Sunset Reserve Matte CanvasTag:

Posted on by Jennifer Corn Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Dennis and Cheri Hammon: In Pursuit of the Perfect Print

Dennis and Cheri Hammon are a successful photography team based in Idaho. Not only are they award-winning photographers, but Dennis is a PPA affiliate juror and Cheri is a qualified juror for state competitions.

Dennis and Cheri Hammon“I have a degree in Geology, but ended up teaching Photography at a university,” Dennis says. “I started working for a ski resort and doing photography for the ski circuit, back in the 70s, and here I am, 45 years later.”

Cheri took a little more of a longer route to the world of photography. She initially worked as a hairdresser, but due to allergies, she decided on a career change. Thanks to a family friend, she started working for a prominent photographer in Augusta, Ga. “The studio needed a retouch artist and I had an art background,” she says. “I learned all the behind-the-scenes stuff like negative retouching, print retouching, airbrushing for copy restoration, some printing, and matting and framing. As time progressed, digital came along, then Photoshop and Corel Painter. That’s a Reader’s Digest version of how I got started.”

The Hammons have a long list of awards, but both agree that the Sunset Print Award is among the top award to win. “We’ve both won several, and it’s one of our favorite awards to win. We’ve each won two or three of them” says Dennis. “The only awards that we have on our desks are the LexJet awards and the Canon awards.”

Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-Series 4100

The Hammons are known for their printing abilities and print their own fine artwork. From capture to print, they have complete control of how the final piece will look. To ensure that it meets their standards, they use the Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-4100.

This is a smart printer and it recognizes all of my papers and canvases, it agitates its own inks, and if a head goes out, I pop it out and pop a new one in. It’s so easy, as opposed to the maintenance issues I had with other brands,” says Cheri. “I love my Canon.”

Dennis agrees, “The speed of it! The first image we printed with it, the print came off so fast, we thought something was wrong because of how long the other printer took to print the same size image. That was a big factor. And the inks, we’d barely replaced our first cartridges after a year.”

It takes more than a great capture and a reliable, easy-to-use printer to create an award-winning photograph. It also takes the right media. Cheri paints the canvas, so she relies on the consistency of Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas. After 35 years in the darkroom, Dennis loves the throwback look of Sunset Fibre Elite 285g paper.

“I’ve always had a darkroom, and the Fibre Elite mimics some of the papers I used way back when, that’s why I’m drawn to it,” he says. “The feel, the texture, the luster of it and how it holds the tooth of the image for me. We have other papers, but that’s the only thing I put my work on.”

Whether it’s talking through printer questions or looking to get their favorite Sunset media, Dennis and Cheri rely on the support of their LexJet specialist to be there, if needed. “I first heard of LexJet when I moved from Georgia to Florida,” says Cheri. “A friend, Don Emmerich, told us about LexJet and I’ve been with them ever since.”

So, what is it about LexJet that keeps the Hammons coming back? The service.

“The service is great and whenever I call, I always get somebody, and on the rare occasion that I don’t, they call me back pretty quickly,” says Cheri. “They have always taken care of issues, which I haven’t had many. The customer service is really good.”

For Dennis and Cheri, it’s not just about taking great pictures and sharing them digitally, it’s about creating a unique piece of art starting with a keen eye and finishing with a printed masterpiece. With her usual artistic flair,
Cheri sums up how important it is for photographers to take that final step and print an image.

“The ultimate realization of an exquisitely created image is to become a will-crafted print, where life is finally breathed into the artist’s creation.”

We are excited to have the Hammons back to serve as judges for the Sunset Image Awards in September. Submit your photo today for a chance to win. For more information on Canon, Sunset media, or LexJet, give us a call at 800-453-9538.

Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in Technology & Products
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The Go-To Matte Canvas for High-End Art Prints

Over the years, customers have turned, time and again, to LexJet Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas, to produce vibrant, fine-art and photo-realistic graphics on a smooth matte canvas finish that offers a high-quality, lasting image.

The poly-cotton blend and neutral-white finish deliver consistent imaging for a variety of commercial graphics, as well as fine-art and photographic reproductions. LexJet Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas was developed to produce great colors without optical brighteners.

“I loved the texture of that for art prints; I like the tooth it has on it,” Andy Wredberg of AW Artworks said in this post.

It’s also been a long-time favorite for Hawaii-based Chromaco, thanks to its wide color gamut and Dmax that deliver bright and bold art reproductions. Adding Sunset Gloss Coating protects the canvas for gallery wraps that have become increasingly popular, Chromaco says. Check out their work here.

Customer favorite LexJet Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas also has a new lower price. Watch the video above for details, or go here to learn more.

 

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Chromaco and Canvas: A Match Made in Hawaii

Canvas Gallery Wraps by Chromaco
Perfect reproduction of Colleen Wilcox’s art by Chromaco on Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas.

 

Chromaco was printing canvas before canvas was cool. Well, it’s always been cool, but Chromaco perfected its print processes on canvas and other fine art media years ago. During that time, canvas has always been the mainstay of Chromaco’s fine art reproduction business.

Canvas Prints by ChromacoBased in Honolulu, Chromaco is at the heart of a vibrant art community, fed by (as you may have already guessed) a thriving tourist trade. Though most of Chromaco’s work serves the Hawaiian Islands, Chromaco also ships its superb prints to Japan and the mainland U.S.

The secret to Chromaco’s success? Quality. Chromaco’s business was launched by providing ICC profiles to end users and businesses. They were in the color game right off the bat, so it was a smooth transition to reproducing fine art, and reproducing it in Chromaco’s exacting way.

“Since we do our high-resolution digital capture here in-house, it’s all about maintaining accurate color profiles. We do all our own ICC profiling. We start off with our scanner profile for the Phase One back and then we have ICC profiles for all the different devices and materials, including our canvas of choice, Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas,” says Craig Ellenwood, Chromaco general manager. “I find that the Sunset Canvas has a large color gamut. When I print a grayscale bar I can definitely see every step cleanly. There’s no blocking up in the shadows, so the Dmax is there, and it offers a wide range of blacks. We profile the canvas after we coat it so we get the most accurate profile for how it looks as an end product.”

Fine art printing by Chromaco
Close-up of a canvas wrap printed on Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas with Sunset Gloss Coating by Chromaco for artist Heather Brown.

Ellenwood adds that they use Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas in tandem with Sunset Gloss Coating. The Sunset Coating, says Ellenwood, dries more quickly than most coatings on the market, which is essential for ensuring quick turnarounds for Chromaco’s clientele.

“Here in Hawaii we have high humidity and temperatures, and some of the coatings on the market can take three or four days to dry completely sometimes. It’s nice with the LexJet canvas and coating to have it dry overnight so we can package it up in the morning,” says Ellenwood.

Fine Art on Canvas by Chromaco
Printing Ray Tabora’s fine art on canvas at Chromaco.

Ellenwood adds that while canvas has been the company’s cornerstone for the past ten years or so, he’s seen an increase in clients requesting gallery wraps. He says gallery wraps are a simple solution for an artist to hand off to their clients because it can still be framed or hung up on the wall as-is.

“Framing can be expensive and people like the look of a gallery wrap without having to invest in a frame,” says Ellenwood. “The majority of our business is in canvas and most of our clients are painters, galleries and photographers. We also offer other art products like aluminum and watercolor prints and some commercial signage, but the mainstay of our business is canvas.”

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in News & Trends
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Big Deals, Promotions, Printers and Prints: Visit LexJet at Imaging USA 2012

Canvas stretcher bar kits for gallery and museum wrapsIf you’re looking for new ways to boost business, better ways to produce your own prints and the best service and support in the industry, put LexJet’s booth (547) on your Imaging USA 2012 itinerary. Less than two weeks away, Imaging USA is being held in New Orleans this year, Jan. 15-17 (classes start on Thursday, Jan. 12), at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

Get stocked up on inkjet media and LexJet’s high-quality, do-it-yourself canvas stretcher kits with the following show-only specials…

In addition to these show specials, LexJet experts will be on hand to demonstrate best practices for inkjet printing as well as the full complement of LexJet inkjet imaging media with LexJet Sales & Application Guides on hand and other printed samples on Sunset media for you to peruse, compare and contrast. LexJet will print in the booth with an Epson Stylus Pro 4900 and show you how easy it is to use Sunset Stretcher Kits for a high-quality, professional gallery or museum canvas wrap.

For more information about LexJet’s show specials and demonstrations, and to schedule an appointment, contact a LexJet account specialist at 800-453-9538. For more about Imaging USA 2012 and to register, go to www.imagingusa.org or call 800-786-6277. We look forward to seeing you there!

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in News & Trends
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Vote for Your Favorite (LexJet) Products in the Readers’ Choice Top Product Awards

Vote for the top products in the graphics industryWide-Format Imaging magazine announced today that readers and subscribers to the magazine can vote for the Readers’ Choice Top Product Awards, starting tomorrow (a.k.a., Dec. 14) through Jan. 27, 2012.

Go to http://2012topproducts.questionpro.com vote for the products that have caused the most excitement in the industry and have been a valuable asset to wide-format print service providers’ (PSPs) businesses over the last year. Hint: LexJet’s products, which were nominated in the following categories…

From wide-format flatbed printers and wide-format media, to laminating equipment to inks, RIP software and scanners, Wide-Format Imaging’s Top Products Awards will recognize the products that are doing the most for a PSP’s bottom line.

The nominated products were submitted by manufacturers from Nov. 15 through Dec. 12 and then supplemented by products received by the magazine in 2011. Winners will be announced at the International Sign Expo in Orlando, March 22-24, and featured in the March issue of Wide-Format Imaging magazine.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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AW Artworks Puts the Finishing Touch on its Restored and Revitalized Print Studio

Renovating and restoring an inkjet print studio

Last time we checked in with AW Artworks, owner Andy Wredberg was in the midst of a big restoration job on the print shop’s new facility, housed in an old bank building originally constructed in 1899. The point of AW Artworks’ move and subsequent months of painstaking restoration was to put AW Artworks front and center in Sun Prairie, Wis.

This weekend, AW Artworks officially opened for walk-in business at the new location. Previously, says Wredberg, the sign on the door said, “By Appointment Only,” and the door was locked while the crew restored the building and produced prints for its clients behind those closed doors.

Printing a banner for a studio opening
AW Artworks printed this banner on LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Polypropylene to let passersby know they're open for walk-in business and to be very clear about everything the studio can do for them.

Wredberg decided to go ahead and do a “soft” opening in conjunction with a block party this past weekend. Now that AW Artworks is open, the next step is a grand opening with a reception, give-aways and prizes to really get the community involved and bring more attention to the shop.

“Before, when we had just a few canvas prints in the window, people who passed by thought we were a photo studio. Now people know what we’re all about since the banner and the A-frame sign out front tells them exactly what we do: Turn your photos into canvas, graphic design, banners, custom home décor, trade show displays and so forth,” explains Wredberg.

The banner (pictured here) was printed on LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Polypropylene, a material Wredberg describes as striking the perfect balance of quality and economy for that application. “We love it as an inexpensive but very sharp-looking banner,” says Wredberg.

Finding that balance is exactly how Wredberg approached the renovation of the building for the print studio. The sweet spot Wredberg was after could be described in one word: Approachable. The studio’s overall look should appeal to those looking for top-notch reproductions and those who need commercial work done quickly.

“My thinking behind this place is to bridge the gap between a ritzy, high-end art gallery and Kinko’s. I want it to be approachable, but I don’t want it to look like a cheap, fast place since we’re focusing on high-quality materials and prints. We’ll offer banners, signs and trade show displays, but at the same time, if you’re an artist or photographer we’re second to none for quality,” explains Wredberg.

Renovating a large format inkjet printing studioJudging by the photos from the newly-renovated studio, and the feedback from the first walk-in potential customers, AW Artworks succeeded in its mission. Wredberg also decided to make his two Canon 44-inch printers (an iPF8300 and an iPF8100) a focal point of the main studio area.

“We intentionally put the printers in the front room so you can see them in action. Whenever someone sees a massive print coming off these printers they stop and gawk. That’s part of us bridging the gap between those two worlds,” says Wredberg.

Another finishing touch – beyond the detailed restoration of the building’s original marble and wood floors and ceiling accents – includes Victorian-style picture rails and a plethora of canvas prints that hang from them.

“It looks sharp and is very functional for wall displays. It’s a snap to put the picture rails up, hang them level and space them evenly,” says Wredberg. “Pretty much everything in here is printed on Sunset Select Matte Canvas, plus we just tried some of the Sunset Reserve Matte Canvas and loved the texture of that for art prints; I like the tooth it has on it. We’ll do some mounted prints on Sunset Photo eSatin and we still have a few finishing touches on the studio to complete for the grand opening.”