Frequently Asked Questions

In most cases, artists bring us their original artworks into our shop where we photograph them at ultra-high resolution and do professional color-matching against the original work. Once we have your artwork in the computer, along with a successful test print approved by the artist we can go ahead with your print order. In many cases all of this can be done in the same day - though occasionally an artwork does pose a bit more of a challenge in the color-matching stage. In those cases color-matching is usually done within 2 or 3 days.

Photographers will usually upload their works to bslprints.com/upload in either 16-bit TIFF or PSD format. From there we can do test prints on various types of paper for the photorgapher to choose from and then we can move ahead with the print order.

Its not a strict requirement, and we do have clients all over the USA (and even some in Canada). The advantage to coming into our shop is mostly speed of service. You can see test prints and often even your whole order in the same day if coming into the shop. For traditionally artists, bringing your original artwork into our shop (or shipping it to us) for color matching the prints is highly recommended.

We can print any size from 2" x 2" all the way up to 24" x 59ft Though, of course, the best size print for your particular work depends on a variety of factors, such as: * The aspect ratio of the original work. For example, you can make an 8" x 10" print from a 16" x 20" painting without having to crop or distort the work but if you want to make a 9" x 12" print from a 16" x 20" painting you will have to either cut about half an inch off the width or stretch the image. We have a guide below on how different sizes scale. * The resolution of the image. If we are printing from a photo that we took as part of our Digitization Service then this will never be an issue. If we are printing from an image that you have sent us, we can let you know the maximum size that we recommend. * The paper you would like to use. Most of the papers and canvas we use are available to us on 24" rolls that are 40-100 ft in length. A couple of paper types, however, are only available up to certain sizes like 13" x 19". The pages about our different paper types list the maximum size for that paper.

Works within the same aspect ratio can scale between each other with no (or minimal) need for cropping or distortion. Find the size of your original work in this list, and every other size in that aspect ratio will typically work. 1:1 - 4x4, 6x6, 8x8, 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, etc. 1.25:1 - 4x5, 8x10, 11x14, 16x20, 20x25, 24x30, 28x35, 32x40, 36x45, 40x50 1.33:1 - 6x8, 9x12, 12x16, 15x20, 18x24, 21x28, 24x32, 27x36, 30x40, 36x48 1.4:1 - 5x7, 10x14, 15x21, 20x28, 25x35, 30x42, 40x56 1.5:1 - 4x6, 6x9, 8x12, 10x15, 12x18, 14x21, 16x24, 18x27, 20x30, 22x33, 24x36, 30x45 2:1 - 4x8, 5x10, 6x12, 8x16, 10x20, 12x24, 15x30, 16x32, 20x40, 22x44, 24x48, etc

11" x 14" Its an easy to frame size. If you add a 1/4" or 1/2" border you can buy frames with pre-cut mats and frames are readily available at Walmart, Target, etc. Its also big enough that people can see the details without being so big that people start thinking they need a special place to put it. For square prints, 12" x 12" and 10" x 10" are the most popular. Of the two, 12" x 12" tend to have more pre-made frame options especially on Amazon. For long rectanglar prints, 12" x 24" and 10" x 20" are the most common sizes.

We offer custom matting service and we keep a wide variety of colors in stock, including a large stock of plain white. Many clients preparing for art festivals or shows will order some with plain white double mats and some with a variety of colors to appeal to different collectors. Currently we only offer matting service, but not framing. We are currently looking into options for standard size frames.