by Zack Schnepf

It depends whether you are printing for your own satisfaction or to save money.  Financially, the short answer is unless you have the volume to justify the cost it’s not worth it.  It takes a lot of print sales to justify the financial costs of a good photo printer, inks and paper.  Not to mention packaging, and shipping costs.  There are a lot of other factors though.  Personally, I would be printing my own even if it were only for my own enjoyment.  I like having control from capture to print and I like being able to do print tests to optimize the final image quality.  I also really enjoy printing, and understanding what goes into making a high quality print.  I will admit it was really frustrating learning about color management, profiling, maintenance, and printer setting optimization.  In the end, understanding about printing helps anyone who is serious about photography; color management in particular is important whether you are printing yourself or not.

Financially, it probably took me 3 or more successful art shows to pay for my Epson 7900, inks, paper and packaging.  If I were not doing art shows I would be better off farming out my printing to West Coast Imaging, or another high end printer.  Honestly, even Costco offers good quality prints at a very reasonable cost.  From a financial point of view, printing yourself is probably not the best option for most people.  I personally save a lot of money printing myself, but I do a large volume of prints each year.

Printing can also be an expensive hobby, but an enjoyable one.  I enjoy seeing my work in print, and I love being in control from capture to print.  I have learned a great deal, and become a better photographer because I do my own printing.  It has changed the way I process images, and it’s helped me become more successful marketing my images for stock.  You pay a lot more attention to details when you are doing you own printing, and this makes you pay more attention during your workflow and in the field.

In conclusion, for me, printing myself has been very rewarding.  It’s not for everyone, and doesn’t make financial sense for most people, but it can be a valuable skill, and can teach you a great deal.

Photo Cascadia Logo

Keep in touch with

Photo Cascadia

Join the mailing list to receive the latest news, articles, events and workshop updates from our team. We publish one newsletter every two months.

Thanks for subscribing!

Pin It on Pinterest