O
ne of the great joys of photography is the chance it
offers to share your work with other people. Until
a decade ago this usually meant giving prints away
to friends, or having an exhibition in the hope of
selling some work. Over recent times though, digital has made it
very easy to share your photos. It’s now possible to upload photos
to a social media site in just seconds, and share those photos
with almost anyone, anywhere. There is only one problem with
putting photos on the internet; the net is big – monstrously
big. Every week over two billion photos are added to Facebook
alone, and billions more are added to the likes of Instagram,
Flickr, 500PX, Panoramio and Pinterest. Nowadays, putting a
photograph on the internet is like adding a cup of water to the
ocean; it can be gone and forgotten in a moment.
As many photographers will attest, the internet is also
very impersonal. Photos on the net are regularly copied and
misappropriated by those who lack the moral fortitude to create
and promote their own photos. This might not upset you too
much, but spare a thought for your subjects who might one
day discover their likeness is being used to promote dodgy
products on foreign websites. It happens! Despite all the chaos
of the digital age though, there are still some avenues for
photographers who prefer to share their work with a whisper and
not a scream. From personally crafted prints and books through
to personalised websites that let your friends and clients become
the only guests, the options are out there.The print
A good, meaningful print is without doubt one of the best gifts you
can give someone. I’m reminded of this every time I see a print in
a friend’s home that I might have given them 20 years earlier. Back
then my prints were made in a darkroom, but nowadays I usually
make prints on a photo-quality inkjet printer. The latest photo-
quality ink-jet printers are affordable, and they can make beautiful
prints that can last as long as conventional black and white prints.
What is even more appealing is that if you have a well-calibratedworkf low, what you see on your computer screen is what you will
get a minute or so later from the printer.
Printers like Epson’s Artisan 1430 cost $399 and can make A3+
sized (329 x 483mm/12 x 18in) prints. One A3+ print will cost
between $5 and $8 to produce, including the ink and paper. This
might sound expensive, but compared to the cost of setting up
a darkroom, organising chemistry (and breathing it in!), making
test prints, washing them and cleaning up afterwards, a quality
ink-jet print is relatively cost effective.
There’s always the option to get cheap prints made at the local
photo centre, but what I enjoy about the home-made prints is
the option to use heavier photo papers from the likes of Ilford64 AUSTRALIANPHOTOGRAPHY.COM
Personal
Making It
PERSONAL PHOTOBOOKS & WEBSITES
After discussing pro-level photobooks last month,
Anthony McKee looks at the expanding range of
options enthusiasts can use to publish their work,including developing your own personal photo website.
AUSTRALIAN PHOTOGRAPHY + DIGITAL JULY 2015RIGHT
Photographic
papers come in a
stack of choices,
with variations in
paper size, weight,
base material,
surface coatings
and textures. The
easiest way to
discover what paper
works best for you
is to buy an A4
sample pack from
a specialist photo
paper dealer such
as Image Science
in Melbourne.
OPPOSITE PAGE
Momento was the
first company to
begin making photo
books in Australia.
Today the company
is creating a range
of books for both
the consumers and
also professional
photographers.
Momento general
manager, Libby
Jeffery is seen here
holding one of the
larger format books
the company now
creates.