Surface finishes

Although it may seem too obvious to mention, may people are unaware of what exactly constitutes a print. Put simply, a print is a method of image-making that allows the work of art to be created more than once. The size of the edition (i.e.the number of prints produced of the one work), the significance…

Dye, unlike pigment, dissolves completely in solution (pigment-based inks leave tiny particles floating in the solution). This means that dye-based inks are entirely absorbed into the paper that they are printed on – the image is in fact a highly controlled stain. The resulting images can thus appear very slick and even, with a vast…

A C-type colour paper made by Fuji which offers an extreme gloss finish.

A sheet of transparent film coated with silver salts which react when exposed to light (usually in a camera). In black and white negatives, one layer of salts reacts to white light (the full spectrum of light). The result is a reversal of normal vision: the shadows are light, the highlights dark. In colour negatives…

Toning, or toned black and white: toning images allows an artist/printer to alter the colours of a photographic print (by replacing the silver in the silver salts with another metal). Toning can be used as an aesthetic decision by the artist, or it can also be used to improve the archival properties of a print….

Pigment, unlike dye, is a powder made up of tiny granules that will not dissolve completely in solution. This means that pigment-based inks leave particles of pure colour bonded to the surface of the paper that they are printed on. The resulting images can thus appear very rich and physical, densely saturated in colour –…