Scanning art & Giclee prints

[Kelly Thorson]

Is there anyone here that is familiar with the processes and options available for reproducing artwork?
Specifically, I want to get a 16 x 20 piece of artwork scanned to make a few prints with the probability of getting more made in the future. Initially I looked at getting them done as a LE at a printers, but I don't anticipate having a market for a high quantity.
I think Giclee prints are what I'm looking for, but I'd like to know what other options are available. Ideally I'd like something that has decent longevity and that possibly can be printed on a canvas texture.
I'm completely green to methods of scanning and types of output files. There are lots of places on the internet that offer these services, but if anyone can give me a few basics to arm myself with before I start weeding through them, I'd appreciate it.
I've been speaking to a screenprinter who has recently purchased a set up for direct printing on T-shirts and would like to get the image put on a couple of shirts as well. He said they use a very high quality scanner. If he is willing to provide me a copy of the scanned artwork I may send it away and see how it comes out.

[Robin Sharrard]

Hi Kelly, The direct printing looks promissing but like any fairly new technology it has its faults, and one of those is duribility. Send me an e-mail and I'll give you the address for the forum were this is a hot topic and you can read the data yourself. The prints are a little bit duller than screen print and their still experimenting with the new white underbaseing and highlights.

[Kelly Thorson]

Thanks Robin,
I assume you are speaking of the T-shirt or garment printing aspect? I'll have to give the fellow a call tommorrow and see what kind of scanner he has. I know as far as the printing is concerned he said it is supposed to be extremely durable. He claimed they have tested and washed samples and he says they are both brighter and that they hold up better than screenprinting. He said it has a much softer hand than a screenprint and because his printer utilizes white ink they can print on dark substrates with very good results. The pricing was pretty reasonable. He said it would be $30 to scan the artwork and $5 per print after that. I use him for my screenprinting and my son used to work for him so he is pretty good to me. At that price I think I'll give it a go just to see how it turns out. I'll get him to do a few prints on different coloured T-shirts.

[Jim Moser]

I was talking to someone about the Gliclee prints recently. I believe it was an airbrush artist named Mickey Harris. These a very high quality prints and the beauty is that you can have a few printed at a time instead of having an entire edition done at once. I guess the thing to do will be to search out a printer in your area who can do the Gliclee prints. I believe Harry Mallicoat has done some of his art this way as well.

[Harry Malicoat]

Kelly, ..... I have done quite a few Giclee prints of my fine art (you can find it at chrismalicoat.com). The life expectancy of the prints is now longer than that of most of the originals. The prints (done on an Epson, Iris, or Roland on compatible substrates) will now last more than 100 yrs. They also have far more reproduction colors than lithos or serigraphs allowing for subtleties the others can't match. They are also available one at a time, although they are much more expensive for each print, but you aren't stuck with hundreds to sell. The file of the image is probably more important than who prints it (although that isn't to say that no skill is required to make the printer print a good product). The original can either be scanned or photographed, then must be cleaned up and color corrected to make a hi-res printable file. I have an excellent source here (central CA) to create beautiful prints, but if there is a good giclee printer in your area, it can save shipping, etc. If you have any particular questions, give me a call ...... (559) 289-2289

[Kelly Thorson]

Thanks Harry,
I'll be in the big city of Regina tomorrow and see what I can find. If I don't have any luck there or end up more confused than when I started, I'll give you a call. I'm hoping to be in California in a couple of weeks so it could work out to have the scanning and printing done there.
What kind of turnaround does your printer have on doing 20 prints?
BTW - I went to your web site - nice work.

[Harry Malicoat]

Kelly, .... it would probably take them a few days to make the prints, but if he can photograph the piece while you are here, he can ship you the prints when they are done, but you don't have to ship the original (I hate shipping my originals). When you are coming this direction (and if you are close enough to me ...... CA is a big state), we can let him know you are coming and set an appointment for the photo work.