Our top tips for printing from home
In 2021, it’s so easy to point and press to take a quick “snap” and it’s up to us to decide what’s for ourselves, what’s something we may want to inform others of via our social media channels (yummy dinner, anyone?!) and what moments we feel we want to see in print. Those that we want in print and normally things that we want to remember… An image the can provoke a positive feeling that we want to keep within our memory and relive.
Again, it’s very easy to print a photo - there are even apps that will allow us to do this, for free, from our phones or tablets for example! I’ll be honest, from what I’ve read these apps aren’t great for quality… The machinery used by companies are usually of an age meaning that the technology isn’t up to speed and the printing heads may not be as clean as they should be so colours could be off (or even worse - a smudge may appear!).
Let’s be honest - getting a good, quality printed photograph isn’t easy. Yup, there are tons of printers out there and many are so accessible but not all are of good quality… Here’s a my top 3 tips for printing from home:
The type of paper
Right then, imagine you are decorating your living room. Are you going to put that gorgeous, rather expensive, wallpaper over the top of an uneven surface or - as you’re going to be living with it for the next few years - will you spend time stripping of the old, smoothing over the cracks and ensuring you have a smooth, blank, canvas to start with? We can apply the same analogy to printing. An inkjet printer uses a printer cartridge that creates an image that is 300 x 300 dpi (dots per inch).
PLEASE bear in mind that most home based printer cartridge brands do not create a resolution that is true “photo quality” (and some supermarkets too!) however if you’re wanting to create a small, desktop, image you can get away with it. I”ll do a blog on inks another time - as this is a little more technical - however when purchasing paper, the most common types of paper for printing photos are glossy, lustre and baryta paper and it’s worth having a look (and feel!) of these to ensure the finish is going to suit your image. Did you know that there are different weights, known as GSM (grams per square inch) for different types of paper? The weights vary from 120gsm used for budget prints like calendar prints to 300gsm and even more in the case of fine art papers, which we highly recommend for those more important images you are wanting to stand the test of time and have on proud display in your home. It’s worth nothing that traditional printers can feed up to 280gsm paper easily were heavier weights should be checked against the printer’s manufacturer guidelines.
2. Colour calibration
One of the things that we try very hard to make clear to our clients is that an image will look different, in colour and tone, on screen to what you see on paper and this is down to colour temperature and the brightness of your screen. Again, we’re so used to having this instantly accessible through mobile devices and tablets that we can sometimes overlook the reason “why” something may look slightly off colour and/or over exposed.
If your screen is too cool (blue tones) or too warm (yellow tones) then this will have a direct impact on how you see your photo digitally to that of an image printed onto bright white paper, for example. The second thing is the brightness level of your screen… Remember that if yourescreen is set to really bright then you may, unintentionally, print an image that is actually really dark in colour profile.
There are colour calibration kits, which you can buy for computer based software, can help however if you’re wanting to go “big” with your imagery (think things for the wall) then again, head up to the desk and speak with a person rather than presume a digital printer (whether it be online or a self service machine) and check first. We can't control everybody's screens but by taking the time to speak with someone and do a couple of test prints you can control both the brightness and the colour temperature on a print.
3. Be patient
I’m going to let you into a little secret now… Before I do, just know that this isn’t strictly true for ALL instant printing machines however it really is something to be wary of. When you go into a supermarket, department store and/or printing area it’s common to have two areas for printing: self serve and a printing desk. Take time, be patient and go to the printing desk. The self service machines can be good but the technology can be behind. Don’t get me wrong, some retailers are really upping their game and updating the machinery and technology but, if I’m being really honest, the self serve printing machines aren’t that great (yet).
The reason for this is simple: the technology for these self service, quick and easy, machine is based on the same technology used by passport photo machines. They do not have the colour correction tools (remember to be careful of the auto colour correct that we talked about earlier!), the professional prints and goodness knows when those printer heads receive a proper clean! In short, go to the printer desk and make sure the staff and company printing your imagery know what they’re doing and how they’re doing it.
Final thoughts?
Let’s be honest, nothing beats the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction a printed photograph can give you. It may be the memory linked to the photo or a shot of a loved one that you are especially proud of and we all want those memories to be preserved well. The preservation starts the moment you choose an image to be photographed. Don’t rush this moment, or scrimp to save - these memories are precious. It’s why you’re choosing to press print! Invest the time, money and patience into getting it right for you to enjoy and embrace for many, many years to come.
I hate the phrase “mailing lists”… It sounds so robotic and impersonal. How about penfriends? I get that choosing to have a Boudoir Experience is not an overnight decision so let’s stay in touch and when you’re ready to book your Be Bold Be You moment, it’ll just be like picking up the phone to a friend.
Kirsty