Handcoloring with oils on inkjet canvas prints (including everything I've learned about printing them):
A portrait of "Tink" and her happy owner.
Handcoloring an Inkjet Print
Prepare canvas for handcoloring:
Using my Epson 7600 printer, I set the printer dialog box to: Photoshop Manages Colors and set the Rendering Intent to Relative Colorimetric. I use Epson’s Enhanced Matte paper setting. Click the Advanced option, choose: Super-Fine 1440, turn on Super, turn off High-Speed and select Black Ink (for handcoloring purposes). Be sure to click No Color Control under the Color Controls tab.
This canvas may print with some horizontal banding on this particular printer--it's the only printer I've used because it has the archival pigment-based inks. I have adjusted the paper feed in the paper configuration settings to -8 with good results.
Unless you buy it in sheet form (pad sizes 8.5 x 11 and up, from major online art suppliers), this canvas comes on a small-diameter cardboard tube, with the inkjet-receptive surface facing inwards. (I wish Yes! would get with it--all other inkjet canvas rolls face OUT.) You’ll need to re-roll it on a larger cardboard tube to fit the printer, facing out (a good reason to save those cardboard tubes from paper rolls!) It also must curl towards the spindle to prevent the printer head catching on the canvas edge. It will take about two days time to reverse the original curl of the canvas. But save that small tube to re-train the lead end to roll in the correct direction if you discover the canvas returning to its original shape.
Be vigilant during the printing--listen for the scratchy sound of the print head striking the canvas edge. If this happens, pause the printer and gently adjust or curl down the edge of the canvas before resuming printing. Allow canvas prints to dry at least 24 hours. Spray two coats of a sealer for digital prints, allowing an hour drying time between coats.
With just a spray sealer, the surface can be a bit rough. Some folks prefer this. If you’d rather paint on a smoother surface: wait 72 hours (after sealing prints) then apply an acrylic matte or semi-matte medium or acrylic varnish with a sponge brush or foam roller. Be careful about leaving ridges, unless that effect pleases you. Apply two coats, allowing an hour to dry between coats.
Books on Handcoloring Technique (linked to Amazon.com):
- Prime your canvas using a viva paper towel or lint-free cloth. Use Marshall’s PS medium or create your own using a solution of 2 parts turpentine and 1 part safflower oil
- Wrap your skewers and toothpicks with cotton.
- Moisten a cotton ball with medium and keep it handy on a saucer
- Choose colors and arrange your palette
- Begin with the lightest areas using the largest swab you can
- Apply paint with a rotary motion, then dab and spread out the paint to leave a thin film. Don’t worry about “coloring outside the lines,” you can clean it up.
- Clean small areas like eyes using a kneaded rubber eraser worked to a point. Press and remove, then knead the eraser and shape it to produce another clean point. Don’t rub the eraser on the print--it will smear.
- For larger areas needing cleaning, use a swab that has been touched to your moistened cotton ball. Use this to “erase”, then use a clean, dry cotton ball to smooth the edge of the erased area. (Using the moistened cotton ball itself will create a hard-to-control situation.)
- Work from large areas to the smallest, and from lighter to darker.
- For darker colors, you may want to use Marshall’s Extender or mix a bit of medium with your colors.
- You can use regular oil paints on Yes! canvas, so long as they are transparent colors like Alizarin Crimson, Quinacridrone red, Yellow Iron Oxide, Red Iron Oxide, Ultramarine Blue, Viridian, Prussian Blue, Payne’s Gray, Burnt Umber or Ivory Black. Holbein Artist Paints also has a line of specially labelled transparent paints. Pebeo Paints makes photo oils too. For handcoloring on paper prints, it’s recommended you use photo oils, which are supposed to be ph neutral and won’t rot your paper.
- Colored pencils or pastel pencils can be useful for small details. Touch the pencil to your moistened cotton ball and work lightly on the print. Buff with a clean dry cotton ball.
- Most Important: Change your cotton regularly and make up plenty of swabs before beginning so you have one for each color and don’t have to break your concentration once you’ve begun painting.
Prepare canvas for handcoloring:
- Open your image file in Photoshop, crop and convert the color image to black and white by creating an adjustment layer with Channel Mixer. Click “Monochrome.” You may want to experiment with the drop down list of color filter effects to see if one of these improves the look of the image. Consider your main colors--some filters will lighten them so the final painted color will appear cleaner.
- In the Image Size dialog box, size your image to print at 240-300 dpi (save two versions of the file and experiment, you may be able to get by with less ink with a photo you’re handcoloring as opposed to a regular print.)
- Go to Canvas Size: allow a border of 1.5” around image so the canvas may be stretched, leave less border if you plan to mount the canvas. You’ll have an option to make this border white, black or you may sample a color from the image. This gives a nice effect if you want to stretch the canvas with the staples on the back and show it unframed.
- Now make your exposure adjustments using levels and curves.
- A traditional way to present a handcolored image is to vignette the photograph. To do this, use the Ellipse Selection Tool to select the part of the image you wish to feature. Now click: Select>Inverse, then Select>Refine Mask to feather the edge. Click OK. Now create an adjustment layer>Solid Color and choose white. You should have a nicely vignetted image now. You may want to duplicate this layer to increase the opacity of the vignette.
- This same feathered ellipse can be used to darken the background slightly using curves.
Using my Epson 7600 printer, I set the printer dialog box to: Photoshop Manages Colors and set the Rendering Intent to Relative Colorimetric. I use Epson’s Enhanced Matte paper setting. Click the Advanced option, choose: Super-Fine 1440, turn on Super, turn off High-Speed and select Black Ink (for handcoloring purposes). Be sure to click No Color Control under the Color Controls tab.
This canvas may print with some horizontal banding on this particular printer--it's the only printer I've used because it has the archival pigment-based inks. I have adjusted the paper feed in the paper configuration settings to -8 with good results.
Unless you buy it in sheet form (pad sizes 8.5 x 11 and up, from major online art suppliers), this canvas comes on a small-diameter cardboard tube, with the inkjet-receptive surface facing inwards. (I wish Yes! would get with it--all other inkjet canvas rolls face OUT.) You’ll need to re-roll it on a larger cardboard tube to fit the printer, facing out (a good reason to save those cardboard tubes from paper rolls!) It also must curl towards the spindle to prevent the printer head catching on the canvas edge. It will take about two days time to reverse the original curl of the canvas. But save that small tube to re-train the lead end to roll in the correct direction if you discover the canvas returning to its original shape.
Be vigilant during the printing--listen for the scratchy sound of the print head striking the canvas edge. If this happens, pause the printer and gently adjust or curl down the edge of the canvas before resuming printing. Allow canvas prints to dry at least 24 hours. Spray two coats of a sealer for digital prints, allowing an hour drying time between coats.
With just a spray sealer, the surface can be a bit rough. Some folks prefer this. If you’d rather paint on a smoother surface: wait 72 hours (after sealing prints) then apply an acrylic matte or semi-matte medium or acrylic varnish with a sponge brush or foam roller. Be careful about leaving ridges, unless that effect pleases you. Apply two coats, allowing an hour to dry between coats.
Books on Handcoloring Technique (linked to Amazon.com):
