digital doubtfully will have acquired such fine control.
There are turn key repro machines including a calibrated back and lens, software to repro from to certain printers. Even the lighting is done to exacting presets.
You could do much the same with a Betterlight, or better. RIPs are no longer necessary for colour repro reasons. For example the HP Z3100 with the PS option is a full Adobe rip but uses three channel colour. It's value to a repro shop is it's hard drive saved ripped jobs for outputting exactly the same thing at any future point.

Although I don't recommend colour profiles for general photography, when in very strict control lighting, ICC camera profiles for repro work extremely well.

Even with the tightest control over Color Management you still will be at the mercy of artists perception of what they think or want to see over what you may see. That makes the eventuality of reprints a cause that will always set you back. Hence the better control you have, the higher price you should have, including a margin for test or reprints.

I think the OP wants to know if it is viable for a small start up to earn a little cash, not to compete with museum quality repro.

To keep the price inline with the others I don't think the expectations would be as high as the best printers out there. If so , a sound level of CM, mixed with the insight of one of the above posters is to be a personal aide to the artists in discovering the potential of each and all, could very well make head way into this market.
The days when Nash and JAck Duganne had to monkey wrench the Iris just to make a hand done print are gone. The printer is no longer the obstacle in print making, yet as I said earlier, the handling of the prints and or framing is as much a challenge as ever.

Learning CM and or copy repro is had at the big shows, or have a consultant come by and personalize your shop.

[NicholasR]

I am just in start up mode in a very similar situation.

Mountain town, have a commercial photography niche but not enough to cover all.  I've gone after the local fine art market... get used to not cringing when you say Giclee.  I'm interested in eventually getting a main street studio space myself, but the overhead is ridiculous at this point.

As many others have mentioned, the printer is the least of your costs.   On the input side you will need a high end capture device, good color management, and quality lighting.  I started with a scanback but quickly moved to a 39mp camera.  The scanback was too slow to work with for me.  The camera of choice would a nice medium format multishot back.

I probably spent 3x the amount on starting the business than I really expected to, and I certainly have not turned a profit yet.  Like anything though, treat your clients well, and they'll hang around.

As others have said, you'll probably spend more than you expect, work harder than you want, and make less than you expect, particularly for the first year or two.    Most every small business is like that though, so make your plan, and either execute it or bag it and find another.

Best of luck

Oh - I note that you are just thinking about photographic printing, not art repro.  I think that would be quite difficult.  Art reproduction, particularly in a town where art sells well, would likely provide quite a bit more volume and profit than photography printing alone.

Does your town have a sign shop in it already?  Another way to make money with your printer.  Prepare for mounting and laminator hardware purchases though.  This is nice work because you are selling to businesses, not individuals.

[jpgentry]

Forget about printing photography.  You can do it but IMO you will be scraping along.  The painters pay better for their copy work.

Nobody mentioned a 12x17 scanner like the Microtek 1000XL which I use quite a bit for my "watercolor ladies" who make up alot of my art repro.  I'm using the Scanmaker Pro software from Microtek but currently looking into buying the Silver Fast software.  I can never quite seem to get the colors exact with my current workflow (it8 targets for the scanner, i1Pro for the CRT, i1Pro w/MonacoProfiler for the IPF9100.)  Get to know the "replace color" feature of PS CS3 as hue shifting of the entire image will correct some colors but kick other colors out of whack at the same time.  I always start with getting my whites looking good and my levels/curves tweaked then go after the colors.  Crazy thing is that your eye is much more critical to the soft and subtle tones of a watercolor than they are to photography.  You must be much better with your Color Management... but it's never perfect.  At least never been for me.

I also have a PhaseOne digital back with LF camera for the bigger oil paintings etc. but to be honest my biggest call has been the smaller watercolors which I print on Hahn German Etching.  I scan a standard it8 color target with the camera to create a profile.  Maybe there are better ways but this gets me close.

Business wise I would never go into this with a large shop to start off with.  I hit it off well with a really good artist whos work has funded my other expiditions.  I do not have to copy his work as it's all designed in CAD/3D/Photoshop programs in the computer.  The source work is already digital.

This has been all done from my unfinished basement.  I just built a spraybooth in my garage complete with places to hang up to 14 36x48 canvases for spraying.  I dropped an industrial style fan into the ceiling wich draws the spray out of the room and helps with drying the prints.  If you build a storefront you better do alot of signs to go along with your fine art fun.

All of this is supplimented by my main business of IT for small businesses.  I have done very little marketing of the print business.  It's been work of mouth.  All quite fun.

-Jonathan

[TMcCulley]

I'm considering starting a top-of-the-line print studio with some gallery space here in my home town.
Thanks, Eric
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Eric,
I would like to do this also.  You might find one of MR's articles useful about his gallery and print shop that he recently setup.  This was published maybe two/three months ago.
Tom

[joneil]

There are two local establishments that advertise 'giclee' printing (sorry) but both use old equipment: Epson 4000, 7500, 7600, 9600s (nothing more recent) and offer very limited paper selections. Neither seems to place much emphasis on customer-oriented archival printing.

-snip-

   Welcome to the "real world".  Don't mean to come down on you, but I've got almost 20 years in desktop publishing (small scale), and the sad fact is, anything digital or with computers the second you venture into any commercial or business applications, it's almost like all the rules turn around on you.

    First off, I notice nobody here is mentioning a business plan.   Your reality is this - you have three years, maybe four at most, to recover your money before everyone complains that your printing is "obsolete".  Your own statement above shows that.

 What I mean is this - if you spend say $200,000 on hardware and software (just a figure made up for sake of argument), you had better completely recover all that investment before you have to go out and update everything.  

   So what I am saying is this - aside form all your "regular" bills, such as lighting, heat, taxes - maybe even payroll (like paying yourself), all your gear will be worthless inside 4 years.   People always seem to  want to go to the guy who has the newest or latest.

    Your second issue is despite being a "fine art printer" and advertising yourself as such, it's is amazing how many people will complain they can get better form Wal-Mart or their twelve year old's inkjet.   People act totally different than they say when it comes to money.

    Last - have fun with colour calibration.   The number of people who have no idea how to properly colour calibrate their monitor, scanner  and even their printer is astounding.  The vast majority of your customers will NOT be reading the LL forums for advice on these subjects, they will just assume they know better, so when they bring something into you to be printed, and they have no concept of how natural VS artifical light affects how a print looks, be prepared to do a lot of educating.  

  Sorry to dump on you, but I think regardless of what business anyone plans to get into, you should have somebody sit down and give you a two hour talk on all the things that can go wrong, before you learn them for yourself the hard way.  You'll save a lot of money in the long run if you do.

otherwise, good luck!

[jschone]

Dear Eric,

I run a small print studio and gallery in the centre of Rome, Italy. We are near Campo di fiori where there are a lot of art galleries, handcraft shops, bookshops etc. We have been in business for 3 years now and things are going well. One year ago I hired my first employee because of a growth (and still growing) of projects.

The print studio is the main service but since we have a storefront we also are active as a gallery. For the gallery we have a very simple formula: if an artist likes to exhibit, they just pay for the printing and the mounting and that's is it. We'll take care of publicity, print some business cards etc. The opening of the exhibition we keep low profile with a table outside with some food and wine. We have had about 12 of these exhibitions now and we get very nice reactions to it. The fact that  the print studio and gallery are the same space does not bother people at all, in fact they like it. Commission on work sold is 60% for the artist 40% for us.

The print studio is going very well. Our main clients are photographers. Although we also do some art reproductions this is not something I actively market. I am thinking of offering this in the future but more in the construction of a new company (together with some of my artist clients we are thinking of forming a collective) and then buy a flatbed artwork scanner and offering services ro musea and galleries. This is just an idea and no rush for this.

Sorry, got to run now, t'row I'll tell you more. In the mean time, on my website you'll find some additional info (not much though because I don't really have time to update..)

www.icipici.it

Regards, Jochem