Making prints from oil paintings?

[gravyboat]

Hi,

I'm not sure if this is the right forum but I'll ask anyway. My friend is a painter, mostly oil on canvas, and would like to make some prints of her paintings for Christmas cards for friends and family.

We both no nothing about the process. Can it be done with digital cameras? We tried it but they didn't turn out that great- but perhaps that was due to the equipment used, lighting, etc. Unfortunately, we don't have high-end stuff.

Thanks very much for any help on this.

[Danger_Mouse]

Get them drum scanned. Go to an large format image setter and have them scan high res. for you. Don't bother scanning yourself, leave to professionals. Are the paintings already framed, you would have to have them frameless.

[gravyboat]

Hey Danger Mouse,


Thank you for the suggestion. I'll make some calls when I get home. Any general idea on the costs involved? The paintings are roughly 12" x 12" and 14" x 18".

[SharkFinStudios]

If you don't have the option of drum-scanning them (which is the better way, good call D.M.) you CAN do a digital image of them. My recommendation would be to shoot them with plenty of light and them do what you have to in Photoshop to make them look the best they can be. Keep in mind that Christmas is right around the corner and this might take some time. Fastest way is going to be digital pictures.

[Danger_Mouse]

It has been awhile since I have had to get one done. I think you might be looking at about $100 a scan. But check around.

[cornfed]

Danger, I don't see an oil painting going on a drum scanner.

I think the best way is to have high quality slides shot of them. Get some high quality slide film (I use Fuji Velvia 50). Set the paintings up in some even natural light if you don't have any good lighting equipment. Shoot each image several times. Step up the camera before taking each shot. One of the shots should be usable in terms of lighting and assuming you've focused properly, etc. Get the slides developed and then you can either have the slides drum scanned or have prints made from the slides. I would recommend having the slides drum scanned, but it can be pretty expensive.

[gravyboat]

SharkFinStudios,

Thanks for the tips. We are running short on time (and funds) so we may try it again with the digital camera.

Danger Mouse,

I appreciate the reply. Kind of pricey, but then again everything seems so expensive these days. I'll check around.


Thanks so much-- this is very helpful.

[gravyboat]

Hey cornfed,

Uh oh--- this is getting kinda complicated. All we have is a lower-end digital camera right now. Maybe we can borrow a better one.

Thanks for the feedback.

[gravyboat]

Quick update:

I called one photolab who said they'd make a transparency for $25 and then scan it and stick it on a cd in tiff format for $65. So about $90 per. Unfortunately they said it would take 7-10 days to process because of their backlog. I'll keep looking around.

[patkennedy78]

If all I had was a digicam here is what I'd do.

Hang your painting on a wall with a clean solid white background (very important).

Make sure it's lit as evenly as possible, no dramatic shadows or highlights / glare.

Take a few shots of the painting(on a tripod would be the best, or a chair and a stack of books or something where your not holding the camera). You need your camera in the highest resolution mode it allows. You also want to be shooting as straight on as possible to avoid wierd perspective issues. Try to frame it so you have some of the clean white background in the photo, not just the edges of the painting.

When your happy with your shot, DON'T MOVE THE CAMERA. Just take the painting off the wall. Now do another shot of the blank wall with the same exact lighting, just minus the painting (and maybe the nail you used to hang it).

Open the two photos (one of the painting and one of the bare wall) in PS. Hopefully you know a little about PS, or this will be somewhat confusing. Get both photos in one document on seperate layers. Have the blank wall layer infront of the painting layer. With the blank layer selected go to Image>Adjust>Invert. It should turn kind of purple / black. Set the blending mode of the layer to Color Dodge and the opacity down to 40 or so. You'll see how this effects the otherwise bland lighting and KIND OF color corrects the photo. Save the photo to whatever format you need and go from there.

Here is another tutorial on another quick color correction method if your photos aren't turning out the greatest:

http://www.graphicdesignforum.com/articles/color_correction.htm

Good Luck.

[Danger_Mouse]

Cornfed's route is best, I just forgot that step. Been awhile since I got a drum scan done and forgot the art was already on slides when I did. duh. But note you really need to know what you are doing photography wise in order to accurately retain artists original colors. A bad shot/lighting can ruin a piece. So if you are picky about the final quality you will have to invest a little time and money in ensureing you retain as much original coloring used by the artist as you can.
Then there is what stock its printing on etc.
I guess you have to question wether you plan on reproducing the images over and over again or if its just for this one shot thing and the artist is not concerned with color matching issues, then there are alot of resourceful waysto do this.

1. Scan it yourself hi res in sections and then piecing together in photoshop. Then color correct whole thing.
2. Get a half decent Mega pixel camera and set up some lighting (well balance)> Set your camera in different settings and trial and error your way to best shot. Make sure your shots are the highest resolution possible. Color correct in photshop if needed.(as already suggested....and again very well by Pat's post)
3. Large format printer/digital image - take the art here (or slides) and they should be able to help you. Talk to your printer where you are getting the prints, they will give you best advice.
4 Ask the artist to paint each card individually.....heh heh kidding.

[Derfie]

Pat beat me to it. I was going to give you similiar advice. The level of quality you need in your final file is dependant on how you are reproducing the images. If you were going to have the cards printed at a professional printer for large distribution, then I would have a professional reproduce the paintings. However if you plan to print 50 or so cards from your home printer, or at a Kinkos, then photographing yourself should suffice.

I am an oil painter, and when shooting my paintings I have 2 lamps that have the same watt bulbs (I use softboxes to avoid any hot spots.) I place the lights on both sides at approximately 45 degree angles from the painting. You should adjust to avoid glare and reflections.

I always use a Tripod, and absolutely NO flash. The great thing about shooting Digital is that it is very easy to change your white balance to adjust for shooting indoors.

If you have trouble with lighting indoors, you can try shooting the painting outdoors, but it usually works better on a slightly cloudy day. You want to avoid direct sunlight. Good Luck!

[gravyboat]

Wow! Thanks so much for all the GREAT tips and advice. After calling several photo labs/print shops I found that it'll take at least a week to get them processed (unless I want to pay large rush order fees) and that's cutting it too close to Christmas.

So, I'm going to print out all these suggestions and give it a go with a digital camera. I can't tell you how much I appreciate all your help. Thanks!

[Eraser Nubbin]

I'd personally use a standard flat bed scanner and scan the four corners in different chunks, this would give you plenty of overlap for splicing the four quadrants back into one. Depending on your photoshop knowledge I would use the gaussian blur while in quick mode to feather your seams.

[cornfed]

Cornfed's route is best...


Danger, could I put you in contact with my husband?! That's really the only four words he needs to remember and they just won't stick!

[Virgo Nightingale]

I'm guessing a crappy 5 year old 2.1 megapixel camera won't yield such great results, huh? I have some oil paintings I did a couple years ago I'd love to have digitally and possibly sell prints of at an area cafe, but I'm just gonna have to borrow a 'real' digital camera.

[baglieja]

There is a company I've worked with (Digigraphics - digidigi.com) They have one of a few high-end scanners that can scan something that's not flat (like a canvas). They also do output if needed. The thing can scan HUGE canvas sizes!

[carter the artist]

You guys have to remember these are oil paintings. Which in truth is still technically wet paint. I have oil paintings i did years ago and if I touch them, I get paint on me... I don't know if that's the kind of thing you want to put on a flatbed scanner, and I'm sure they are framed, which would be a pain and (hard for an artist to bear..) of removing from frame and later restretching.

[SharkFinStudios]

...make some prints of her paintings for Christmas cards for friends and family.


We keep talking high end result here and I think we are missing the point. While I will take some liberty and assume that the painter wants her cards to be sharp and beautiful, they are going to be Christmas cards. These aren't for a portfolio or a show.

Believe me, you can take a 2 megapixel image of each one and make some interesting cards. They won't be portfolio quality, but they will look good nonetheless. The major thing to think about is time (not a lot left) and money (do you really want to spend a ton of money on something that either gets stuck in a drawer or thrown away?)

[gravyboat]

Thank you all for sharing your knowledge. I truly appreciate it and will try to incorporate your suggestions in future projects.

As for the Christmas cards project, SharkFinStudios really nailed it- time and money are of essence and though we'd like studio-quality the reality is that it's not practical right now.

So we'll do the best we can with a camera and-- gulp-- Photoshop Elements-- and print them up and send them out.

Much appreciated.

[PrintDriver]

Elements is fine for what you're doing.

Just FYI, you aren't going to get an oil painting on a drum scanner but some labs do have flatbeds up to 18" x 24". The problem with scanning an oil painting is that the paint does not get into all the little canvas crevices and for some reason direct scanning accentuates this point. Far better to have slides shot. Besides, if you do that and do a bracket, you can send one of the rejects when you register your copyright.

Carter, your oils should be dry enough to handle in 2 to 3 weeks. If not, you are thinning your paints too much or using the wrong type of thinner. I used to use a cobalt dryer from time to time if the painting had to dry in less than a week but I hate how it affects the 'feel' of the paint. Varnishing also helps 'seal' an oil painting. It brings out the colors, evens out the finish, and protects it from dust collection.

[vtwin_gary]

the original is small enough that a decent digital camera will be fine for 5"x7" card output.
or an everyday flatbed scanner it will have to be scanned in a couple pieces but PS elemnts has photomerge just like PS (and it works quite well) for this application

[cornfed]

If you're shooting with the digital and have to use a flash, stretch a piece of white pantyhose over the flash. It will disperse the light better and prevent you from having a huge flash highlight on the image!! Good Luck!

[gravyboat]

Sounds good--- digital camera and Elements it is. We'll give it a shot tonight. Thanks so much!

[carter the artist]

PD
You sure? I once read how the oil never really fully dries, but usually the outside kinda does, but traps the oil inside which cannot just seep thru the dried layer.

It could be that I use too much thinner, I do use a bit of thinner, I did find this

"How can I protect my finished oil painting?
A finished painting should be coated with a protective varnish. However, it takes six months to a year for an oil painting to dry thoroughly enough to apply this finishing layer. In the meantime, store your work in a dust free, but not dark storage area."

At http://www.dickblick.com/categories/oilpainting/

I just know that some paintings, I touch them up to a year or more later, and they are still wet. At least enough to rub off by slight touch.

[steve2112]

Take a good digital shot of the picture outside on a nice day. The natural light will reall make things pop correctly and you won't need a flash. Then in you image editor you will have to tweak the colors a little bit. I do this for my painting and they work fine.

steve