Before You Print Your Art: 7 Decisions That Matter More Than Most Artists Realize
By Cassie Stone, Founder of REvisART ยท
By Cassie Stone
Making prints of your artwork can look deceptively simple from the outside.
Choose an image. Upload a file. Pick a size and paper. Order prints.
But the artists who build strong print offerings usually make a lot more decisions before they ever place a full order.
I do not think every original needs to become a print. I also do not think the biggest possible size, the most textured paper, or the lowest production cost automatically leads to the best product. Printing is not just a production decision. It is an art, product, and business decision.
Here are seven questions I think artists should consider before turning an original into a reproduction.
1. Just Because an Original Sells Does Not Mean It Will Make a Great Print
A best-selling original can feel like the obvious first choice for reproduction. Sometimes it is. Sometimes it is not. The more useful question is: Why did people respond to the original? Was it the composition? The color palette? The subject matter?
Or was the magic tied to something physical, like heavy texture, metallic paint, dimensional elements, or the scale of the original?
Those things matter because reproduction changes the way the viewer experiences the artwork. If the composition and color carry the piece, it may translate beautifully into print. But if the work relies heavily on surface, texture, or dimension, you may find that something important gets lost. That does not mean the artwork is unsuccessful. It simply means it may be more successful as an original than as a reproduction.
Before choosing what to print, ask: What is doing the heavy lifting in this artwork, and will that survive reproduction?
2. A Proof That Exposes a Problem Is Doing Its Job
Artists sometimes feel disappointed when their first proof is not exactly what they expected. I see it differently. A proof is not just a confirmation step. It is a decision-making tool.
Maybe the shadows feel too heavy, a subtle color suddenly looks much stronger on paper, small details disappear, or the crop feels different once you are holding the print in your hands. Those are all things you want to discover before ordering a larger quantity. Finding an issue on one proof is useful information. Finding the same issue after you have purchased 25 prints is inventory.
When reviewing a proof, do not only ask whether it matches your computer screen. Ask whether it still feels like your artwork, whether you would feel comfortable signing it, whether you would feel confident selling it, and whether you would want a collector to experience your work this way. That is what proofing is really for.
3. A Technically Correct File Can Still Produce the Wrong Print
There is a major difference between a file being technically printable and the finished reproduction being successful. Your file may have the correct dimensions, be high resolution, use the right format, and check every technical box. And the print can still feel wrong.
That is because buyers do not experience artwork as a list of specifications. They experience color, contrast, detail, scale, mood, and visual hierarchy. When artwork moves from a screen to a physical substrate, those relationships can change. A dark area may lose separation, a subtle element may suddenly become dominant, a color shift can alter the overall feeling of the piece, or fine detail can become less noticeable.
Technical file preparation matters tremendously, but it is only one part of the process. The better question is not only, "Can I print this?" It is, "Is this the version of the artwork I want someone to buy?"
4. Choose the Paper for the Artwork, Not the Other Way Around
Artists love paper. I understand why. There is something incredibly satisfying about a beautiful textured sheet or a soft cotton rag paper. But your favorite paper is not automatically the right choice for every image.
Paper becomes part of the reproduction, and texture introduces another visual element. For some work, that can add warmth, softness, and character. For other work, especially pieces with very fine detail, intricate marks, or already-busy surfaces, additional texture can compete with the image. A smoother surface may allow those details to reproduce more clearly.
Neither option is universally better. The goal is to choose the material that supports the artwork. Instead of asking, "Which paper do I like the most?" try asking, "Which paper makes this particular image look the strongest?" That small change in thinking can make a big difference in the final product.
5. You Do Not Have to Turn an Entire Collection Into Prints
If you release a collection of eight originals, you do not automatically need eight reproductions. Your original collection and your print collection can serve different purposes, and I often prefer starting with a smaller group of strong print candidates.
I would look for pieces that get a strong immediate response, translate well at smaller sizes, do not depend entirely on physical texture or dimensional elements, represent your body of work clearly, and make sense as an introduction to your art for a new buyer.
Then test them. Which images sell? Which sizes get reordered? What are buyers responding to? Real purchasing behavior can tell you far more than guessing which pieces will become the favorites.
There is nothing wrong with launching three strong prints from a collection of ten originals. That is not an incomplete offering. It is an edited one, and editing can save you from investing in inventory that buyers never asked for.
6. The Biggest Size Your File Can Handle Is Not Necessarily the Best Size to Sell
Artists often ask me, "How large can I print this file?" That is an important technical question, but there is another question that matters just as much: "How large should this artwork be printed?" Those answers are not always the same.
As a print gets larger, the viewer experiences it differently. Small details become more noticeable, brush marks become larger visual elements, soft areas take up more space, and tiny imperfections in the source file can become easier to see. Some compositions simply feel more intimate and intentional at a smaller scale, while other pieces come alive when enlarged.
The goal is not to make every image as large as technically possible. The goal is to find the sizes where the artwork still feels intentional. Technical capability sets the boundary. The artwork should help determine where inside that boundary you actually want to sell.
7. Your Printing Cost Is Not Your Pricing Strategy
Production cost matters. You need to know what it costs to produce, package, and fulfill your prints, but your printer's quote should not automatically determine the value of your product. I think of production cost as a floor, not the whole pricing strategy.
From there, I would look at the rest of the picture. What do your originals sell for? What size is the print? Is it an open edition or a limited edition? Where does the print sit within your overall product offering? Who is the buyer, and what role does this product play in your business?
For many collectors, a print is their first opportunity to own work from an artist they admire. That makes prints an important entry point, but accessible does not have to mean undervalued. Your print pricing should make sense in relationship to the rest of your work. Production cost is one input. It is not the entire strategy.
Printing Should Be a Decision, Not Just a Transaction
The strongest print offerings are usually not created by uploading every available image, choosing the largest possible size, and ordering inventory. They are built through a series of smaller decisions: which work translates, which paper serves the image, what the proof revealed, what size actually works, which pieces should launch first, and how the print should sit alongside the original.
Those are the decisions that turn a reproduction into a product you can confidently put your name on. And that is the role I want REvisART to play for artists. I am not only here to put ink on paper. I am here to help artists think through the process of turning their artwork into reproductions that feel intentional, professional, and ready to sell.
Start With a Proof
If you are considering prints but are not ready to commit to inventory, start small. A proof gives you the chance to see your artwork off-screen, evaluate the image on paper, and make decisions before committing to a larger run.
At REvisART, artists can order an archival proof for $5. Sometimes the most valuable thing a first print can tell you is not that everything is perfect. It is what you should do next.
Your first archival 8 by 10 proof is $5 plus shipping with code FIRSTPROOF.