Describe the item or answer the question Giclée (pronounced “zhee-clay”) is a high-quality digital printing process designed for reproducing artwork and photography. It uses professional large-format inkjet printers, pigment-based inks and carefully selected papers to produce prints with excellent detail, colour and tonal range.

Giclée printing is particularly popular with artists, illustrators and photographers who want high-quality reproductions of their work.

Giclée printing is aimed at fine art reproduction and uses premium fine art papers and pigment inks.

Poster printing is a more economical option and uses high-quality poster and photographic papers. It is ideal for posters, photography, illustrations, promotional artwork and decorative prints where a fine art cotton paper isn't required.

We offer both, so we're happy to recommend the most suitable paper and printing method for your artwork and budget.

We offer a selection of fine art, photographic and poster papers.

Our fine art range includes smooth cotton rag papers and textured fine art papers, ideal for artwork, limited editions, illustrations and photography.

We also offer more economical poster and photographic papers, including matt, satin and lustre finishes. These are a great choice for posters, photography, digital artwork and larger prints.

If you're unsure which paper to choose, just ask us and we'll be happy to recommend one.

Describe the item or answer the question Yes. Paper samples and proof prints are available if you'd like to see the surface, texture and colour of a paper before placing a larger order.

For colour-critical work or a large print, we may recommend producing a small proof first.

We recommend supplying:

• TIFF

• JPEG/JPG

• PNG

• PDF

For most artwork, a high-quality JPEG or TIFF is ideal.

If you have another file format, please contact us. In many cases we'll still be able to work with it.

We recommend 300 DPI at the final print size wherever possible.

Our normal minimum is approximately 180 DPI at the final print size.

For example, simply seeing "300 DPI" in your image software doesn't necessarily mean the file contains enough information. The important factor is the actual pixel dimensions of the image compared with the size you want it printed.

If you're unsure, send us the file and tell us the required print size. We can check it for you.

DPI stands for dots per inch and is commonly used to describe print resolution.

In simple terms, the more image information available for each inch of the finished print, the more detail we have to work with.

A file that looks perfectly sharp on a phone or computer screen may not contain enough resolution to produce a large print.DPI stands for dots per inch and is commonly used to describe print resolution.

In simple terms, the more image information available for each inch of the finished print, the more detail we have to work with.

A file that looks perfectly sharp on a phone or computer screen may not contain enough resolution to produce a large print.

Sometimes.

We normally require a minimum resolution of around 180 DPI at the finished print size, with 300 DPI preferred.

If your file is below this, we can advise you on the best options. Depending on the image, this might include printing it smaller or professionally upscaling the file.

Upscaling can improve some images considerably, but it cannot recreate genuine detail that wasn't present in the original.

This is determined mainly by the pixel dimensions of your file.

Send us your image and we'll happily check the resolution and advise you on a suitable maximum print size.

Generally, yes — but the pixel dimensions and quality of the original image are more important than the file size in megabytes.

A 20MB file isn't automatically better than a 5MB file. File compression, format and other factors can dramatically change the MB size without changing the actual resolution.

For our giclée and large-format printing, we generally recommend supplying your artwork in RGB.

RGB files can contain a wider range of colours than conventional CMYK files, and our colour-managed printing workflow is designed to reproduce the artwork using the appropriate printer and paper profile.

Where possible, please leave the colour profile embedded in your file.

RGB stands for Red, Green and Blue and is the colour system used by screens, cameras and most digital images.

CMYK stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black and is traditionally associated with commercial printing processes.

Professional giclée printers use considerably more inks than a conventional four-colour CMYK printing press, which is one reason we generally prefer to receive the original RGB artwork rather than a file unnecessarily converted to CMYK.

Screens produce colour using light, while a print reflects light from inks on paper. They can therefore never look completely identical.

Screen brightness, monitor calibration, ambient lighting and your choice of paper can all affect how colours appear.

A very bright screen can make a correctly produced print appear darker by comparison.

For colour-critical work, we recommend using a calibrated monitor and ordering a proof print before producing a full edition or particularly large print.

We don't normally make creative changes to your artwork without discussing them with you.

Our aim is to reproduce your supplied file as accurately as possible through a colour-managed workflow.

If we notice an obvious issue with your file, we'll contact you before printing where appropriate

ChatGPT and other AI image generators.

However, AI-generated images often have relatively small pixel dimensions, even though they may look extremely detailed on screen.

This can become particularly noticeable when an AI image is enlarged to A2, A1, A0 or other large-format sizes.

AI image generators usually create images at predetermined pixel dimensions. Changing the DPI number afterwards does not add genuine resolution to the image.

For example, changing a file from 72 DPI to 300 DPI without adding pixels doesn't suddenly make it suitable for a large print.

The actual pixel dimensions of the generated image are what we need to check.

Potentially, yes.

AI upscaling software can often produce very good results, particularly with illustrations and digital artwork. However, results vary depending on the original image.

Upscaling cannot guarantee that fine details, faces, text, hands, textures or other AI-generated elements will reproduce perfectly when viewed at a much larger size.

If you're planning to create artwork using AI specifically for printing, please see our Guide to Printing AI-Generated Images for more information on resolution, image size, upscaling and preparing your artwork.

Yes. As well as standard A sizes and popular photographic sizes, we can produce prints in a wide range of custom dimensions.

The maximum size will depend on the maximum pritable width of our printers, the paper or canvas selected and the resolution and proportions of your artwork.

A file's aspect ratio may not exactly match standard paper sizes such as A4, A3, A2 or A1.

If the proportions don't match, we may need to add a border or crop part of the image. We will not crop important parts of your artwork without your agreement.

Yes. Prints can be produced borderless where appropriate or with a white border around the artwork.

Borders are particularly useful for fine art prints that are going to be signed, mounted or framed.

If you have a particular border size in mind, just let us know when ordering.

Yes.

A proof is particularly useful for colour-critical artwork, limited editions, new artists, unusual papers or large prints.

A small proof allows you to assess colour, detail and the appearance of the chosen paper before committing to the final print.

We check supplied artwork for basic print suitability, including resolution and dimensions.

However, customers should also check their artwork carefully before submission, particularly spelling, typography, cropping and the content of AI-generated images.

Fine art papers should be handled carefully, ideally by the edges and with clean, dry hands or suitable gloves.

Avoid touching the printed surface, particularly on matt and textured fine art papers.

Keep prints away from moisture, excessive humidity and prolonged direct sunlight.

We recommend framing fine art paper prints to protect them.

Good-quality conservation or archival mounting materials and suitable glazing will help protect the artwork and maintain its appearance.

Yes. We can provide a range of finishing options including mounting and canvas stretching.

Please contact us if you're unsure which finishing option is most suitable for your artwork.