Question 1

Do you just service the Brunswick area in Melbourne?

Accepted Answer

Australia wide!

Plus...

We often work with international artists and send prints all over the world. Head to our 'Send Us Your Files' page to upload your files for printing. Let us know what size, paper choice and the postal address and we'll be in touch.

Question 2

How do I get my print to look like it does on the screen?

Accepted Answer

You can't, but we can.

This is one of the biggest challenges when it comes to printing! We've spent a lot of time and money to ensure we get this right....everytime. We have world class Eizo screens, printer profiles made by Dr Les Walkling and have even painted the studio walls a specific neutral grey so our eyes don't get affected by the surrounds! You can bring your file into the lab and we can show you on our screen how it will look printed on your selected paper. This will be an extremely accurate match.

If you can't get into the studio the best thing to do is to edit your image on a calibrated monitor (you can do this with a monitor calibrator like a Spyder X). This will get you close and then you can trust us to do the rest.

If you don't have a calibrated monitor, don't worry! Send us your edited image and we will ensure we get the most out of it when printed.

Question 3

What does 'Giclee' mean?

Accepted Answer

Giclée, a French word, means 'to spray' and refers to the way inkjet printers create prints. These printers use fine spray nozzles to carefully apply ink tiny droplets of ink onto the ink receptive surface of the paper. This process allows artists to make extremely high quality prints of their original artwork and photographs. The word has gone on to represent fine art prints of the highest quality using pigment inks on archival museum grade papers. Fine art prints /Giclee prints - same thing.

Question 4

What is a printer profile?

Accepted Answer

In order for the printer to correctly print the colour that you see on screen it needs to be told what that colour actually is. The printer profile is the link between the image you see on screen and the printed version. The two need to be speaking the same language and the printer profile ensures this happens. We have spent a lot of time and money ensuring we have the best printer profiles available. All our profiles have been made by Dr Les Walkling, if you know about printing you have probably heard of him and his amazing work.

Question 5

What file formats are recommended for fine art printing at Brunswick Print Lab?

Accepted Answer

For fine art printing at Brunswick Print Lab, we recommend exporting as a TIFF, PSD, or JPEG in 8 or 16 bit, RGB color space at 300ppi. Check our Send us your files page for more info.

Question 6

I'm not really sure how to get my image ready for print, can you help with that?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We will set your file up to be ready for print. We won't charge you for this. It's not hard to do when you know what you're doing, if a print lab charges you for this.....not cool. Just send us what you have, we'll manage it.

Question 7

Why do you recommend Canson papers?

Accepted Answer

Canson papers are some of the worlds finest art and photographic papers and have been produced in paper mills in France since the 15th century. The Canson Arches papers for instance were used by Van Gogh, Matisse, Chagall and Picasso. Brunswick Print Lab only use paper with no (or very little in the case of Baryta) optical brightening agents (OBA's). OBA's are chemicals that are added to the coating of inkjet papers to give them a brighter white. The only problem is, OBA's are unstable molecules that will turn the paper yellow after a short period of time. Not an option.

Canson achieve they're amazing white point by using only natural pigments, ensuring your prints can last up to 200 years without fading or yellowing.

The paper we stock is not cheap and in this case you very much get what you pay for. We can't bring ourselves to charge money for prints on papers that contain OBA's for them to then yellow and fade over time.

We believe in producing the best quality prints possible and Canson papers allow us to do that.

Question 8

Can you print photos I have taken with my phone?

Accepted Answer

Yes, absolutely. Not only that we can print them on the finest papers available. Send us the files and leave the rest to us.   If you can, set your phone to shoot in 'RAW' format.

Question 9

How long does it take you to complete my print?

Accepted Answer

We have a short turnaround time of one to two days at the moment. Urgent jobs can be negotiated.

Question 10

Is parking available at your print lab?

Accepted Answer

Parking is available in the surrounding streets.

If you are dropping off/collecting large works by car we have access to the buildings loading bay and can let you in.  Please call in advance to organise.

Question 11

How long will my print last?

Accepted Answer

We do not use any papers containing optical brightening agents (OBA's) which are chemicals that are added to the surface of the paper to make it brighter and whiter. However, these chemicals react to UV light and the image will degrade and yellow very quickly.

Our OBA free papers and latest Canon Pro Lucia II inks have been quoted to last up to 200 years without degrading when stored and displayed correctly.

If you want to geek out, check out this report form from Wilhelm Imaging Research.

Frequently asked questions