We're a boutique print lab in Marin County, California.
Hi, we're Jeff and tung.
We're locally hand-crafting fine art prints of your work. We have over 20 years of combined experience as full-time professional photographers and printers.
We're handcrafting fine art prints and canvas gallery wraps fully in-house, using high-quality materials, no outsourcing, no factories, no unskilled eyes.
Most photographers have never experienced anything like printing with us.
What we're all about
We optimize for quality, not throughput
Most photographers have never seen a print like ours. We will *personally* optimize your photo to achieve maximum detail in the print. We're experts in color, and our prints are faithful and vibrant, but not the poppy "enhanced" stuff you'll see from most consumer/prosumer labs. We can also hard proof, and keep custom print edits on file for you. We optimize our print process for quality, not throughput.
We're a boutique studio, and we don't have pressure to produce as many prints as possible. This allows us to print on maximum quality. We believe the best prints come from photographers who have an active, hands-on relationship with the printing process -- and after becoming addicted to that experience for many years ourselves, we're excited to share it with you.
We handle each file individually with care
We (Tung and Jeff) inspect all files prior to printing. If we think your image is pretty much ready to print at the size you've requested, we'll run some quick expert optimizations at no charge and print it for you.
We may ask you more questions than you're used to from other labs, because we care and want the best result for you. If we think your photo needs additional editing to print well at that size, we will let you know. We can either make the necessary edits for you for a fee, or you can make them yourself and send us the new file. If the issues are not resolved in the revised file, we will need to start billing for our consultation time, or we can print the image as is, upon your request.
Our fine art prints
There are two kinds of "paper" prints. The first, and more common today, is the chromogenic print, or C-print, which is also commonly called a 'photographic print'. C-prints are produced on light-sensitive color paper then processed in wet chemistry. Their main advantage is cost savings, as they can be made en masse. By contrast, inkjet prints, typically marketed as 'fine art prints', last far longer, and are far superior in color accuracy and fidelity -- IF they are printed on maximum quality with high-quality paper. In our lab, we ONLY produce fine art inkjet prints on maximum quality, on premium paper.
A word on 'giclée'
'Giclée' is a commonly used buzzword with no concrete meaning or established criteria. However, our prints meet any reasonable interpretation of 'giclée', referencing our high-quality archival materials, our printers with up to 12 pigment-based inks, our maximum print quality, and our mounting processes.
Mounting
We can mount your print to wood, metal, acrylic, or an aluminum composite panel for a frameless display. We can also add a float mount so the print appears to float off the wall. They are highly elegant!
Custom framing
We build and offer custom solid wood frames in house, as well as custom floater frames for our canvas gallery wraps! We do not use glass on our frames, but we can seal the print to protect it, if you choose. We can also handle the framing for you at a local shop (or you can do it yourself).
We keep it simple
We believe it's better to be experts in a few things, than to be mediocre at many things. So, we only offer one primary option for paper prints -- premium lustre -- and one option for canvas gallery wraps -- premium glossy, which has a similar look to a lustre or semigloss print. We make all of our canvases with mirrored edges, gallery wraps made in house, rear dust cover, and D-ring and wire hangers, for NO EXTRA CHARGE. We can also print to a museum-grade photo rag and spray varnish, on request.
If you think canvas prints are low quality,
think again.
Sizing and Pricing
Sizes
We can print up to 42x120" on photo paper and fine art paper, and 38x96" for premium canvas gallery wraps. For our special Tamalpais Editions™, max size is currently 24x36".
We will inspect your file to ensure it is good to go at the print size you've requested. If it's not, we may suggest a smaller print size or our professional editing.
Pricing
You might be surprised to learn this: We're on par with most quality labs, even beating many of them. Shipping large art pieces is an EXPENSIVE (and not particularly sustainable) operation, both in shipping fees and materials. Even if the site says "free shipping", you're paying for it, so why pay for it if you can shop local instead? We can't match the race-to-the-bottom sites that use cheap factory labor with low-quality materials and craftsmanship, but if you've read this far, you're probably not comparing us to them, anyway.
We don't have any hidden nickel-and-diming for mirror wrapping, hanging hardware, etc. All included.
In other words, we'll bring you a better experience than the corporate labs in virtually every way, for a comparable price.
Payment
Once we've processed your order and determined that your file is ready to go, we will send you an invoice. We prefer Zelle, ACH or checks, though we also accept credit cards. If you have a reseller's permit for a sales tax exemption, please send it to us.
Preferred file formats
If you know what you're doing: 16-bit TIFF, Adobe RGB, 300dpi if above 12x18, 360dpi if below 12x18, let us know your sharpening process.
If you're not sure: just send us your highest quality, full res TIFF/PSD, and we'll take it from there. JPEG also acceptable. If all of your edits are done in Lightroom, you can also "Export to DNG", which allows us to tweak your pixel-level edits for optimal results.
Good to know
We add an additional white border to our fine art prints, for longevity and ease of matting/framing/mounting. Trust us on this one.
We hand-stretch our canvases IN HOUSE over strainer bar frames that we HANDMAKE IN HOUSE. We do mirrored edges, unless you request otherwise.
Print services
Shipping/delivery
Local pickup is preferred. Delivery and shipping are available for a reasonable fee.
Turnaround times
Try to give us a week or two's notice, but we can often be quicker if you need us to be (especially for fine art prints).
Will you edit my photo for me?
We (Tung and Jeff) inspect all files prior to printing, far more extensively than you will experience at most labs. If we think your image is pretty much ready to print at the size you've requested, we'll run some quick expert optimizations at no charge and print it for you.
If we deem that your photo needs additional editing to print well at that size, we will let you know. We can either make the necessary edits for you for a fee, or you can make them yourself and send us the new file. If the issues are not resolved in the revised file, we will need to start billing for our consultation time, or we can print the image as is, upon your written request.
Do you print on metal or acrylic?
Not quite, but perhaps something even better. We are now producing our Tamalpais Editions™ for top artists. Tamalpais Editions are exquisite fine art prints sealed in brilliant gloss that appear to float off the wall.
Each Tamalpais Edition fine art print is fused to your choice of a sturdy wood or metal backing, and sealed with a crystal clear protective layer. Tam Editions provide unparalleled colors, detail, and a "feel like you're there" effect. They have to be seen to be believed!
The finish is fairly similar to a metal print,. However, traditional metal prints are produced with a different process (called dye sublimation) that is not capable of producing the color accuracy, detail, or longevity of a fine art print. There is simply no comparison.
We offer Tamalpais Editions as frameless floating displays as well as with floater frames. We prefer these to metal, and we think you just might, too!
Tamalpais Editions are a larger investment than our other offerings, but you figured as much, right?
What's your reprint policy if my print is defective?
Defective prints are caused by a lab's lack of quality control and personal involvement. We get it. We've BEEN THERE. We (Tung and Jeff) are experts and will keep you updated through the process so there's no surprises, and both of us personally inspect every print before letting you know it's ready for pickup. We prefer local pickup to avoid involving shipping carriers so there is little opportunity for post-production damage. If there's an issue with the print as it comes out, we'll almost always catch it and reprint it (and we'll probably give you the test print for free). If you manage to catch something that we didn't, we'll be impressed, and we'll gladly take care of you.
