How To Make Prints Of Your Artwork

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How To Make Prints

 

I’ve been making my own prints of my artwork for several years now. It’s not very expensive and very easy to do if you have the right tools. I played around with different kinds of paper and printers until I found what I liked best for the amount of money my budget allowed. In this post I will share with you the tools that I use and some instructions for you to learn how to make prints of your artwork.

First of all, there are many print on demand websites that you can use to create prints of your work. Sites like: Redbubble, Zazzle, and Society6 are just a few that I have looked into. These are great options if you don’t have the budget to purchase equipment to produce your own, but if you are like me and want a personal connection with your customers, you will want to print your own. Before I ship my artwork to a customer, I want to hold the item in my hand, wrap it up in my own packaging, and give it the personal attention that I believe my customers deserve.

This method of print making has worked well for me at this point in my art journey. Right now, I offer 8×10 prints of several paintings, and I give the option of purchasing them matted and signed also.

1. Take A High Quality Photo

The first thing I do is take a high quality photo of the painting or portion of the painting that I am wanted to offer as a print. Outdoor light is the best for photographs. Take your artwork outside on a sunny day and place it on the ground in a shady area. Don’t place it in direct sunlight. That will cause distortion in the colors and textures. Take several photos. This is the camera I use. You can click on the photo and see details about it on Amazon.

2. Load Your Photos On Your Computer

Take the photos you have taken and transfer them to your computer. You will either do this by connecting your camera’s USB charger cord or your camera’s memory card to your computer. Once you have them loaded you can use a free photo editor like Paint.net, Canva, or PicMonkey to crop them so that all you see is the painting itself. Be sure to zoom in around the edges and check for any dark space. The cropped photo should be only the painting and no other background images.

 

3. Print Your Picture

Now you just print it out! I have found that the key to making your prints look beautiful is the paper you use to print on. I have tried several different things and these two are my favorites.

This one has a beautiful matte finish and is textured. I use this one for all of my prints.

This one has a glossy finish and is smooth with no texture. I know other artists who prefer this look, and you may like it best.

The printer that I use is an all in one type deal. It’s a printer, copier, and scanner. Here’s the most updated version of that printer.

This printer has worked really well for me and didn’t break the bank! I call that a win!

 

4. Package and Ship

I use cellophane clear bags for my prints. You can get them in several sizes. Here’s one example.


And I offer to matte and sign my prints for an additional fee. There are many different options online for mattes. I recently ordered these and like them. They also come with the cellophane bags.

 

When you ship your prints you may choose to use a reinforced envelope mailer or box them. I usually box all of my matted prints and use a reinforced envelope mailer for the prints that are not matted.

 

With the right supplies you can really make some beautiful reproductions of your artwork and create another tier of offerings to your customers. It may take a few tweaks, and you can be prepared to mess up a few when you get started. Just keep working at it, and you will get the hang of it in no time! I promise! 🙂

 

Hope this blesses you and your art business,