|
Forum: Digital Processing, Software, and Printing
08-09-2018, 09:46 AM
|
| |
You have enough questions here to cover about a dozen individual threads, but here's my perspective:
a) Photo Books: Not all printers are the same. My favorite is Blurb, but they have three levels of paper quality. The highest quality is very expensive, so my last book I compromised with their mid-grade...and was disappointed. If you really care about image quality, you have to go with the top of the line papers and pay for it.
b) If you lived in a big city (think Sydney), you could probably find a digital printer that you could visit to work out the color and density profiles to satisfy your expectations. It would be at a 'custom price'. Many top photographers who don't have the time or interest in printing themselves, will make a special trip to the printer to set up that relationship....so that might mean a one time trip to Sydney or Hong Kong or Los Angeles, etc.
c) I am very picky and I want and enjoy as much control as possible, so I do print my own color and B&W images, mount and mat and frame them. The initial cost is not cheap. I have used Epson printers since the dawn of inkjets and currently use an Epson SureColor P800. I've tested dozens of different papers, but have found that most the time, Epson paper works best with Epson inks. With an iMac and Adobe LR or PS, I INITIALLY spend a few hours tweaking the print settings until I am satisfied. I take screenshots of every setting to ensure it's all correct before printing. I have used a Spyder color calibration tool in the past, but found it unnecessary with an iMac and Epson printers with the profiles they've already created.
d) I use a 40" Logan mat cutter and love it. Again, not cheap and you will want to buy lots of spare blades. 32x40" white foam and mat boards in cartons of 25-50 take up space, but per print makes things profitable. You will need at least twice the material for what you need due to learning mistakes.
e) For frames, there are two approaches. Either I find pre-made ones that are relatively cheap at IKEA or I will custom order the frames online from someplace like Contemporary Frame Co
Great selection and prices, pricey shipping costs, but it's worth it if you need at least a dozen frames.
f) Glass. I'd find a local glazier or glass-cutter and use the least expensive glass he or she would recommend...unless the gallery or the buyer specifically want non-glare or UV-protecting glass. I've found that untreated glass still blocks 75% of UVA and 99% of UVB, and that UV treated glass does not block 100% of the UV and just encourages people to mount their images where sun will hit it and fade the image.
g) Medium format: Sorry I am not going to help here. When I went from 35mm film to 645 MF, I never went back to 35mm. When I went from APS-C digital to FF, I never went back. When and if I ever hang up my 645 film camera, that will probably be when I go to 645 digital.
Summary: It all comes down to deciding which rabbit hole to go down.
a) Save space, time, and overall cost and send out all your images for printing, mat, mount, framing, but live with the compromise that the finished product was out of your hands.
b) Dedicate space, time, and cost in DIY with the satisfaction that any compromise was your own.
Most pros go with "a" because they want and need time to shoot and not process. But for me, once I worked in a wet photo lab and once I learned Photoshop, my personality couldn't let it go when I knew with a bit of effort, I could do better. But it's a rabbit hole and if you know you're someone that doesn't stick with things, then avoid wonderland.
|
