Digital BW, The Print

I recently purchased an Epson R2400 and after much trial and error
have learned how to produce some very nice prints. I particularly like
the fine art matte papers like Photo Rag and William Turner. So far
I've been matting and framing them, and my house is now full of my
work from the past two years (which is very satisfying!)

Now that my wall space is full (though I do rotate the images), I'd
like to explore other options for displaying and presenting work. In
particular, I'm interested in methods that showcase the texture of the
papers I've come to love. It seems that as soon as the image goes
behind glass/acrylic, it's difficult to get a sense of the "feel" of
the paper anymore - which is a shame, since for me that is a big part
of the experience of the print. Also, I tend to organize my work in
projects, so it would be nice to have some creative methods of
presenting finished projects.

I've seen things like the Hahnemuhle Photo Albums and Photo Rag Inkjet
Cards, which look interesting. But I'm also curious about more
"traditional" processes like dry mounting, etc. I'm a novice here, so
whatever you could share would be appreciated, including links to
books or online resources that would teach me more.

Thanks!

At 07:12 AM Thursday 10/4/2007, you wrote:
>In particular, I'm interested in methods that showcase the texture of the
>papers I've come to love. It seems that as soon as the image goes
>behind glass/acrylic, it's difficult to get a sense of the "feel" of
>the paper anymore - which is a shame, since for me that is a big part
>of the experience of the print.

Have you been leaving a 'reveal' (or gap) between the image and the matt? Doing so allows the bare paper texture to show at the edge of the image and with art papers like Photo Rag this can be advantageous.

Richard 
--
http://smallfield.vze.com
http://photos.smallfield.vze.com (Photos web site)
http://warkworth.vze.com/ (Warkworth photo essay)
http://picasaweb.google.com/rsmallfield/ (Recent work) 

   "Genius without education is like silver in the mine."
   --Ben Franklin

I found this mounting option to be interesting:
http://www.art-boards.com/Archival%20mounting%20panel%206.htm

The heat activated adhesive is supposed to be reversible etc.

Did not tried their product yet as I have not found a way to protect
the front of the print... 

I am also selling some prints and looked for a way to treat the prints
so they can be hanged without a frame.

I use Moab Desert protective spray but it does not act like the
varnishes used on canvas prints.

I am still looking for a varnish that will be completely matte and
will not leave streaking marks.



--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "chriskjezp"
<chriskresser@...> wrote:

>
> I recently purchased an Epson R2400 and after much trial and error
> have learned how to produce some very nice prints. I particularly like
> the fine art matte papers like Photo Rag and William Turner. So far
> I've been matting and framing them, and my house is now full of my
> work from the past two years (which is very satisfying!)
> 
> Now that my wall space is full (though I do rotate the images), I'd
> like to explore other options for displaying and presenting work. In
> particular, I'm interested in methods that showcase the texture of the
> papers I've come to love. It seems that as soon as the image goes
> behind glass/acrylic, it's difficult to get a sense of the "feel" of
> the paper anymore - which is a shame, since for me that is a big part
> of the experience of the print. Also, I tend to organize my work in
> projects, so it would be nice to have some creative methods of
> presenting finished projects.
> 
> I've seen things like the Hahnemuhle Photo Albums and Photo Rag Inkjet
> Cards, which look interesting. But I'm also curious about more
> "traditional" processes like dry mounting, etc. I'm a novice here, so
> whatever you could share would be appreciated, including links to
> books or online resources that would teach me more.
> 
> Thanks!
>

> Have you been leaving a 'reveal' (or gap) between the image and the
matt? Doing so allows the bare paper texture to show at the edge of
the image and with art papers like Photo Rag this can be advantageous.
> 

No, I haven't tried that but I believe I've seen that method at a few
museum exhibits.  Except in those cases, the edge of the paper was
fully visible on all sides, with about 1/4" of space between the paper
edge and matt.  I've seen it most often with old prints.

I'll give it a try!

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "the_des_bois"
<thedesbois@...> wrote:
>
> I found this mounting option to be interesting:
> http://www.art-boards.com/Archival%20mounting%20panel%206.htm
> 

This looks like a nice method when archival quality isn't a concern. 
I could see doing an installation of 3-5 of these in my kitchen nook,
for example.

Richard,

What mat do you find compatible (in warmth, texture) with Photo Rag?

Harry 


On 10/3/07 2:25 PM, "Richard Smallfield" <r.smallfield@...>
wrote:

>  
>  
>  
> 
> At 07:12 AM Thursday 10/4/2007, you wrote:
>> >In particular, I'm interested in methods that showcase the texture of the
>> >papers I've come to love. It seems that as soon as the image goes
>> >behind glass/acrylic, it's difficult to get a sense of the "feel" of
>> >the paper anymore - which is a shame, since for me that is a big part
>> >of the experience of the print.
> 
> Have you been leaving a 'reveal' (or gap) between the image and the matt?
> Doing so allows the bare paper texture to show at the edge of the image and
> with art papers like Photo Rag this can be advantageous.
> 
> Richard 
> --
> http://smallfield.vze.com
> http://photos.smallfield.vze.com (Photos web site)
> http://warkworth.vze.com/ (Warkworth photo essay)
> http://picasaweb.google.com/rsmallfield/ (Recent work)
> 
> "Genius without education is like silver in the mine."
>  --Ben Franklin 
> 

-- 

Harry F. Lockwood




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I've been using the Snowflake White Bainbridge Alphamat from  
Framedestination.com.

Look at how serigraphs and non-photo prints are
displayed...you surely have examples in local
galleries and museums. I don't think many of those
print makers are as anal/narcissistic as photographers
can get, so they do intend their work to be
framed...and they typically use paper finer than
digital printers use.

Typically their prints are set back from the glass
with spacers, are rarely matted, sometimes they are
displayed in shadow boxes (set back quite a bit).
Sometimes these even include objects, such as historic
items or pressed flowers. 

Using "traditional" inkjet papers, which usually
feature sharply cut edges, as a substitute for
fondling, some photographers tear inkjet edges (eg
tear 11X17 paper into 7X12 plus torn leftovers).

 www.inkjetart.com sells an inexpensive tool (like a
deckle-edged ruler) for this purpose, but a set of
various edges could cheaply be fabricated from
aluminum "angle iron" stock using a power sander.

"handling" isn't a good thing with fine prints (a
proper gallery owner will flog you for it).

John