Learning to print the perfect picture

My main concerns, when snapping photos on my phone, is whether the photo is going to be backed up and just where it’ll be backed up to. Usually I store everything on an ever-filling storage card as I snap pictures randomly through the day.

Those pictures, for the most part, aren’t fantastic. They can be shots of beer, food and days out. However, every now and then I somehow manage to take a shot that looks positively brilliant. It could be a shot of my son actually looking into the lens of the camera and smiling (instead of sticking his tongue out) or it could be a non-blurry shot of us as a family. I’m quite shocked, but it’s one of those pictures you want to show off.

Learning to print the perfect picture

If you want to put the photo into a nice frame or add them to a collage then you can either go to your local supermarket and get them printed off that way or you can print them off on your own printer. Gone are the days of sending off a roll of film and waiting weeks (anyone remember that?) – now you can do it at home.

However, if you’re printing on your home printer it can be a hit-and-miss affair. The paper is very important and can really affect how your photograph will look, however you’ll also need to ensure that you have good ink in your printer too. I vividly remember purchasing some high-quality paper and the image looked great to start with, but due to me using cheap ink it quickly faded.

Specialist photograph paper ranges in areas such as thickness, texture and finish – and it also resists fading. Mpixpro’s guide on the suitability of different papers helped me over the years and helps you choose the right sort of paper for your image.

If you’re looking for a more shiny finish, a gloss photographic paper is better, and you can print on both sides to make the most of the paper you do but. The heavyweight high opacity gloss might not be quite as thick, but you might find that it suits you better.

Learning to print the perfect picture

Different printers for different pictures

Sure, it might seem obvious, but your photo quality is also going to depend on how good your printer is. For a printer purely to produce photo after photo in quick succession, a snapshot printer would be ideal as they’re compact, portable and even can be run by battery power.

However for a high quality of image, the likes of the Epson Stylus Photo PX720WD and Canon PIXMA MG6150 are the must-haves according to reviews I’ve read. Both printers allow users to make edits and adjustments to the photograph rather than having to use a PC or laptop. For the complete home printing set up, including scanning and photocopying, the Lexmark Interpret S405 offers both high quality and the ability to use a range of specialised papers.

The face of the photography industry has dramatically changed since the introduction of digital cameras, so if you want to print the perfect image from your home you’ll need to ensure both your printer and paper choice are spot on.