Are commercial Giclee prints similar to Epson 3880 on matte paper

[riooso]

I am new to this level of printing. I have recently been taking classes at a college nearby and for the first time I have printed on an Epson 3880 printer. WOW! just about says it all. I printed on Epson hot press natural paper with a lot of black in the background. I had no idea that the print was so delicate.

Now the questions. Are Giclee prints that I would get from a professional service as delicate? I really like printing on papers like the Cold Press Natural but I am amazed how delicate the black background is. All you have to do is touch it and even with clean hands the finish will change. Does any kind of spray help?


Thanks in advance,
Richard

[vinny]

I'm sure it depends somewhat on the paper used but yes, inkjets are delicate. Most prints whether they're silver gelatin, carbon transfer, or platinum can be damaged by oils in your skin. Wear gloves.

[riooso]

I do understand the part about oils on ones hands. I find that even with gloves the print will show signs of touching the black background. I know that if I go to a paper with a harder finish that it would be much more robust but I really like the looks of this matte paper with the image that I have printed.

[Lenny Eiger]

Richard,

Giclee prints are inkjet prints... there is no difference. If you are looking at prints on canvas, they might have been sprayed after drying. That's so they can stretch them over the edges without having it chip off, which it does anyway. You can put the same spray on any print you want... it may not look as good, but you can do it anyway...

Lenny

[riooso]

Thanks. I was thinking there was something that a pro shop would do to make the ink more durable like special drying techniques or something along those lines. So the only way to get a more durable print is to pick a paper that would allow the ink to penetrate more than a typical matte finish?


r

[Peter Mounier]

If you're ready to toss the print, try wiping the surface with a soft cotton cloth. Someone here noted some time ago, that the surface seems to be covered by a dried film of glycol. After the ink is dry the glycol film wipes off to leave a beautiful and durable print surface. I tried to find the post to reaffirm my memory of the content, but I had no luck. Maybe the original poster will restate his findings or post a link to the comment.

[riooso]

Thanks for the tip!


R