What size do you print at?

blansky · Nov 5, 2006

Due to public perception and the fact that I've yet to evolve business/marketingwise to the place where I can sell 5x7 or 8x10s for a couple of thousand dollars, I print most of my prints at 20x24 and charge accordingly.

I look forward to the day I devise a marketing plan to sell 4x5 prints for $5000each.

Michael

MurrayMinchin · Nov 5, 2006

blansky said:
I look forward to the day I devise a marketing plan to sell 4x5 prints for $5000each.

Make them cry.

Oh, wait a minute, that's been done already.

Good luck.

Murray

resummerfield · Nov 5, 2006

I try to limit enlargements to 3x, but sometimes for 35mm I'll go up to 5x. Seldom do I print larger than 11x14, regardless of the format.

terri · Nov 5, 2006

I'm pretty comfortable with 8x10 and 11x14.

At the last arts festival I was in, I also noticed the trend from other photographers to display very large prints, framed, for no apparent reason other than to take up wall space in their booths. I also had one customer make a comment: "I like your stuff, it would be great if it were bigger." I didn't bother to explain he was looking at 4x5 image transfers.

Most of my framed pprints are of 8x10 enlargements, often with wide matts for a larger finished piece. Murray was commenting about how people will come in for a closer inspection of smaller images, move to a larger one then step back again - I've noticed the same thing. I like the feeling of having my stuff actually inspected in this way, especially hand colored work - it can lead to great conversations if not an actual sale.

ricksplace · Nov 5, 2006

I don't go above 8X10 with a 1/8" border very often. Once in a while to 11X14, very few at 16X20. I don't care for the results of 35mm to 8X10, and usually use medium format for 8X10. 4X5 negs can stand up to 16X20 and still be breathtaking. I did do a 16X20 from my Rolleiflex for some friends and the results were good.

I have been printing smaller lately. 4X5 and 4X6 from 35 and I like the results. (I won a 1000' roll of ilford rapid RC VC from ebay for cheap, so I cut a bunch up for 4X5 and 4X6)

paul ewins · Nov 5, 2006

I've been printing portraits shot on 4x5 on 12x16 paper and I really like that size. 35mm tends to be 8x10, although sometimes 5x7 looks right. I don't print borders and will usually crop to get the best composition on the paper. Shooting people with a Speed Graphic hand held you learn to leave room around the subject.

blansky · Nov 5, 2006

MurrayMinchin said:
Make them cry.

Oh, wait a minute, that's been done already.

Good luck.

Murray

The difference is, I sell to my subjects.

Michael

Donald Miller · Nov 5, 2006

I can't get a print above 11X14 from a 4X5 negative that I am happy with. So I am now going to a bigger format and printing smaller.

rjas · Nov 5, 2006

35mm goes full frame on 8x10, so about 6x9, and 6x6 goes on 11x14, so about 10x10, all mostly because I find that any size larger, I really have to be careful and make sure that I'm making technically perfect photos, which I have a habit of not doing.

I don't really have any in your face images that I would like to see printed big. I work at a lab and a lot of the large prints I see should really not have every seen the light of day as anything larger than a 5x7, so I keep that in mind when I decide what size to print. If I had a really amazing image, regardless of format, if the subject was flattered by the size, I'd print it big, but right now I can't see anything in my work that deserves the poster treatment.

Travis Nunn · Nov 5, 2006

11x14 is the largest size paper my darkroom and my wallet can handle so that's my limit. Generally I try to keep my prints proportional to my negatives so my 6cm x 7cm negatives get printed to 6" x 7" and 9" x 10.5". My 6x4.5 negatives get printed to 5 5/8" x 7 1/2" and 9" x 12". Of course it all depends on the negative, I don't lock myself into those sizes.

There are some negatives I'd love to print really big, but I'd have to pay a lab to do it and I just don't want to do that.

Ole · Nov 5, 2006

Mostly 24x30cm paper with a 1/2" border, or more depending on the format. Some 8x10" with 1/4" borders, some 30x40cm with 1" borders.

I've just made some prints on 24x30cm paper from 35mm negs, and I think they're great. But that was EFKE KB25...

I also print most of the LF negatives on the same size paper. But now I've got some bigger trays, so I'll start printing more 30x40cm.

If I need smaller prints I prefer to use a large negative and contact print.

Bruce Osgood · Nov 5, 2006

35mm: 8X10
4X5: Proof at 8X10 and final print for display 11X14. I would like to go to 16X20 but I dont have a picture worth it.

Tom Kershaw · Nov 6, 2006

35mm - I don't print much of this but 9x6 mostly, although I have printed colour negatives onto 12x16 Fuji Crystal Archive with decent results. The image area is somewhat smaller than the paper size with my 80mm Componon-S.

645 - generally to 8x10 or 12x16.

6x6 - 12x12 or 16x16.

David Lingham · Nov 6, 2006

I used to print 35mm onto 16x12 now I don't print above 9x6. Strange thing is, i've recently bought a bronica SQA 6x6 and I don't want to enlarge these negs above 8x10 paper. Maybe the trend is to print smaller the days.

livemoa · Nov 6, 2006

It depends on what I am trying to portray with the final print. I have just finished having a show printed and some images in that where about a meter high, but that was always the intention. Spirituality is always a big subject.

I'm currently revisiting some old work and reprinting it very small (3x5). The subject is personal and intimate.

I think that the pursuit of technical perfection is great, but sometimes gets in the way of expression.

lesd · Nov 6, 2006

I print at different sizes according to the way the print will be presented.

I only print large (on 12 x 16 ) if I am giving a presentation at my camera club as the audience will be straining their eyes if I print smaller. This applies even to 35 mm as the audience will not be looking at the prints close up.

Otherwise I generally go for 12 x 9.5. My darkroom is tiny and things are a lot easier to handle at that size.

Les

Chan Tran · Nov 6, 2006

I print my 35mm negatives mostly in 4x5" and sometimes 8x10".

Michel Hardy-Vallée · Nov 6, 2006

I've been printing almost exclusively 35mm in the recent months, and always print at 8x10 because that's the size at which I can see whether my picture's worth it or not. I am a bit lazy these days and use a fixed borders easel so I'm always cropping the neg a little bit. If I have an image that is actually worth the full frame, then I pull the variable borders easel and trim the paper.

I've print some negatives at 11x14 and I was surprised that the image was actually good (Tri-x in XTOL) and tonally interesting. Of course it's nothing like 120 but that's not what I'm after in 35mm.

In 120 I like to print square from square neg, and my favorite size is 11x11 (with border).

TheFlyingCamera · Nov 6, 2006

I was gifted with an antique 20x25 easel made by Kodak - the thing is a slab of solid wood with a massive steel frame and masking blades. I'd love to get a chance to use it, but my current darkroom won't support it. Perhaps this summer I'll re-build my enlarger table so I can build in the Beseler 45mx instead of having it on top of the UV lightbox. For now, it sits leaning against the wall in another part of the basement so I don't step on it again and tear up my foot like I did last time.

George Collier · Nov 6, 2006

I shoot 35, 6x6, and 4x5 and for years, 11x14 (proportions adjusted to use the 14 as the longest dimension) was my standard "finished print" size (1/2" border all sides, a little more at the top for linen tape). I feel that it's large enough to experience certain aspects of some images, unlike smaller prints.
However, in the last couple of years, I had a couple of shows in larger spaces, and when walking into one a couple of years ago, I realized that I needed to print 16x20 because of the size of the space. It's a lot more work (not a large darkroom, but big enough), and obviously more expensive, but I really like the images at that scale.
I may change my mind later, but for now, I'm thinking about buying 8x10 for contacting, and bringing up the "recipe" (exposure, filter combinations, burning, dodging, etc) for each image (toning too, sometimes). I also scan 8x10 prints for marketing, etc. and for my data base. Then one box of 16x20 to use at any size I want for larger prints. This is all Forte fiber VC.
Oh, yeah, and I have one of those great Kodak easles The Flying Camera mentioned. I'ts painted gray, about zone VI, right?

TheFlyingCamera · Nov 6, 2006

George Collier said:
Oh, yeah, and I have one of those great Kodak easles The Flying Camera mentioned. I'ts painted gray, about zone VI, right?

This must be a near turn-o-the-century beast - it is dark mahogany in color. The baseboard is sufficiently dark I suspect you could safely print color on it without it affecting the color balance of the final print.

Another cool thing about it is I can do a 20x25 image area with a 3"x5" border on this beast. Yeah, that would mean 26"x 35" paper. It has a special tool built in to set border guides in 1/4" increments. Even though the baseboard is wood, it's so massive I don't think it would be possible to warp/damage it to get it out of flat level plumb, short of a Katrina-esque immersion for weeks on end.

reellis67 · Nov 6, 2006

I've got one that looks like what George mentioned - pretty hefty. Damn thing took up most of my trunk when I brought it home.

- Randy

wirehead · Nov 6, 2006

I find that 11x14 is a good "Sweet spot" size. It's big enough to be noticably better than viewing things on my monitor, cheap enough so that I don't think about what I'm spending, but small enough that my oldest art stuff done on a digital doesn't look too bad. Also, 16x20 frames are cheap, 16x20 mats with 11x14 holes can be found at the art store, etc.

Pretty much, anything smaller than 11x14 I don't feel very much like printing... I'll just look at it on my computer screen.

Stew · Nov 6, 2006

Hi Matti,

I make most of my prints at 8"x10" because I like the size,they aren't too big or small,and they will fit in a standard 3-ring binder with archival photo sleeves.

Rob.

jeroldharter · Nov 6, 2006

6x7 negs printed 11 x 14
4 x 5 negs printed 11 x 14 or 16 x 20

For my part, I can't justify the time and expense of my hobby to generate a 5 x 7 or 8 x10 inch print. Also, I find it more difficult to dodge and burn really small prints so I have more fun with the slightly larger prints. 8 x 10's are very economical but I think they are often too small for display in an office which is my usual display area.

What size do you print at?

blansky

MurrayMinchin

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