The Click & Win Image Awards Closeout the Click & Print Event

On Monday, Mar. 29, the virtual doors opened to the LexJet Click & Print Event sponsored by Canon. All week, attendees heard from professional photographers like Joel Grimes, Bob Davis, Gary Hughes, and others, as they discussed their own experiences in the world of photography.

These current and former Explorers of Light discussed everything from setting up the perfect indoor lighting to capturing the perfect image using only natural light. Throughout the week, they answered your questions during live Q&A sessions.

The Event also offered software and finishing solutions, to help you capture, create, and print with Canon.

To close out the week, Canon’s Pete Wright, keynote speakers Gary Hughes and Jeff Bowman, and PPA judges Cheri and Dennis Hammon offered their critiques and insights into the Sunset’s Click & Win Awards. Over 50 images were chosen to go to the final judging, where each image was scored. When a judge felt it was necessary, he or she challenged the scores and they discussed, in detail, why they scored the way they did.

After the discussion, jury chairperson Dennis Hammon would ask all the judges to score again. If you’ve never entered a photo competition, this was a great opportunity to see and hear how the judging happens.

The response to the Click & Win Image Awards was incredible, with over 600 submissions for all categories. We’ve created a gallery of all the submissions, so you can check them out and find your favorite, and to see the top three for each category, click on the above video.

If you missed the judges’ decision, here’s a recap of the winners of each category and the overall “Best in Show”:

  • Fine Art/Composite: Kimberly Smith – “Well, Hello There”
  • Portrait: Kimberly Smith – “Cameo”
  • Wedding: Dwight Okumoto – “Elegance”
  • Wildlife/Landscape: Kenneth Martin – “Sacred Lands of the Navajo”
  • Best in Show – Kimberly Smith – “Well, Hello There”

If you’d like to watch a replay of your favorite session or catch any of the ones you missed, all are available on demand. Also, until April 16, unlock the special savings of up to $3,996 off MSRP on Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-Series printers when you visit the show. For more information or to contact a LexJet sales specialist, give us a call at 800-453-9538 or visit LexJet.com.

 

Click & Win Submissions

Watch and Earn: Pete Wright Helps You Get the Most from Your Canon Printer

Join Pete Wright for the February Canon webinar as he discusses workflow and ease of use when it comes to the Canon PRO-Series printers.

Tune in Tuesday, Feb. 16 at 11 a.m. ET, as Wright – a Canon technical specialist and award-winning photographer – takes you through the tips, tricks, and benefits of the imagePROGRAF PRO-Series family.

All attendees are eligible to receive 5% – up to $599 – off MSRP for a new PRO-Series Canon. If you are considering the new 12-color PRO-2100, PRO-4100, or PRO-6100, or the new 8-color PRO-4100S or PRO-6100S, register for our live event.

Afterward, if you are still unsure about which printer is right for you, Pete will be there to answer your questions.

The Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-Series printers include breakthrough technology for professionals who demand perfection. Canon sets the bar by delivering rich, detailed, brilliant colors in 24-, 44-, and 60- inch widths.

The product line includes models for professional photography and fine art, production signage, infographics and posters, technical documents, and general use markets.

Sign up online or call one of our printer specialists at 800-453-9538 for additional information.

*Webinar promotion can only be combined with monthly instant rebate. Not valid with any other promotions or programs.

Let’s Go Trade Show! A Virtual Tour with LexJet

On Friday, April 17, we’re bringing the latest news, tips, demos and product launches right to you with our LexJet Virtual Let’s Go Trade Show! We’ll have valuable insight for dealing with the impacts of COVID-19, as well as lots of insider tips and sneak peeks on the products and services you’ll need to prepare for when everyone returns to work.

During this event, from 11 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. ET, we’ll be covering the following topics:

  • Live demo showing how HP Adhesive Vinyl can be used for almost any application
  • Best social media marketing practices now and post-COVID-19
  • Discover the hot new window textile, Squid
  • Dye-sub applications with the Epson F Series
  • A live demo of HP Latex Print & Cut

Sign up today and we’ll provide you with the links of each of the live sessions. Choose the ones you’d like to attend, and drop on by. We look forward to seeing you (virtually) April 17!

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Sunset Photo Metallic Paper Beats Aluminum for Gallery Exhibit

When Hollywood director Blair Hayes curated his movie-site images for a new exhibit, Light of Future Past, he set out to print them on brushed aluminum for a sleek, modern look. However, when he sent a few sample prints to the Shafer Art Gallery, at Barton Community College in Great Bend, Kan., where they would be displayed, the gallery struggled with lighting the images.

Using overhead spot track lighting, the light bounced off the aluminum and muddied the colors. “Blair uses dramatic contrast. The backgrounds are almost a coal black with one spot or source of illumination in that photograph,” said Dave Barnes, Shafer Art Gallery Director. “The brushed aluminum made the situation worse.”

Click images to enlarge

After trying different placements, and even hanging the prints on a diagonal to get the light angles right, the gallery staff was at a loss. That’s when they turned to Chris Glassman, general partner at Casual Graphics.

“I explained that the direction of the print negates the illumination, due to the direction of the brushed surface,” Glassman says. “I suggested using LexJet’s Sunset Photo Metallic Paper, due to its large color gamut and outstanding ability to illuminate. Also, we found that laminating the printed pieces accentuates the unique characteristics of the media by seemingly magnifying the light coming in, reflecting a more saturated color experience.”

Glassman had similar luck when producing 6-foot-tall prints of neon-accented bugs on black backgrounds, which were printed on Sunset Photo eSatin Paper 300g and finished with a gloss coating.

“When a customer has a piece that demands bright saturated colors, [the Sunset Metallic] is our go-to product,” he says. “Dave stated to me that if it weren’t for Casual Graphics, the show would not have happened due to the lighting issues, and in turn, I must state that if it wasn’t for the LexJet media, I wouldn’t have been able to provide them with a cost-effective alternative solution to aluminum prints.”

Hayes has directed commercials, television and movies, including the cult classic, Bubble Boy, starring Jake Gyllenhaal. His dramatic images were captured mostly during location scouting, and Barnes and he connected through a mutual friend, which led to the exhibit, which runs through the last week of October.

“I’m fortunate enough, being a director, I get to go all over the world – and mostly America – and get exposed to things that one might think are just ordinary objects, but when I see them with my eye for the first time, I can’t help but – I find them fascinating,” Hayes says. “My work is very Americana. … I love our country, the people who make up our country and what it’s all about.”

Hayes was hoping to create images as well as an experience for the viewers: “With the metallic paper, as you move past the photograph, side to side, things start to reveal in the shadows.” He said it was a similar experience with the brushed aluminum, but the gallery lighting deadened the effect. The Sunset Photo Metallic Paper, however, was simply a “more practical and equally effective way to show off the photographs,” he says.

When printing Hayes’ work, Glassman used his Canon imagePROGRAF PRO-Series 6000 to ace the job. “Interestingly enough, some of Mr. Hayes’ photos had subtle tonal ranges in the darks, and this media improved and distinguished those incredibly well. The gloss laminate helped take it a step further, which was a happy surprise.

To achieve a specific desired printed look, Glassman emphasizes that color profiling is a must, regardless of the printer or media choices. “Profile your printer with your chosen media and calibrate when critical jobs arise, or when the appropriate amount of usage has occurred on your printer, and also if you have a hardware change, like printhead replacement,” he says.

To learn more about applications using Sunset Photo Metallic Paper, or if you need profiling assistance, call a LexJet print specialist at 800-453-9538.

You may also be interested in: 

Artist Brian Jarvi

Printer Challenge: Reproduce the 30-foot Painting, African Menagerie

Last year, we featured another print project by Glassman and his team at Casual Graphics. He reproduced a giant painting by artist Brian Jarvi titled “African Menagerie.” The painting captured 210 species living in Africa now, and was 17 years in the making.

Glassman reports that the original painting is currently for sale, valued at $6 million, and Glassman’s reproduction is now hanging in a castle in Switzerland. Jarvis is heading back to Africa for more research and public awareness.

Mixing Up the Painting Process with Canvas & Coating

When San Francisco-based photo retoucher Leonard Gordon started exploring painting as a hobby, he was intrigued and influenced by Surrealist works by artists like Georgio De Chirico. He developed a similar style of artistry, but began playing with the way his artwork was finished.

Leonard Gordon applies a semi-transparent layer of thinned oil paint on his artwork, Maple Leaf, which is printed on Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas.

“I start with a line drawing projected onto a canvas,” Gordon says. “Then I paint it with acrylic and take a picture of it with my Canon EOS Mark 3, then scale it to 36×48 in Photoshop.”

Next, Gordon takes the photo of the printed piece to his friend, Dennis Mayer, a print provider in Burlingame, Calif., who prints it onto Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas using his Canon imagePROGRAF printer. Then, Mayer adds a layer of protection with Sunset Satin Coating and returns it to Gordon.

Typically, that would be the end of the process, but Gordon was intrigued with what would happen if he used thinned oil paint on top of the coating to enhance the artwork further. The result was dramatic.

“When you put the oil painting on top of the coating, the whole thing just comes alive,” he says of the painting, pictured above, before the final layer of oil painting, and after. “That’s what’s giving the painting depth. It’s all about bringing out the color of the print itself.”

Mayer has been working with the Sunset by Fredrix Matte Canvas for years. “I first started using it because of the Fredrix name recognition,” he says. “I like the texture and the matte finish helps to achieve an art fee to the prints.”

Gordon’s artwork, which includes Maple Leaf as well as several other Surrealist paintings, will be on display for his first gallery show this Spring at Jim Gleeson’s studio in San Francisco.

Join One of Our Two Canon Webinars This Month

For the first time, LexJet and Canon are teaming up to host two webinars this month. Join us and Canon’s Bob Maloney and Shawn Anderson to learn the very latest about Canon’s Pro-Series printers and software. We have scheduled two opportunities for you to join the call: Tuesday, Feb. 14 at 11 a.m. EST or Thursday, Feb. 16 at 2 p.m. EST.

During this webinar, you’ll learn about the latest advancements in Canon printers and how they can help grow your business while simplifying your print workflow. This webinar will be jam-packed with information, and Bob will be available to answer your questions live.

Attendees are eligible to receive an instant rebate up to $499.75 off a Canon PRO-Series printer and up to $899 in free LexJet Media. These savings can also be combined with our monthly Canon PRO-Series rebates:

Act fast: Space is limited for this event, so book your spot today.

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