Union Pacific

There are some brilliant photographers in this world. I am fortune to say I personally know some of them. I love staring at their prints in person far more than gazing at them on the web (though images posted on the web can be stunning too). There is just something about a finely displayed finished piece of work that I love.

I have always been enamored with the idea of managing the entire photographic process from capture to print to mounting for display. With color images, this has not been possible in the past. I could control as much of the process as I could but was handcuffed to sending a file off to the lab to make a print. Even with black and white film, completing the film processing and printing required an expensive and smelly darkroom.

Digital photography has changed all of this. And I love it! I can control the capture of the image in the camera, control the processing in Photoshop, print the image from my computer to a high quality printer, and complete the process of mounting, matting and framing the image exactly the way I want it done all within the cozy confines of my office. All the while, rocking to U2 or Bon Jovi in the background.

Today marks an event I have dreamt about for quite some time. I have completed the missing link to this whole process; printing. For my 50th birthday, my wife Joy, got me an Epson R2400 printer. It's a refurbished model from 2008 but in fine condition. I ran multiple tests, replaced ink cartridges, cleaned printer nozzles, aligned printer heads, bought a couple varieties of paper and printed my first quality print output. In fact, I printed two different images and am thrilled with the results.

I am now in control from capture to display. The first two images are amazing. The color, sharpness, contrast, and impact to the eye of these two images is just stunning.

The "Union Pacific" image above is one image I printed. The second is "Window" taken in downtown Salt Lake City. I am letting both completely set and dry before I mount, matte and frame them.

With my process now complete, I still have much learning to do in the printing process but can't wait to get started. My plans are to begin completing many of my China and India images to make a full fine art gallery collection.

So, rock on U2! It's Friday, the weekend is here, and I am going learn more about fine art printing. I bet your weekend won't be this exciting?

Cheers,
Dale