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Good, Better, Best: High-Volume Canvas
Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in Tips & Tricks
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Good, Better, Best: High-Volume Canvas

For print service providers expanding their operations into high-volume wall décor printing, we offer a wide variety of canvas options for any price point. Today, we’ve gathered three latex/solvent options for our latest installment of Good, Better, Best.

When choosing a canvas for large runs, look for media that delivers consistency not only in color reproduction, but in how it performs when stretched and folded for gallery wraps. These three options, Sunset Production Satin Canvas SUV, priced at $0.45/sq ft; Fredrix Tempo 575SMJ Semi-Matte Canvas, priced at $0.75/sq ft; and Sunset by Fredrix Satin Canvas SUV, priced at $0.99/sq ft, will get the job done quickly. Because they’re built for latex and solvent ink technology, they don’t require a protective layer of coating, so you can print, wrap and deliver all in the same day.

GOOD: Sunset Production Satin Canvas SUV. For a cost-effective option that looks and feels like a higher-end canvases, this 100% polyester material is ideal for high-volume runs that still deliver outstanding print production. With a 2-over-1 poly-cotton weave and no optical brighteners, this U.S.-made canvas became a fast favorite among customers as soon as it hit the market, giving them a high-performing option for price-competitive jobs. “Customers come in and ask for museum quality final product, and this canvas gets pretty close,” says Aaron Friedman, owner and CEO of Signarama in Santa Rosa, Calif. “Plus, it’s half the cost of an archival canvas.”

BETTER: Fredrix Tempo 575SMJ Semi-Matte Canvas. This poly-cotton blend is a lightweight option with a 1-over-1 weave that also performs consistently for high-volume jobs. Because it is topped with a thick coating layer, it has more bulk and texture, but keeps the cost point low. The semi-matte finish is optimal for photo reproduction, making Tempo 575 a great choice for modern-looking décor applications.

BEST: Sunset by Fredrix Satin Canvas SUV. For large runs, printers can agree that print consistency is key. That’s what you get with this bright-white poly-cotton blend that delivers truer colors on a heavily textured base. The bright-white canvas with 2-over-1 weave and a pH-neutral base stretches and finishes easily.

“The consistency that comes out of the box never changes with this canvas. Plus, it’s very durable while stretching, which is a very big problem we’ve run into with other products, where the ink will rub or crack on the creases,” says Rachael Zaudke Wilkins of A-R-T & Associates in Atlanta. “It holds a really great line and has fantastic print quality. I’ve tried other products, but this really met our price point for our clients.”

 

Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in Tips & Tricks
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Finish Soft Signage Fabrics Like the Pros

With the heavy retail season upon us, you’re likely getting more requests for fabric banners and displays these days. Retail outlets often prefer the elegant, lightweight drape that fabric signage offers, as opposed to vinyl, for instance, for banners, hanging signage, table skirts and more.

LexJet Poly Select Medium used for hanging posters.

However, when it comes to fabric signage, finishing needs can vary from fabric to fabric, since some cut cleanly and others may fray. Watch the video above to learn how to test your fabric, and which ones can simply be trimmed with a knife versus those that need a tool such as a heating knife to keep the weave from unraveling.

We offer a wide range of printable fabrics for a variety of print technologies:

For Aqueous

HP Light Fabric used for retail banners.

For Latex

For Solvent

A popular finishing option for printed fabric signage is pole pockets. Watch the video below for a fast, easy and professional result:

Posted on by Libby Goddard Posted in Technology & Products
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LexJet Tells Digital Output: New Media Options Lead to Higher Productivity

media 2 Once a year, Digital Output magazine looks to leaders in the graphic arts world to express their point of view on the state of the industry, improvements to existing products, and the changing market.

vincent
LexJet’s Vincent Bejar

This year, the magazine asked Vincent Bejar, business development manager at LexJet, to give his input on wide-format printing.  Bejar explains how HP PageWide XL Series media is changing the landscape for architecture, engineering and construction markets.

“Also used for color graphics, it opens the door to new applications and higher productivity for the printer,” he says. “This is the beginning of a technology shift in inkjet printing that will continue to propel the printers using these high-speed effective devices into higher-volume, higher-profit solution areas.”

Shifts in technology, such as new applications and devices, are further discussed in “Industry Leader Perspective,” available on Digital Output‘s website. This year isn’t over yet, and with software, hardware, ink and media all advancing at such rapid paces, we’ll be keeping an eye on what the rest of 2015 will bring.

Posted on by Shellie Terry Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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The Engineer’s Choice for Wide-Format Printers: Epson T-Series

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In late 2014 Willie Meredith, one of a two-man operation at the electrical engineering firm RB Lewis Limited in Henrico, VA, was facing a common dilemma: His 17-year-old printer was still functioning, but was too slow for the firm’s growing needs, like jobs for Bass Pro Shops and the University of Richmond.

“We do print checks, presentation drawings and graphics posters, so I needed something with color,” Meredith says. “We needed a printer that could handle engineering drawings and computer graphics as well. We wanted a printer that was reliable and well-made that came well-reviewed, too.”

After doing some research, he partnered with a LexJet sales rep and decided on the Epson SureColor T7270, a 44-inch single-roll printer, which he has used exclusively to print on 20# bond paper.

“It does it all,” Meredith says. “I even recommended it to another engineer who bought one from LexJet, too.”

The precise line details, crisp text and photo quality graphics make the Epson T-Series printer an ideal choice among engineers, but it also will print on media ranging from bond paper and archival films to premium photo papers and up to 1.5 mm-thick poster boards.

Meredith says he’s been pleased with the amount of ink the printer uses, as well. “We had concerns about how long the ink would last,” he says. “But we’ve done quite a few prints and we’re still doing pretty good on ink. We’ve been pleasantly surprised with that.”

LexJet carries the Epson T-Series printers in single and double rolls, in varies sizes. Check out these options:

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SureColor T3270: 24″ single-roll printer; print speeds of up to 660 square feet per hour.

SureColor T5270: 36″ single-roll printer; print speeds of up to 740 square feet per hour.

SureColor T7270: 44″ single-roll printer; print speeds of up to 7800 square feet per hour.

SureColor T5270D: 36″ dual-roll printer; print speeds of up to 740 square feet per hour.

SureColor T7270D: 44″ dual-roll printer; print speeds of up to 780 square feet per hour.

For more information about the new Epson SureColor T-Series large-format inkjet printers, and for help finding the right printer for your shop, call a LexJet printer specialist at 800-453-9538.

 

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Prints that Win: Waiting for You

Waiting for You

Each portrait Kristi Elias creates is a unique work of art that is relevant and appropriate to its subject. Last year, Elias won a Sunset Print Award at the Professional Photographers of California state competition for You Won’t Bully Me, a grungy portrait of a young martial arts competitor.

Elias followed up this year, taking home another Sunset Print Award at the California competition for a decidedly different subject, entitled Waiting for You. This portrait purposely evokes Renaissance art.

“I wanted a painterly feel with a lot of detail in the props, like the bottle. There’s note in the bottle, and you can see the contours and the detail. There was a lot of time put into those details of the portrait. You can see even the music on the floor, and all the shading and detail in it. I did it just like it would have been as a Renaissance painting, and how they paid so much attention to detail on all the props,” explains Elias.

The portrait of her client, who also poses for Elias to spark modeling ideas, was captured in the studio. Elias purchased a custom dress from Bulgaria for an authentic touch.

Elias added a new background, a photo she took of a Gothic cathedral in Tuscany. She used Photoshop, Nik Software and Alien Skin to edit the image.

“When I edit I don’t use the same actions every time. I look at each portrait as its own piece of art. Some of it is my own custom actions, and some of it is edited with Nik Software to bring out the detail in the shadows. I like to put a lot of detail in the shadow for that hopeless romantic look. I took any painterly effect off of her skin so there’s no texture on the skin, because that doesn’t go well with judging,” says Elias.

Master printer Jonathan Penney, Center Moriches, N.Y., printed the image on a fibre-based paper to complete the beautiful, Renaissance-style portrait.

Posted on by Regan Dickinson Posted in Case Studies & Profiles
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Avast Ye Swabs! The Art of Piracy at the Tampa Bay History Center

Forty Thieves by Don Maitz

The Tampa Bay History Center is featuring the original work of fine artist Don Maitz as part of its exhibition, The Art of Piracy: Pirates in Modern Culture. The exhibition began on Jan. 24 and runs through April 26.

No Prey No Pay by Don MaitzMaitz is famed for creating the original artwork for Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum when the adult beverage was first brought to market to be properly swilled.

The exhibit examines the role of art in shaping the popular and iconic images associated with 17th and 18th century pirates in and around the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic seaboard.

Originally from Connecticut, and now based in Sarasota, Fla., Maitz’s interest in pirates and sea rovers goes back well before he moved to the Buccaneer coast. The move simply made his pursuits in pirate art even more appropriate.

Hidden Cove by Don Maitz“A lot of artists and illustrators had moved west and were doing western art. Since I moved to Florida I didn’t think that subject matter really fit. Illustrating what was going on in our coastal waters and treasure hunting, I thought pirates would be interesting subject matter for me to continue. Plus, some of my favorite artists have worked in that genre,” says Maitz.

For this exhibition, Maitz printed some of his most notable pirate art to date using his Epson Stylus Pro 7800 on Sunset Hot Press Rag, LexJet Premium Archival Matte and Hahnemuhle Photo Rag 308 g.

Don Maitz
Don Maitz

Maitz sends his artwork – typically oil paintings and watercolors, though he works in a variety of media, including acrylics – to Eagle Photographics in Tampa to capture his work.

“I get a digital file and go through ImagePrint software to balance the print to the original art. I use Photoshop to manipulate the color and the ImagePrint software to change the image based on the surface of the paper I’m printing to,” he says. I want to use the highest quality paper possible. I like Sunset Hot Press Rag because it has a little less tooth so it doesn’t collect things like dust and oil from your hands. I use Premium Archival Matte for more cost-effective smaller prints.”

Maitz cuts the prints by hand, rather than using the automated cutter inside the printer. He says it’s best to keep the dust produced by cutting as far away from the printer as possible; a clean printer alleviates potential headaches from clogged nozzles and cuts down on maintenance routines.

Maitz has worked with LexJet as print supplier partner since he bought his printer. “What I really like about LexJet is that I place an order and it gets here quickly; that’s a real plus. Also, when I first bought my printer from LexJet, my learning curve was dropped considerably by help from my rep and technical support,” adds Maitz.