What is Giclée?

Giclée refers to a new method of creating prints. The Giclée process begins after a transparency is produced from the original painting, or the painting is scanned directly by a high-end scanner, or even photographed with a high-quality digital camera. Special software programs are used to manipulate the attributes of the digitized image to achieve the artist's own desired requirements. The approved image is then output to a sophisticated printer while the printmaker verifies the colour management elements. The word Giclée itself is French and means spurt or squirt, however the spray is more like a mist, each droplet being the size of a red blood cell.

That said, let’s be honest.  Giclée is a fancy name for Ink-Jet printing – which most computer owners do every day.  We just have bigger printers.

But Giclée has developed a deeper meaning, and we hope to explain that in what follows:

What to Expect from a Giclée Print

Unless otherwise instructed, we aim to make the best-looking print from any original.  Because the papers, inks, and pigments are capable of a very wide density range and occupy a larger colour space than most artist’s materials, our prints often look “brighter” than the original.

Modern Giclée prints are expected to show no sign of fading after 100 years – providing the prints are kept in “suitable” conditions.  We rely on the manufacturers for their recommendations.  It is worth remembering that most materials, commonly used by artists, survive no better than that.

Expect to be surprised.

Digitizing Pictures

There are three ways in which we can digitize an original artwork – that is to transfer it to the computer that will eventually send the image to one of our printers.

We can scan the picture into the computer. 

This is ideal for a watercolour, or any other “flat” medium up to A2 size.  It gives the highest definition and very accurate colour rendition.

We can use a digital camera to photograph the picture, and then send it to the computer.

We have found that high quality digital cameras (5 megapixels, for example) can be used to generate photographs up to A1 size.  Colour rendition is very good.  For copying original artwork, however, they are more limited.  The resolution of fine detail is inadequate, and so they are best used for paintings with broad brushstrokes.

We prefer not to use “consumer” digital cameras for the time being.

A conventional camera can be used to photograph the picture, and the resulting transparency, or negative, scanned into the computer.

Conventional film cameras come in a range of types and sizes.  We can scan almost any kind of negative or transparency.  We can also scan photographic prints.

However, the quality of the final print depends completely on the quality of the photograph provided.  We always clean images (see the next section), but we can’t improve resolution, and we can’t make a blurred image sharp.

The best quality prints are made from large format cameras, giving 5x4 inch transparencies.  Photography is highly skilled and it is best to employ a specialist fine-art photographer.  We can recommend Marilyn Muirhead in Glasgow without reservation - phone 0141-334-5413.

Preparing the Digital Image for Printing

This is always a long and complex process because we have found that switching all the systems to “automatic” just doesn’t work.  It is at this stage that our skills are required and at this stage that the quality and accuracy of the final print is defined.

Cropping

It is almost always the case that camera images of artwork are not “square” – that is, the plane of the film was not parallel to the plane of the artwork when the camera was used.  The first stage, therefore, is to square up the picture and if necessary, after that, correct the aspect ratio.  At the same time the image is cropped to the area required for the final print.

Resizing

The image is converted to the printer resolution and the actual size of the final print.  After that, a degree of artificial sharpening may be applied – so long as it improves the image.

Colour Balancing

The colour, brightness, and contrast of the image are adjusted to match the original as closely as possible.  At this point a test print may be made to resolve any doubts.

Cleaning and Restoration

It is in this area that we feel Kempock Digital has the edge – and therefore we want to go into rather more detail.

The art of cleaning and restoration is not just in knowing how, and being able to do it.  It is essential to know what to clean and restore, and what not to….

For an image that would be printed at this size,     

we normally work at a higher magnification

Working at this size, we can become more familiar with the artist’s technique.  That is essential – because we must be able to distinguish the art from the artefact.  Perhaps the best example of that is in the appearance of tiny hairs.  These can originate from the photographer’s eyelash, the printer’s beard, or the artist’s brush.  We leave only the latter untouched.

Somewhat trickier is the odd spattered speck of paint.  Was it intentional, or not?

This is not a tutorial on what to do – rather it is a brief survey of artefacts and their origin.  So, where do these things come from?

The first example, below before and after, illustrates a lighting problem that almost always occurs when an oil painting is photographed.  You normally don’t see it through the camera viewfinder.

For want of a better term we can call this specular speckle.  It is caused by tiny light reflections from high points in the picture.  Often it coincides with the points where the threads of the canvas cross, but it can also coincide with the high points of individual brush strokes.

This example is severe of course, but every picture has at least one, and our job is to find it.

The next before and after illustration shows a very bad case of the most common artefact.  

Airborne dust, and bits and pieces, are almost inevitable.  There is dust on the original, dust in the camera or scanner (however much care is taken), and dust in film processing.  But it all has to go.  Meticulous cleaning of every part of the system helps of course, but sometimes this stuff just gets embedded.

Everyone is entitled to a favourite.  And the next one is ours.

It can always be good to photograph a painting outdoors – keep away from shadows and the light is even and the right colour.  But care should be taken to make sure the painting is dry.

First time round we missed this tiny piece of flora.  It was only a fraction of an inch high and exactly parallel to the distant yacht.  And it’s on the original painting now – so should we remove it or not?

Well, that’s where the art lies.  It doesn’t detract from the original at all, but it is very annoying to see it on the print.  So it had to go, and prints had to be recalled and replaced.  (But there’s still just one out there – maybe that will be worth something one day).

The point of spending so long on this subject is just this.  On an original artwork most artefacts are acceptable because it is the original.  But on a print, only what the artist intended is acceptable, and that’s why it’s difficult.

Printing the Image

Setting up a printer is one of those things that seems to be shrouded in mystery, but it’s really very straightforward.  You just have to be able to visualize what the final result will look like before you press the button.  So, Ok then, it’s a skilled job.

Inspecting the Print

Before we make the final print we normally produce a small proof print so that colour rendition can be checked against the original. 

All our prints are carefully checked, but we expect our customers to check them again, and we are quite prepared to reprint if necessary.

Presenting the Print

There is no question that the full beauty of our prints is best seen without glass, but without glass, they will pick up dirt and be liable to damage. We can't recommend "non-reflective" glass because that really degrades the image - so please use plain clear glass.

While our prints are extremely stable we are bound to give some general guidelines which apply to any picture of any kind. All dyes and pigments are photosensitive – that’s why they are dyes and pigments.

Pictures are comfortable in an environment where people feel comfortable. So we avoid long periods of exposure to direct sunlight, and we avoid extremes of temperature and humidity.