Canvassing a Photograph
To really make your photographs stand out with an art gallery feel, you can print them to a canvas. With your photos on canvas, you will have gallery-ready prints set for your art show. You also can display them in your home or office. You need to make some special considerations to make these art prints, but the effort will be worth it in the end. There are three basic ways to accomplish the task of making photographs on canvas.
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Things You'll Need
- Canvas
- Liquid emulsion
- Large developing trays
- Equipped darkroom
- Computer
- Photo editing software
- Large format inkjet printer
- Inkjet canvas
- Inkjet photo paper
- Glue
- Paint
- Paintbrush
Instructions
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Use liquid emulsion for traditional photographic prints on canvas. You can purchase this online or at your local photo store. Remove the canvas from the wooden frame. In your darkroom, coat the canvas with the liquid emulsion without lights or with a safelight if the manufacturer of the substance recommends it. Let the canvas dry for the recommended time. Practice your exposure on traditional photo paper first. Get the settings correct, then place the canvas under the enlarger and expose for the appropriate amount of time. Process the canvas in large photo trays in the traditional manner: developer, stop bath, fixer, hypo solution and wash. Dry the canvas thoroughly. Restretch it to the frame and reattach it.
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2
Use your large format inkjet printer for your canvas prints. You can buy canvas designed for use with your inkjet printer. Edit your photo with photo-editing software as you normally would. Resize it to 600 dots per inch under “Resolution.” This will make a good-quality print. Also resize it according to the size of your canvas. Insert the inkjet canvas in the sheet feeder or as instructed by the printer or paper manufacturer. You may have to make several prints to do this in order to get it right because it may not print exactly as it would on photo paper.
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3
Attach a photo print to a canvas of your choice. This is the simplest method and with a little finesse can provide a good, rough, artsy look. Use glue that will not bleed through inkjet photo paper and attach the paper to the canvas. You can do other things to the photo and canvas to make it look unique. For example, once the photo is attached to the white canvas, take a paint brush and use black or some color you like to cover the area of the canvas left bare by the photo. Make random paint strokes over the edges of the paper with the paintbrush while you work. You can frame the canvas, too, or leave it bare for hanging.
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