Antonio Marques › Comments

Thanks Bryan! I'm really curious to see if anyone does this digitally and how they accomplish it. - Justin Korn

You could create a handwritten watermark if you have a Wacom tablet and some kind of inking program. I've used my Wacom tablet and Skitch (Mac app) to ink out captions for Polaroid scans I posted on Flickr: 1. http://www.flickr.com/photos... 2. http://www.flickr.com/photos... - Cheryl Jones

I've never sold a print. I gave one to Scoble. Donated one for a Flickr Katrina Relief Auction and am about to put one in another charity auction for school arts programs. I signed the one I gave to Scoble on the mat I think, the one from the Flickr auction on the back of the print and the one for the school charity auction on the back of the mat. - Thomas Hawk

I leave about a 1/2" to 1" border on all sides, maybe a bit extra at the bottom. Then I sign below the print with an archival paint pen found at most art stores (black or silver depending on the print). Name of print, year taken, and print number on the left -- signature on the right. The intent is to have the print matted outside of the actual print area, leaving the signature visible. For my square aspect photos, I'll sometimes sign right on the print so that the 1:1 ratio can be maintained. - Brian Auer

ooh! good topic. I just framed my first print on the weekend and was thinking of signing it but wasn't sure what the "standard" was. or if one even existed. I think I like adding the Name of print, year taken along with a signature! - Nathalie

I'm curious why you'd want to sign digitally. A signature is like your seal of approval stating that you made the print or at least oversaw it's creation and that the print is up to your standards. It's also the one thing that makes the print special and unique. - Brian Auer

I've signed on the mat but I really like Brian Auer's method! - Rachel Lea Fox

I've signed the mat around the photo, along with the printed title of the shot. I would not sign digitally -- to me that seems to detract from the originality of the piece. I like Brian's method as well. I think I will try that next time I print. - Jeremy Brooks

Signing the mat is just fine too, I've seen plenty of people do it that way. But I'd only sign the mat if it were permanently adhered to the photo. - Brian Auer

Back of the print. Don't trust signing the mat, and I see no advantage in signing the front of the print. And signing digitally makes no sense, at least to me. Like Brian mentioned, a signature is a "seal of approval". Non-signed prints I consider reproductions whose printing process may or may not have been overseen by me. - Antonio Marques

I think I'd rather sign on the photo vs the mat as well. and not digitally. as far as leaving a border on all sides, I'm trying to picture in my head how this looks once framed and matted. wouldn't it take attention away from the shot to have a border on the photo, then the the mat then the frame? do you have an example so I can see what it looks like. I love the idea of putting the title but without this border, I also worry that it would cover up a key part of the image. (yes. I over analyse a lot) - Nathalie

I love stepping away to do work and seeing the conversation bloom! Great conversation going. @Brian - I'd love to see an example of how you do your border as well if possible. I think that's a great idea and actually one I had thought of, but wasn't sure how to do it. For example, if you have an 8x10 print and add a 1" border to all sides, your aspect ratio is off. Also, like Nathalie... more... - Justin Korn

Nathalie, here's a shot of 3 prints hanging on my wall right now (from other photographers). -- http://www.flickr.com/photos... -- The one on the left is signed and matted the way I typically do it with the border. The one in the middle is signed right on the print and is matted with no border. The one on the right is matted with no border and signed on the mat. - Brian Auer

Oh, and when I say "border" I just mean white space around the edge of the photo. I don't print an actual border on my photos. @Justin, as for the standard aspect ratio thing... I go under the assumption that the print will be custom matted -- it's not terribly expensive, even from a professional framer. - Brian Auer

ooooh! that looks good! maybe I have to shop around because when I looked into custom mats - they'd run me about 15$ a piece. or more. I'm cheap. 15$ is a lot of money if you're framing lots. - Nathalie

@Nathalie: If you're framing a lot of pieces, look into a mat cutter. Then you can purchase the full size pieces of mat material and cut your own. It's very easy to cut them, and you end up with exactly the mat you want. - Jeremy Brooks

Brian - I figured you meant white space. I'm trying to streamline my process as much as possible and by doing so, I will be allowing clients to purchase frames and mats right from my storefront. This means the final product needs to be in one of the generally accepted aspect ratios. That said, I could easily add a 1in border to the sides and 2in to the top and bottom on an 8x10 to make... more... - Justin Korn from IM

Justin - Offering multiple sizes with mat and frame can be a daunting task indeed. This is why I usually offer just the print and allow the buyer to mat and frame as they see fit. If somebody wants me to mat the print, I'll usually have it mounted on gatorboard and matted with the external dimensions being a standard size. So a 14" or 16" print will be mounted to a 16x20 board with a custom mat window -- that way it can be dropped into a standard frame. - Brian Auer

I think a blog post series is in order... I'll see if I can post the intro tonight and get some feedback on which topics people want to learn more about. Between myself and the knowledgeable readers of Epic Edits, I think we can put together a good solid guide for printing, signing, mounting, matting, framing, and shipping these things. - Brian Auer

Andy: You will end up with some waste, but many of the smaller pieces can be used again, for smaller prints. I have found that cutting mats myself saves me money over custom cut sizes, even with the waste. - Jeremy Brooks

I like your thinking Brian. Looking forward to the post(s)... - Justin Korn from IM

That will be a good series, Brian! I have an example of a square format photo that I mounted in an oversized mat and framed in a 16x20 frame that gets really good feedback. Maybe a post on doing mounting/framing outside of the box would be interesting. - Jeremy Brooks

Really looking forward to the square format info!! - Nathalie

Jeremy - for sure! I recently did an 11x11 print mounted to a 16x20 board in the vertical orientation with the window slightly above center. Square formats definitely give you the extra options. - Brian Auer

Feverishly working on an intro for this blog series... I'm really excited to get this discussion off the ground!!! Thanks for the inspiration, guys! - Brian Auer

Ok gang... here's the start of the blog series. Looking for some feedback and direction in this introductory post: http://blog.epicedits.com/2009... - Brian Auer

Awesome! I'm really looking forward to this series Brian! - Justin Korn from IM

Brian - I was going to write this to you directly, but thought maybe the community would benefit from it as well. I noticed you use ImageKind (or at least have a link on your website to it). How do you like their offerings? Would you recommend it? If you had a customer order something from there, how would you place your "seal of approval" then? - Justin Korn

Justin - I like the quality from ImageKind and I would recommend their products. I've ordered several prints from them just to test the quality. But... I wouldn't sign a print from ImageKind. The prints I sell from IK are unsigned only. I prefer to have complete control over the quality of my signed prints, so I utilize a professional printer in my local area (and I watch over the print as it's produced). - Brian Auer

Brain - Thanks! That makes sense. - Justin Korn from IM

Hey Justin, I know you started this topic because you probably need immediate answers, so email me directly if you want some 1 on 1 conversation. The blog series will probably take a few weeks to wrap up. - Brian Auer

Thanks Brian! I'm going to let this information sync in for a day or two and I'll get to you directly if anything comes up. I really appreciate your input so far! - Justin Korn from IM

I tend to take a practical approach. I always sign the print itself on the lower white border of the print with an archival pen. Most of the time I'm using a pre-cut mat at a standard size and printing the image to the same size (8x10 mat opening with an 8x10 image size) to keep my costs down. This means the mat will cover the signature and number. If I'm showing and not sure of sale, I... more... - Greg Lato

Here is a better question: limited edition or not? If limited edition, what does that mean and how do you enforce and track it? - Greg Lato

hmm, i dunno - tweets are so short that i probably would unfollow anyone who added them to their tweets. But on a twitter background, even though i wouldnt do it - i wouldn't blame people who did. - Zee.

The problem with this is that you probably won't be able to tell the difference between an ad and, let's say, a site that the "twitterer" is actually recommending. Unless the user is providing amazing content, I'd probably unfollow. - Antonio Marques from twhirl

I'm yet to see this in action - is there a Magpie disclaimer in the tweet at all? if it's at all detectable, it's an automatic unfollow as far as I'm concerned - David Miller

is this, firstly, in concordance with the twitter tos? i find it hard to believe. - Tibi Puiu

I am going to try it. Says I can make $98.41! - Stowe Boyd

Something is wrong, it says I can make $7,703! - Eric Sessions

I tried Twittads, not Magpie. Magpis says I could make 286.11 €/month - Stowe Boyd

What a weird service. It says I can make 5.08€/month. - Anika

Oh boy, I could make 3 bucks a month. :/ Not worth it in my opinion. Interesting concept though. - Geoff Girardin

Mah... - Dario Salvelli

I'm not giving anyone my twitter account to post whatever they want for 10 euros a month. - Dave Sanders

Not going to do it for a mere 9 euro / month. - Morton Fox

DVD... - Antonio Marques from twhirl

I'm still a DVD guy. Since the 360 upconverts, I don't really mind. The rest of my stuff is digital. - Jordan Hofker from fftogo

DVD still. - Roberto Bonini

I'm having trouble getting excited about Blue Rays when I can see the HD Digital market outgrowing it in a year or so. - Andrew

DVD still. Waiting for prices on Blu-Ray to go down a bit more. Of course, digital may surpass it before that happens. Since technology is changing so quickly in terms of entertainment media, I'm reluctant to jump on the latest bandwagon because something better might be around the corner. -

dvd - MikeAmundsen

DVD here - Warner Crocker

I never was a DVD collector. I only have around 15 or so. I have a HD-DVD player for the Xbox 360 but only rented a few from Netflix. These days, I'm either streaming or DVD rentals from Netflix. I may grab a PS3 for BluRay but I'm in no rush. - Rodfather

DVDs. - ωαřмaiden ☆Team O'Otto☆

I've stopped buying physical media for the most part and have gone all digital. The convenience of digital delivery is a winner and makes those large spinning discs seem like so very yesterday. - Zik Daniel from twhirl

Is there any Netflix for the UK? A similar site? I still rent out DVDs from Lovefilm. Blu-Ray seems to be the better (or more popular) physical format but probably won't get a dedicated player/recorder. I'd get a console (PS3 for Blu-Ray) to kill two birds with one stone. I still buy some DVDs but never before seeing the movie first and then only movies I really like and will probably watch again. - Kol Tregaskes

VH... what? ;-) - Kol Tregaskes

Reg DVDs - The Amber

practically digital only. We have a bluray player we haven't played a bluray title on this year, and we might occasionly put a dvd on for our son. There's nothing you can't download or stream - Duncan Riley

DVDs for me. And Netflix FTW! - Mathew™ aka Youngblood

I had to like it, right? - Antonio Marques from twhirl

Of course. ;-) Thanks for the great list, found a few new sites. - Kol Tregaskes

You're welcome. It's a pleasure to mention some of the great content out there. - Antonio Marques from twhirl

You think so? I actually like it. Gets a bit away from the norm. Maybe the top could be improved, but those are just details. - Antonio Marques from twhirl

It's not totally bad -- not much worse than the A700. It just looks blockier than the Canon and Nikon. But hey, cameras are tools, not fashion accessories. - Brian Auer

I'll stick with Canon. :) - Mathew™ aka Youngblood

I hope you'll build a master list from the answers - Olivier

+1 - Cheryl Jones

Did a Summize search for replies to his original tweet and saw this link: http://hyperphocal.com/?p=122 - Cheryl Jones

I'll make a list and publish it either on PhotoNetCast or W:i. Stay tuned... - Antonio Marques from twhirl

Yes - filters on lenses. - Martin Gommel

Polarizer, UV filters (just for protection) and a couple of old Cokin colored plates. And you? - Antonio Marques from twhirl

Skyfilter, Polarizer, UV and I need that great Cokin colored plates so bad ! Hehe - Martin Gommel

I love my Lee Filter GND Hard/Soft. Use them all the time, well almost ;-). In some situations it would be better to blend two exposures, but that I usually realize after the shoot at home :-( Other than that, I got a Polarizer just recently. Have to get familiar with that one though. - Sven

The Cokin ones came from the film days, when adding some color or tone was not so easy (I only started scanning my negatives after a few years). - Antonio Marques

@Andrea, but you use a polarizer or not really? - Antonio Marques

@Sven : GND is a neutral densitiy filter, or ? What does the "G" stand for ? - Martin Gommel

GND - Graduated Neutral Density - Antonio Marques from twhirl

@Martin: Yes I own/use Gradual Neutral Density filters. I have them in soft and hard ranges from 1 to 3 stops. - Sven

I'd say that the polarizer, or circular polarizer for that matter, is possible only of the only filters that Photoshop still doesn't accurately reproduce - Antonio Marques from twhirl

@Andrea, but why do your photos get rejected with polarizer? Do they give you a reason or is just a trend you started noticing? - Antonio Marques from twhirl

Using a polarizer, it's very easy to oversaturate in processing. All the colors become much more full (might explain the unreal looking or overfiltered). The noise might come just from less light getting into your sensor (maybe 2 stops less). I usually see that using the polarizer minimizes the gray layer introduced by reflections thus resulting in a higher quality photo. Of course I would not use one in interior shots, product photos, etc. But for landscapes it is a must. - Antonio Marques

@Antonio : Hey Dude - I think the ND filter cannont be produced in PS either, cause you cant to longtimeexposures on daylight reproduce in Photoshop ;) - Martin Gommel

hmmm. don't know if I understood you there Martin. The thing is, if you can get your exposure in a way that you don't overexpose or underexpose any part of the photo (even if the sky looks blown, for example) then you can imitate the GND on Photoshop. If you can't get it on one exposure, you can bracket (if you have a tripod) or just get 2 images from the RAW with different exposures and apply a gradient mask on them. Cheap GND right there. - Antonio Marques

Hehe, i mean stuff like this : http://flickr.com/photos... (taken with a nd filter - see in the description) ... can you do this in photoshop ? That would be quite amazing ! - Martin Gommel

@Andrea : Hehe - I think I will choose the filter - this will take alot of time I suppose ;) Or ? Are there tutorials on the web out there ? - Martin Gommel

Your right! Very fun and interesting. Oh... and they have a firefox add-on. - Czar

Awesome, thanks for the invite! - Ocean

Really? Surprised that Scobleizer *just* found this. - Ivan Stegic

I like the idea of new media search tools, especially in images and video. I love hearing people answer how they plan on making money, it very often seems to be a touchy issue. - Jeremy Campbell from twhirl

Ivan: they were too. Hey, I don't always see EVERYTHING. :-) - Robert Scoble

TinEye is really really REALLY cool. There's a huge potential there -- can't wait till the index more of the web. - Shey

Clever stuff. Signed up, thanks. - Simon Wicks

seems like a very cool tool. haven't found anything good enough to mark as "cool" but it's fun to see what comes back - Steve Long

Yeah, it's a really awesome tool... I bet it's hard to see a gem amongst the rough sometimes, Robert. Especially when you are wading through as much electronic waste as I am sure you are. Whew! - Ivan Stegic

thanks for the invite URL! - David Silvernail

This is a great service, been using it for a few months now. - Jacob Burke

Thanks for the link, the service seems really cool! - Sébastien

Jim Goldstein had an interview with Leila Boujnane from TinEye some time ago on his EXIF and Beyond Podcast (http://www.jmg-galleries.com/blog...) - Antonio Marques from twhirl

Scobleizer: Man, everytime I look at that pic of you, I think of the Ghostbusters. Here's a search I just did on *that* pic, you really are omnipresent: http://tineye.com/search... - Ivan Stegic

Nice! Thanks for getting FriendFeed the hookup, Robert. - Phil Glockner

Also a big thanks from me for the invitation! Up to now I wasn't too impressed with image searching... - Arnd Gronenberg

Signed up for TinEye. Thanks! - Morton Fox

Looks like a great service..thanks for the hookup.. - Darryl

I've been using them for more than a month now, they really do amazing stuff. - Yuval Atzmon

Scoble would have known about Tinyeye a lot sooner had FriendFeed been around sooner :) Glad you found them though. They have really good potential to be very powerful and useful. - Justin Korn

A very cool tool indeed, especially if you need to keep track of where images are going around the Web... - Chris Reed

The firefox add-on is great.. - Darryl

they should offer the ability to sort by image size - would be immensely helpful - Nathan Chase

"Password may only contain alphanumeric characters " - :-( - Jordan Hofker

great tool - Tom Quinn

Robert, I embedded your Qik video in my latest blog post: http://www.scribkin.com/2008... - Phil Glockner

Great! Thanks...trying Star Trek matches - Kevin Benson

searching images with an image, meh - adolfo foronda

But it's like that now for hours. I'm getting pissed at Media Temple. - Antonio Marques from twhirl

Jetzt hab ich einmal Traffic auf meinem Blog und dann sowas... ;-) - Johannes Kleske

Ts ts - Sachen gibts... - Martin Gommel