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Going Aluminum

jecxz

jecxz

Active member
I visit this forum to keep up to date on what other medium format photographers are doing and in turn I want to share what I've been up to for the past several months... I've been printing photographs on aluminum (I call them Aluminums) in preparation for a solo exhibition that I have September through October. All of the artwork was originally photographed with my medium format Hasselbad gear. It has been quite a learning experience, starting with thinking it'd be easy and turning into something I didn't expect.



A lot of people ask me about the process so I've written up a web page explaining it:

Going Aluminum

Please have a look if you have time and let me know what you think!

Kind regards,
Derek Jecxz
www.jecxz.com
www.facebook.com/derek.jecxz.photographer
 
jecxz

jecxz

Active member
Thank you Ken!

Good question Ben, as I wrote, they are varnished, with a couple of coats, and the varnish has UV block. Far better than the average gallery wrap canvas sprayed with Premier Art Shield. They will have a good life. But excellent question, perhaps I should add that to my write up, thank you!

Ben Rubinstein said:
What about ink fading on the aluminium? What kind of life do these 'prints' have?
Click to expand...
 
kdphotography

kdphotography

Well-known member
Just as an aside, I wouldn't use Premier Art Shield for gallery canvas wraps---Premier Art Shield is really best on photographic prints, not canvas. HVLP sprayed finishes such as Breathing Color's Glamour II and Timeless, or other similar products will provide substantially better protection as well as improve the ability to stretch/protect the canvas during stretching.

My guess is that the archivability of your aluminum prints (as most prints) will be more effected by environmental conditions than anything else. I'd enjoy seeing your final presentation of your aluminum prints!

ken
 
jecxz

jecxz

Active member
kdphotography said:
My guess is that the archivability of your aluminum prints (as most prints) will be more effected by environmental conditions than anything else. I'd enjoy seeing your final presentation of your aluminum prints!

ken
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+1 (and thank you)
 
P

PeterL

Member
Thanks for sharing Derek, can you give us an idea of the cost of each finished print (in addition to all your time spent :).

Cheers, -Peter
 
M

mjr

Guest
Excellent write up, I really enjoyed reading it!

I guess time is the issue and how you value it, I'm anti paying for anything I can do better myself, do you still feel that your time is better invested in the cleaning, prepping and printing of the aluminium over paying for frames and using the time on something more productive or creative? genuine question!

Mat
 
jecxz

jecxz

Active member
PeterL said:
Thanks for sharing Derek, can you give us an idea of the cost of each finished print (in addition to all your time spent :).

Cheers, -Peter
Click to expand...
Hi Peter,

I haven't added everything up, my time is about 3 hours of vigorous cleaning, sanding and prep, then a couple of hours for varnish and trim.

Kind regards,
Derek
 
jecxz

jecxz

Active member
Hi Mat,

You make an excellent point with your question and while I don't have exact numbers for you and Peter, there is a lot to say for creating the pieces with my own hands -- which I had not realized initially would give me such pride in the finished artwork (not that we are not proud with our printed photos). The price difference in the framing is the mat (I use 8-ply normally), backer board, and the glass/plexi. The costs for the aluminum print does not even come close to the difference. $50 for a floater frame beats $250 for a nicely framed print. I order my frames from an online company, because if I used the local framer in my town the same $250 frame is $350!

I still do really like my paper prints framed with an 8-ply mat behind glass or Plexi, but the framing costs for large prints (~ 30x40 to 40x50) are killing me, as I said in the write up. It is nice when a gallery wants to give you a solo show until you realize the investment necessary for creating the artwork. I'm not doing this for vanity, I need to make money. Would I do this again for my next exhibition? I don't know yet. Hey, if none sell, I can make a Delorian with the aluminum!

But seriously, I had to make a decision about spending money on matting and plexi or investing my time, unfortunately the current economy helped me choose the latter. You ask if I could have just spent the money and done something creative with the time, which I wondered all along, but ultimately I did something creative with my time, I learned how to make these Aluminums. But I did think this all along, you hit the nail on the head.

Kind regards,
Derek

mjr said:
Excellent write up, I really enjoyed reading it!

I guess time is the issue and how you value it, I'm anti paying for anything I can do better myself, do you still feel that your time is better invested in the cleaning, prepping and printing of the aluminium over paying for frames and using the time on something more productive or creative? genuine question!

Mat
Click to expand...
 
M

mjr

Guest
Hi Derek

Excellent answer! I feel I should explain my reasons for asking, I'm an engineer by trade and as a result I see beauty in the process far more than the end result, if that makes sense.

I have lost thousands and thousands of pounds over the years because I am not a business man but find incredible pleasure in the process and the result having come from my own hands, I then tend to lose interest quickly and sell my artistic endeavours on at a loss!

But we are different, I don't rely on photography for making a living and hence the question to someone who does. I'd always do it myself and hang the expense of time and effort. It was great to read about your process and reasonings and I love the end result, maybe we aren't so far apart after all! I shall definitely be looking at some aluminium sheet in the near future, I hope I'm as successful.

Cheers

Mat
 
jecxz

jecxz

Active member
Hi Mat,

Your question was what was going through my mind for the past several months, and there is no need to explain yourself. I am at a point in my life where I need to be wise with my spending; that's what sparked it all. It turned into something very different, thank heavens, and I am hopeful my write up will help someone else develop their own technique or convince them to take a different path. I think we are very much alike. Be well.

Kind regards,
Derek

mjr said:
Hi Derek

Excellent answer! I feel I should explain my reasons for asking, I'm an engineer by trade and as a result I see beauty in the process far more than the end result, if that makes sense.

I have lost thousands and thousands of pounds over the years because I am not a business man but find incredible pleasure in the process and the result having come from my own hands, I then tend to lose interest quickly and sell my artistic endeavours on at a loss!

But we are different, I don't rely on photography for making a living and hence the question to someone who does. I'd always do it myself and hang the expense of time and effort. It was great to read about your process and reasonings and I love the end result, maybe we aren't so far apart after all! I shall definitely be looking at some aluminium sheet in the near future, I hope I'm as successful.

Cheers

Mat
Click to expand...
 
jecxz

jecxz

Active member
I found this company early on however their max width is 20" (I mentioned this in my write up but not them by name) and their prices are a bit high, i.e. $785 for 5 sheets of 20x60, not including shipping. Here is a link to their store for satin silver:

Booksmart Satin Silver, inkjet printable aluminum/metal

I pay $25 for each 36x36 sheet of aluminum I use.

The resolution from our medium format cameras allows for prints larger than 20" on one side. However, this might be an excellent vendor for photographers who want to create smaller prints.

Kind regards,
Derek

EH21 said:
Thanks for sharing the process. I have looked at the coated metals sheets from Booksmartstudio Products - Fine Art Paper, Canvas, Inkjet Supplies, Custom ICC Profiles, Fine Art Metals, Digital Portfolios - Booksmart Studio
for a few years wondering what this would look like. Have you tried any of their products and if so how would you rate them?
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jecxz

jecxz

Active member
kdphotography

kdphotography

Well-known member
Derek,

Imho, I know that cost is always a looming consideration in printmaking, but the real value I feel is not in comparing the initial cost outlay or investment, but the consideration that this is a piece of art that has a "piece of Derek" in it---and that's what gives it value to prospective buying clients. It's not something that is so easily duplicated with an online order to Bay Photo or other pro lab. From your decision to use a MFDB in the capture of the image, the care and selection of the media to print the image, to the final finished product--- now has a unique piece of the artist. And that's value.

I really am not a fan of the generic mat/frame packages that seem to be the accepted norm for photographers displaying their works. Or photographers stuck using a single type of media for printing. I like to print on different fine art medias and try to put a bit more effort in the printing and presentation beyond the generic. It costs more but I think prospective clients appreciate the effort and value. Your approach/effort here is definitely unique and has value. I think part of the fun will be educating viewers about the process.

Pictures! When you're done hanging and lighting---Pictures!!

ken:)
 
A

alan_w_george

New member
5 hours per print! That's quite an investment.

The cheapest way I have found to mount large prints for budget minded exhibitions, face mount on foam core with wood back frames. Mounted foam core, $8 a square foot and wood back frame, $25. These are are easily framed with 1/8" spacers (i.e. no mat) and plexi later if needed.
 
jecxz

jecxz

Active member
@Ken, I will send you some photos of the gallery once it's installed, if you're iever n Philadelphia (or NYC), let me know!

@Alan, you're right, I could have glued the photos to foam core.

Kind regards,
Derek
 
S

Stuart Richardson

Active member
Derek, this is pretty cool, but you are aware that they sell adhesive coated aluminum and dibond sheets, right? Are you looking for the metallic look, or are you just looking for a rigid substrate to mount large photos to?

You can buy large (very large...3m even) aluminum sheets that have an adhesive coating on them, designed to accept a paper print over the top. My clients do this all the time. There is also Di-Bond, which is an aluminum/plastic/aluminum sandwich. It is even cheaper and lighter, yet very rigid and archival. Even if you don't have an adhesive coated sheet, you can use a roller press and pressure sensitive adhesive to mount the print on aluminum, dibond, pvc, foam core and so on. This is extremely common in the signage industry, but increasingly popular in the art market as well. I just received a quote of about 65 dollars per image for 1mX1m prints on DiBond done by a very good mounting company (this is in a country that is MUCH more expensive than the US)...I imagine that if you were to look around, you could find someone to mount your prints for less time and money than you are currently spending. That said, your process does add value to your work, in that it is unique and done by you as the artist etc, but if you are just looking for a cheaper alternative to framing, there are other options!
 
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