Robert Azzi

Robert Azzi

Olathe, KS

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  • #14129
    Robert Azzi
    Robert Azzi
    Participant
    Posts: 7
    New Article – Self-Made Photo Books with Dual Coated Papers
    on: January 15, 2020 at 2:15 pm
    Mark D Segal wrote:

    Well, let me suggest there is no rabbit hole here. A rabbit hole is an endless foray in darkness with no out. My findings to date clearly delineate the merits and problems with this idea, the upshot being the uncertainty about the market, which is a non-issue considering there is no inventory risk in producing a custom made-on-demand product.

    I apologize if I offended you on my rabbit hole comment.  The rabbit hole I am talking about is the one of my own making that I am currently in.  I get in over my head and spend a lot of time on something that  turns out to be low value.  I have always valued your articles and you have responded to other postings (on the other website) of mine with great advice.  Your analysis here is another great job, factually analyzed and helpful.

    #14074
    Robert Azzi
    Robert Azzi
    Participant
    Posts: 7
    Re: New Article – Self-Made Photo Books with Dual Coated Papers
    Reply #1 on: January 14, 2020 at 10:10 pm

    I have gone down this rabbit hole as well, with a lower ambition.  I’m not going to sell my photos, but I wanted some alternative ways to organize them, display them, and share them with family.  I am in an early stage of the project, but can add a few thoughts that hopefully will be of interest.

    The direction of the grain in the paper is important when folding the paper.  Paper will fold more easily when folded parallel to the grain direction.  The two Red River papers you mentioned are sold with a GS (grain parallel to the short edge) and GL (parallel to the long edge).  GS and GL are available in Letter, 11×17 and 13×19 paper sizes.

    Brooks Jensen develop a folio method for groups of prints that should be viewed as a set.  Folio covers can be found at http://www.danecreekfolios.com.  The covers are archival card stock that are scored for folding.  A tab and slot are cut to hold the cover together when closed.  There is a window on the front to present a title and a mat board for stiffness.  The prints are loose and can be printed on your paper of choice with a title page, colophon or whatever else you like to include in text.  They hold about 10-12 sheets of heavy paper.

    I have been trying to create a small booklet of photos.  About 8 pages, plus a cover.  I decided to try using Affinity Publisher since has all the features i need for my simple project and automatically lays out the book for printing as a booklet.  That is, it orders the paper for printing and puts the front and back in the right order.  Unfortunately, documentation is weak and i am having trouble with how they implemented the printer drivers.  (I posted in another forum looking for more documentation on the Epson driver for the Mac – its a long story).

    Once I get a satisfactory print out, I plan to hand bind it by simply stitching it together using basic bookbinding techniques.  If that is successful, i am going to try more bookbinding techniques and see what is the best.

    Obviously, this is not commercially viable, so i cannot add any insight to the market for your approach.  I am delighted to see any scrap of advice on printing.  Thank you for the insightful and useful article.

    #13914
    Robert Azzi
    Robert Azzi
    Participant
    Posts: 7
    Re: Epson Printers
    Reply #2 on: January 12, 2020 at 5:32 pm

    Is there any other source for Epson Printer Driver Documentation?  I am trying to decipher how Serif has implemented the printer drivers for an R3000 and P600 in the Affinity Publisher applications.  I don’t think this part of the software was well designed, but overall the Publisher app is an excellent piece of software that serves my need for $50 instead of $20 per month for inDesign.  I only have the manual and the on line help to work with and there are a few options exposed in Publisher that are not in any of that documentation.

    #10759
    Robert Azzi
    Robert Azzi
    Participant
    Posts: 7
    Re: Printing Cost
    Reply #3 on: November 1, 2019 at 10:14 pm

    Thank you Mark for the thorough reply.  I completely agree that print pricing has little to do with the cost of production.  My goal is to encourage some of my fellow members to begin printing at home.  I assume that some will know that at home printing is more expensive than using Costco or an online printer.  I wanted to provide some sense of the costs to complete the story.  I hope it does not dissuade them from giving it a try.  Until this year the club only projected images and the annual contest is all based on digital files.  This year we have introduced a monthly contest and peer critiques to motivate more participation and sharing of knowledge.  Both require prints to participate, and in spite of some initial push back, we are getting interest in the new activities.  Thanks again for taking the time to provide a thorough reply and sharing your wealth of knowledge.

    #10744
    Robert Azzi
    Robert Azzi
    Participant
    Posts: 7
    Re: Epson Printers
    Reply #4 on: November 1, 2019 at 6:06 pm

    I am doing a presentation at our local camera club on printing at home and want to provide the members some range of cost for the print, excluding the initial cost of the printer.  I am not an expert, but know enough to help those that haven’t tried printing.   I have created a table of an assortment of Epson, Hahnemuhle, Red River and Canon papers, so that is easy to give a cost per sheet.  I also will show the cost per cartridge, and number of cartridges for the Epson and Canon printers (13″ and 17″).  I am not going to cover the higher capacity Epson 17″ or any of the wider format printers.  I wanted to know if any one has data for a range or rate for ink consumption of any of these printer.  There are dozens of variables, but i thought if there were any studies that have been done, I can use that information to create a broad range of costs for photo and matte ink usage and work that into my deck.  I found one sample on the Red River Paper site which was pretty interesting and a starting point.  I will continue my search, but thought i would post this to seek ideas on how to research or discuss this topic.   I don’t track my costs since i don’t sell my prints.  I would probably be depressed at how much i spent to get the dozen prints i like after shredding the 100 i didn’t like…..

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