07/12

I finally managed to get some prints done! It was a real effort to run around trying to find people to help me at gosta but finally I got it done :)
I did several large prints (A1) onto tracing paper and two smaller prints (A3) onto acetate.

I used these images for my prints - I am really pleased with how they came out, especially the ones on acetate. The final image out of the images above really worked very well because of the depth of perspective as the image seems to look 3D at some angles. I am also interested in layering the image together as the transparency of the levels will create mixtures of images and a sense of depth through the layers (levels of the unconscious through imagery - is the intention of the work).

When printing the images onto tracing paper, the technician offered me a lot of advice regarding the editting of the images as well as different types of paper and techniques to use. He suggested that I obtain a roll of tracing paper rather than using separate sheets - this would be really interesting and useful as I can then create really long prints that could stretch up the entirity of a wall space in my studio. I could create giant layered pieces! :)  He also told me the best tracing paper to use for large prints would be the thicker density stuff, preferably 160 in density - much less than that would cause the paper to ripple with the amount of ink used.
The technician helped me with the ink levels used - we first tried less ink so that the paper would not ripple or curl up but the image was rather faint so we then used the recommended amount of ink to see how it would turn out - it was all a lot of experimentation. The image was a lot clearer and worked much better when held up to the light as the colours did not fade as much - the sheets of tracing paper I used were of 160 density so it was fine to use more colours, even if some of the images did curl up it was easy enough to flatten them out.

He also suggested ways I could sharpen the images - as the images will come out fainter on tracing paper as it is grey-coloured - methods such as altering the noise distortion on the images. The noise distortion is basically what makes the image less clear, he told me that often JPEG images are fainter than raw images as the program document merges similar colours together, therefore "blanding" the colours. The main colour to try and reduce is yellow as it creates a blur - he suggested looking at "unsharp mask," "smart blur" and general noise distortion on Photoshop - of course focusing on reducing the yellow. The most subtle changes often produce the best results so I will be doing some experimentation to make the images sharper and more defined. I will check out online tutorials and youtube instructual videos for using photoshop and altering distortion.
By the time all the images were printed that I wanted I was exhausted - after rushing around and waiting in so many queues I was ready to die! But I wanted to get the prints done on the acetate I had with me. I was told to go to the Student Guild where I found out I could print on acetate there - thank god! The acetate I had, however, was not suitable for the printers there as I was told that it can only be used by ink jet printers but fortunately they provided acetate for me. I got two images printed off in A3 - the top image and the bottom image of the ones above. I was thrilled by the result, it looked so proffessional and really beautiful with the transparency of the colours - exactly what I wanted. The top image worked the most effectively because of the organic elements to the image/also it looked very dream like and mysterious. I think I will need to edit some of the butterfly images I have to make the images more defined so they show more contrast on acetate.

I plan to go to the Student Guild tomorrow to print off a few more images on acetate - as it took me all week to figure out where to go, I want to make the most of it! Also the more images, the more experimentation! I also want to find out if I can print on a larger scale - I could only print up to A3 from a USB file but I wonder if I had a printed image then I might be able to get a bigger image. I will find out tomorrow...
Despite the fact I feel awfully drained I am very happy that I managed to get some of the work printed - running around like an insane person does pay off!