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Photo on Canvas Prints. Product reviews and 6 other Methods to Determine A Trustworthy Canvas Company

For the average consumer, understanding what to look for or which company to put your confidence in when paying for a photo on canvas print can be very tricky. Here are a small number of easy to follow rules to follow which will help you to more thoroughly comprehend what's involved and select a photo to canvas transfer company wisely.

Customer reviews

Read customer testimonials in order to calculate the amount of customer satisfaction that the supplier has received. Beware of sellers without a testimonials page. If they have gained a good reputation by providing top quality goods, they will be happy to display customer comments on their website. This is also an important mark of quality as companies that have worked hard to earn a great reputation are a lot less prone to risk ruining it by using cheaper, sub-standard. materials.

Outsourcing

Make sure that the specialist is professional and that they truly know about the entire photo to canvas transfer process. Various canvas retailers outsource their work to other suppliers, counting on someone else to supply you with a quality product. However in these cases, the prints are normally outsourced at a very low cost and the quality suffers greatly. Check to see if the supplier provides information on the photo to canvas transfer equipment used and the canvas canvas printing process. This is a good sign that the specialists are professionals who comprehend all aspects of photo to canvas transfer and will ensure that you get a quality item.

Canvas quality

When making your photo on canvas prints, the company you decide on ought to use the best quality, dense, strong 100% cotton canvas. This artist grade canvas assures that the colours will remain bright, prevents cracking and it's actually purpose made to lock the ink in. Unfortunately, a number of canvas vendors nowadays use low grade 200gsm polyester or poly-cotton canvas (normally imported into the U.K from China). This particular canvas is actually yellow but is later bleached bright white. This bleach degrades the inks and can lead to discolouration of your canvas in as few as 8 weeks. The overall quality of the canvas that is used has a lot to do with the all round quality of your finished canvas. Low quality canvas will split on the surface while mounting, spoiling your print.

Frame type

The type of timber used to produce your canvas is crucial as it directly affects the lifespan of the print. Check that the company concerned only uses the very best, European, shaped pine stretcher bars to construct their frames. These frames are constructed to a high standard and contain no knots or splits. These stretcher bars include a smooth lip that lifts the canvas slightly in order to avoid causing indented marks along the front of your canvas. These marks on the canvas can be caused by the force of the frame behind it. Be sure that solid, braced together wood or cheap fir stretcher bars (typically produced in China, known in the trade as “Art98” bars) are not going to be used. These frames are poorly made and will not last. The stretcher bars should preferably also have machined slots on the inside of the frame that make it possible for you to insert 4 wooden tension pegs into the inside corners of the frame. These wedges are used to tighten your canvas further and allow it to be re-tightened over time. Be wary of sellers that use plastic tension wedges that do not have raised dots at the end as they will not remain in place, forcing many providers to glue them in. This means that your canvas can't ever be re-tightened! Unfortunately most canvas companies now use either the brace method or “Art98” bars to cut costs. Thus giving their art a limited lifespan. Only high quality frames can guarantee that your canvas will have a long life and will look wonderful.

Technology

Quite a few canvas print retailers are printing using the Epson 9880 range of large format printers. The 9880 is regarded as the most advanced large format colour and black & white printer in the market today. These printers set new standards for large format photographic and fine art printing. Printing at high resolution they make a big impression with lasting results in both black and white and vibrant colour. The 8-colour ink set system (that also includes three black inks for improved definition on black and white prints) means that every tone is replicated perfectly.

Lacquer

The canvas manufacturer you choose should apply at the least 1 layer of protective coating (ideally 3 layers) to all of their photo on canvas prints at no extra charge. This coating should be a water-based varnish designed specifically to guard, preserve and enhance fine canvas art. This lacquer improves the colour of archival inks on matte media and increases resistance to U.V light that causes the image to fade. It will also give protection to your artwork against moisture and abrasion. Many photo on canvas print dealers on the net now ship their prints without any such coatings applied. These untreated canvases will crack at the edges and will fade substantially with time.