Let's get physical

Are all your photos stuck on your hard drive? Mike Harris explains the many benefits of printing pictures at home…

- Mike Harris

We live in a time where almost the entire photographic process can be performed through a screen. Images are composed on electronic viewfinders, edited on computer monitors and shared via smart devices. Some images are viewed by millions of people and never get printed. Yet, the resurgence of instant cameras and the popularity of online printing outlets are proof there’s still a huge appetite for physical prints.

There’s something that’s undeniably magical about holding a photograph in your hands, or framing and hanging one on a wall. Prints are also a great way to analyse your work – they allow you to view your efforts with fresh eyes. You might notice things you missed on-screen and would do differently in the future, and you might find a photograph you’re not particularly enamoured with only reaches its true potential as a physical print.

Printing is also another way you can express your creativity. How and what you print on can become part of your style. If you don’t see yourself printing very often or simply want to dip your toes in the ink, a simple and economical way to start printing your work is via an online printer. But if you want full control over how your images look, nothing beats printing at home.

Together with the experts at Fotospeed (www.fotospeed.com), we’ve compiled this introduction to printing, to give you an idea of what equipment you’ll need and how best to get started.

We think printing is a rite of passage; every photographer owes it to themselves to see their work in print at least once.