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Archival: Archival framing materials have conservation quality set by the standards of the Library of Congress, indicating their ability to last a lifetime and beyond. Pictureframes.com uses archival ink, offers rag mats and several different types of print surfaces that are archival. Additionally, we are happy to look into other materials that support your conservation framing needs.
NOTE: Even the finest materials can be compromised by extremes in temperature, moisture and exposure to sunlight.
Archival Ink: These advanced pigments last a lifetime. The Epson printers at pictureframes.com use only archival inks to delight our most selective customers.
 Archival Paper: These special papers are professional grade and always acid-free -- often made entirely of 100% cotton rag. Choose from Premium Archival Matte, Crescent Satin, Crescent Velvet, Crescent Cold Press Watercolor paper, both our Fredrix Canvas surfaces and our Hahnemuehle Photo Rag, when seeking archival quality print surfaces. For those seeking conservation quality papers, our 100% cotton rag surfaces are the perfect choice.
Certificates of Authenticity: You will receive a free Certificate of Authenticity with each print ordered as part of an edition at pictureframes.com. This document adds value to your art because it confirms the authenticity, quantity and other details of your edition. Typically, Certificates of Authenticity are signed by the artist and given to the client who purchases a print from an edition.
 Digital Archiving: Pictureframes.com archives your editions, at no charge, as a way to save you time, money and worry. Your images and reproduction specifications, such as inks, sizes and tables, are saved onto a CD-ROM, enabling you to bypass the proofing process when reprinting and ensuring that all prints match one another, maintaining their stunning original qualities.
Digital File: Also referred to as the print file, this is the data from which editions are printed. It is also the file that is archived for future printing of editions, containing specifications of color, cropping, etc., so that every print in your edition maintains the same visual qualities, regardless of when each print was created.
Digital Images: Digital images are produced from scanned images or photographs taken with a digital camera. They can be read by a computer and sent to pictureframes.com, among other destinations. Uploading your digital images via our Editions portal is the most efficient and least expensive way to begin an edition.
 D.P.I. (dots per inch): The d.p.i. is a measurement of detail. A digital image is broken down into tiny dots. As registered onscreen, they’re known as pixels. The more pixels there are, the more detail and clarity is in the print. Thus, the higher your d.p.i. (which also means the higher your resolution), the more stunning your finished print will be when doing significant enlargements. Also referred to as p.p.i. (pixels per inch).
Edition: The reproductions printed from one image are collectively called an edition. Editions can be open or limited.
File Format: A file format indicates how a computer document is encoded. Pictureframes.com accepts digital files in two different file formats -- .jpegs and .tiffs -- in Adobe 1998 RGB color space.
High-Resolution Image: A digital image containing a large amount of data. Typically, images are considered high-resolution if they have a minimum of 300 d.p.i./p.p.i., when set at the desired print size (NOTE: for example, a digital file that is 300 d.p.i. at 5”x7” won’t contain enough data to print at 16”x20”). These images produce the most stunning results, in the creation of an edition.
High-Resolution Scan: A sophisticated scan used to capture every detail of a fine image. At pictureframes.com, we scan images at 4,800 dpi resolution for outstanding size and clarity of your image.
Limited Edition: Limited editions have a predetermined number of prints that will be produced – most often ranging from 25 to 250 prints. This predetermined limitation on quantity, enhances the value of each print, making them ideal for art collectors. Typically, limited edition prints include the artist’s signature and an indication of the print size and number (e.g. 17/250 = the 17th print in an edition of 250) on the front of the print.
Open Edition: Open edition prints have no limit on how many prints will be produced, enabling an image to be reprinted in perpetuity and/or as demand warrants it. Most often, images designated for an open edition are intended for a commercial audience (e.g. to be hung in department stores, a chain of cafés, etc.), as well as individual art lovers.
Pixel: Pixels are the building blocks of a digital image. Each represents a single dot of color (or the absence of it).
 Pixelation: This describes the poor quality of prints made from low resolution image files. The resulting image is grainy and not practical for reproductions. Caused by using digital files with limited amounts of data (less than 300 d.p.i./p.p.i.) to create significant enlargements, we recommend that the digital files, of your artwork, with which you supply us, have a minimum of 300 d.p.i./p.p.i. All digital files we produce from photographing or scanning your artwork adhere to this same minimum and will often have even greater pixel counts, ensuring a stunning edition.
Printer’s Proof: The printer’s proof is made to evaluate how your image has transferred from digital file to print. Pictureframes.com sends you the proof to review and send back with any requested changes before editions printing begins.
 Printmaker: While using the finest inks and papers, and the latest equipment are all integral in the creation of a beautiful print, it’s the Printmaker, at the helm, who ensures that his symphony of tools all work in concert, for the most spectacular output. William Tiemann, the acclaimed head of our printmaking team(our Master Giclee Printmaker) at pictureframes.com, oversees the skillful creation of giclee prints from a digital image using Epson 9600 ultra chrome printers and adjusts color to your specifications, during the proofing process.
Rag Mat: Rag mats are made entirely of cotton fibers, which makes them ideal for conservation framing. At pictureframes.com, we carry 5 different colors of rag mats and are happy to look into additional ones, on your behalf, to ensure that your finished presentation exceeds your expectations.
 Resolution: In digital terms, resolution refers to the density of data in a digital file. In general, the higher the resolution of a digital file, the more information it contains and the more stunning the final print will be when creating enlargements. In print terms, resolution refers to the level of detail in a print that’s been produced, measured in d.p.i. (dots per inch). A highly detailed print has high resolution – and a tight dot pattern – while a print with little detail has low resolution – and a looser dot pattern.
 Scanning: A process used to change transparencies, negatives, prints or originals into digital files. A lamp illuminates the original and reflected light passes through an array of lenses, mirrors and filters (where it’s broken into component colors) onto a CCD (charge-coupled device) which is sensitive to different intensities of light. The CCD records packets of image data which are reconstructed into a whole image by the scanner software.
Substrate: The substrate is the material upon which a print is created. At pictureframes.com, we have several different fine-art quality papers and canvas, in stock. As always, we'll happily look into aquiring another substrate, on your behalf, if that’s what you prefer, so your prints can be all that you’d like them to be.
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