How To Make Prints Of Watercolor Paintings

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How To Make Prints Of Original Watercolor Paintings

Many artists who are starting to sell their watercolor paintings only sell their originals.

Selling original paintings is an excellent way to earn extra money, but there is an opportunity to make more money from every original watercolor painting created.

Having several different income streams is how successful artists are making a career from their art.

There is no questioning that watercolor paintings and watercolor cards are selling well online.

But offering fine art at a fair price for the time invested in creating original art and the cost of watercolors is too expensive for most art collectors.

Instead of waiting for an art collector who is willing to invest in an original piece of art, there is an opportunity to earn money, and that is by offering reproductions of the original.

You can sell prints of your watercolor paintings to people who can not afford to purchase an original but who would love to display your artwork in their home.

But the challenge is capturing of the watercolor paintings when you scan the art or photograph the picture.

Creating prints from watercolors is similar to making prints of graphite drawings.

Remember that the quality of every product you sell, including original watercolor paintings and giclee prints, is a reflection of your business brand.

You will need to take a few more steps than just scanning your watercolor painting and sending it through your home printer.

There will always be a slight difference between an original painting and a print, but you want to make them as close as possible.

The print should accurately represent the original piece.

There are two options to choose from when it comes to printing watercolor paintings.

The first option is to hire a reproduction service to photograph or scan your art and create the prints.

The pros of hiring a reproduction service are that you do not have to spend the time required to photograph the art, edit the digital image, and create the prints.

The con is that there is a substantial price working with professional reproduction services, and many services require a print minimum.

The second option is doing the work yourself, and that is what we are going to cover today.

Table Of Contents

How To Make Prints Of Original Watercolor Paintings
How To Make Prints Of Watercolor Paintings Step By Step

Make A Digital Image Of The Watercolor Painting
Hire A Photographer
Photographing Watercolor Painting Tips
Editing The Digital Image

Making Prints Of Your Watercolor Paintings

Local Printing Service
Online Printing Services
Print At Home

Final Thoughts On How To Make Prints Of Watercolor Paintings

How To Make Prints Of Watercolor Paintings Step By Step

There is a learning curve for making prints of watercolor paintings, and it will take some practice, but if you follow the steps outlined below, you can make prints your fans will want to buy.

Make A Digital Image Of The Watercolor Painting

Like I have mentioned earlier, capturing the beauty of watercolor paintings is similar to obtaining the soft value changes of pencil drawings.

The difference is that scanning pencil drawings with a high-quality scanner captures the graphite’s soft value changes but does not capture the translucent nature of watercolors.

The best way to make a digital image of your original painting is with natural light and a DSLR camera.

To learn more about DSLR cameras visit Best Digital Cameras For Photographing Art.

There will be times when you have finished an original painting, and you will be excited to take photographs of it, but it is a rainy gray day.

You can choose to put it off until there is a sunny day or use a professional Softbox lighting kit.

Here is video that shows you how to take a photograph in nutural light.

How To Sell Art Prints On Etsy With Printful

Here is a video that shows you how to photograph your art with a Softbox lighting kit.

Hire A Photographer

Another option is to hire a professional photographer or ask a friend to photograph your watercolor paintings.

Ask a friend or family member who enjoys photography if you do not have a DLSR camera or can’t afford one at this time.

Offer to give a free print of your artwork to a friend who is helping you out or tell them that you will do a free commission painting.

Photographing Watercolor Painting Tips

Mount your art to an easel or wall using a level and make sure it is square to the camera.
Mount your DSLR camera to a tripod and make sure your camera’s angle is perpendicular to the painting.
Look in the viewfinder to make sure the art is square and even on all sides.
Use a grayscale in the frame and photograph the painting.
If using lights, place the lights at a 45-degree angle, bouncing the light equally into the softboxes.
Make sure the sunlight on your art is evenly distributed if photographing your painting in natural daylight.
Look at the digital images and repeat if necessary.

Editing The Digital Image

The next step is to edit the digital image in Photoshop.

If you photograph your art in natural light or use a Softbox lighting kit, you will still need to adjust the colors of the digital image.

If you are not familiar with Photoshop, you will want to take some time to learn the software.

I found this video that will help get you started.

Making Prints Of Your Watercolor Paintings

Now that the hard work is done, you can decide on how you will print your prints.

There are three options you can choose from for printing your artwork:

Local Printing Service
Online Printing Service
Print them at home

Local Printing Service

The first option is to visit your local printing service.

You will first have to save it on a USB to bring it to the shop.

Most of the time, you can spend some quality time talking to a professional at a printing shop, and they will guide you in the right direction.

Questions you should ask:

What type of ink do the use?
What would be the best paper for your prints?
Do they offer giclee prints?
What sizes do they offer?
What are the prices, and is it cheaper in bulk?

Online Printing Services

Another option is to have your prints done by an online printing service.

You will not be able to talk to a professional in person, but most online printing services have customer service available by phone to ask the same questions as you would with a local shop.

The downside is that you will not see a sample before ordering as you would at your local printing shop.

Top Online Printing Services:

Print At Home

The last option is to print your copies at home.

High-quality printers are becoming more affordable, but keep in mind unless you purchase a giclee printer, you will not produce the same high quality as you would with a professional printing service that offers giclee printing.

To learn more about giclee prints, visit What Is A Giclee Print.

However, you can find a high-quality printer that produces some great prints.

I use a home printer for prints and greeting cards for the local craft fairs I attended, but I use a POD service for online orders.

For more information on printers, visit 5 Best Printers For Art Prints.

There are many POD services available.

I have been using Fine Art America for many years and have never had a problem with their prints’ quality.

Final Thoughts On How To Make Prints Of Watercolor Paintings

There is no better feeling than selling original artwork, but as a business person, you will want to find alternative ways to earn more money from your original work.

The tips outlined in this post will help you to: