One of the most base questions asked is how to furnish the best inherent giclee. A giclee is a high fidelity print made with inkjets using pigmented inks. Although it is a fairly uncomplicated and short inquiry, the rejoinder is complex. I will try to split it in three parts:
File quality
Printer Inkjet
Native resolution needs to be a minimum of 150 ppi for art papers and 200 for resin coated. When I say native, I mean before any kind of interpolation. Interpolation of files over 200% is harmful. Also, digitally created files (such as files from digital cameras and computer graphics raster programs) interpolate better. Vector files are resolution independent: an Illustrator file can be printed as large as you wish. It needs to be rasterized at the wanted resolution for the size of the final print.
Make sure your files are color balanced and no crossover is present. Crossover occurs when complementary colors are present and not wanted in an image. Also, it is very leading there is no clipping in highlights and shadows. You can no ifs ands or buts see any issues by running a histogram in Photoshop. Last but not least, is the image sharp?
Hardware and software
A giclee must be made with a high potential printer. Right now I would not consider anyone else but a pro Epson, Roland, Colorspan or Iris. Hp and Canon have a few moving products in the pipeline.
Make sure you use expert editing software such as Photoshop. Also a Rip is a must in a production environment. If you are producing low volumes, the quarterly drivers supplied for free with all printers will do.
Inks and substrates
This is the most involved item. As for inks, it goes without saying that pigments should be used. Dyes are mostly organic compounds and as such they break down. Dyes have a wider color gamut but are unsuitable for long chronic prints.
The papers are an additional one huge factor. Make sure you buy archival, acid free substrates. Oba free materials are preferred. Oba stands for visual brighteners and Oba papers tend to yellow and possibly break down over time. It is imperative you coat Oba papers with Uv protecting compounds.
Coating is an additional one issue. At this time liquid or spray coatings are the standard. Do not use laminate sheets as they crack and shift to yellow in months or at best a few years.
Copyright 2006 Fabio Braghi
What Makes a Great Giclee
No comments:
Post a Comment