Creating and Matting My Limited Edition Prints

I decided some time ago that having control over my own prints was the way to go, at least for now. I choose images that I have a fondness for or that are popular with folks. It is another price point for art enthusiasts to own my work if the originals are just a bit out of reach monetarily. However, less expensive doesn't mean 'cheap', and I use the best materials possible to make sure the prints have a long life. It also means I need to own all the equipment and software to accomplish this.

Scanning Art

I scan my original art using an Epson V600 scanner at 600dpi (probably excessive, but it allows for sizing up images if I should choose to do so in the future). I pull the images into Affinity Photo (similar to Adobe Photoshop) and make adjustments to the image. Over time, I've worked out what those adjustments are and have created custom pre-sets to save time. I save the images in several formats and sizes to allow for, not only prints, but thumbnails for show submissions, images on my website etc. Images that fit within the scanner bed (9x12) are easier. Larger images require multiple scans and 'stitching' the final image together in Affinity Photo - a process I'm still learning to do effectively.

Printing & Matting

I print on my Canon Pro-200 with archival inks on heavyweight acid-free art paper. For some images, the print is hard to distinguish from the original! Likewise, I also want the matting materials to be archival. Many of my images are not standard frame sizes, so a couple of years ago I invested in a nice matt cutter as well as the time necessary to learn how to use it. This allows me to matt to standard frame sizes. At the moment, I run limited editions of 10 - all signed and numbered.

The final process of putting it all together is fun! Here is one of ten 'Final Scramble' prints being assembled.

 

Back to blog

Leave a comment

Please note, comments need to be approved before they are published.