Printing options for huge prints

[Lars]

The German gallery I was in contact with yesterday inquired about the possibility of selling very large prints. My 8x10" drum scans are at 320 megapixels, so I replied that more than 2 meters would not be a problem. Well, they replied "How much more?" :shocked: so now I need to investigate in more detail.

So, if anyone has some insight into very large (120-300 cm wide) digital printing then please share.

- What technologies are available?
- Photographic quality?
- Light persistence?
- Printers in northern Europe?

Thanks,

Lars

 

[Stuart Richardson]

You may want to take a look at Duggal's website. They are a major lab in New York that certainly does stuff like this. I know they are in NYC, but they may give you an idea of what sort of machines you might need.
http://duggal.com/c10i1_digital_c_prints.aspx

For example, they say that they print up to 72" (183cm) wide on Lightjet 500XL printers. You might want to contact Lightjet and see if anyone in Northern Europe runs the XL units...

Then there is FLAAR that reviews this sort of stuff: http://www.wide-format-printers.org/BowlingGreenStateUniversityOhio/BGSUdigitalimaging.htm

I think your best bet is to find some machines you think might work for you, and then contact the manufacturers to see if anyone near you has one. I think the number of actual units doing stuff this large is fairly limited, and the manufacturers can probably tell you where they are. Another option would be to contact the largest galleries in your city or in Copenhagen, Helsinki etc and see who prints their mural prints.

 

[Lars]

Thanks Stuart, good leads. The FLAAR site is a bit outdated but otherwise helpful.

I spoke to Oce about lightjets, there is one lab in Sweden running the 500XL, they can print up to 183 x 300 cm (6x10 ft). As it happens, it's almost around the corner.

 

[Stuart Richardson]

Glad to hear it! As for FLAAR, I know they have a lot of information there, but the writing is so poor that I never seem to make it through the articles! Technical writing is obviously a learned skill, and no one ever taught them it!

 

[Lars]

I dropped by the lab, http://www.forstoringsateljen.se/ their lightjet prints are of course stunning. They do E6 as well, I dropped off a sheet of Velvia from Toscana a year ago that I missed developing last year.

They have a laminated 100x125 cm from Death Valley in the lobby, similar in style to some of my own, probably from a 4x5 Velvia. It looks great, gloss is like a mirror. Some kind of glossy Kodak paper (though not Metallic). Clearly more impressive than anything I saw at Calypso in California, though probably double the price.

 

[Stuart Richardson]

Cool, thanks for the link...to be honest, I may need it at some point! I actually discovered that there is no one in this entire country who will process 4x5 in any form, except as a special order...even then it is just some guy with a Jobo. Luckily, I just bought a Jobo, so soon, I will be that guy with a Jobo! Am I crazy to be setting up my own E6 processing in 2009? Probably...

 

[Lars]

Yep definitely crazy but the convenience and short turnaround is worth a lot. I often wish I had a Jobo.