Getting ready for summer shows? Imagine - offering prints that are already finished and ready to hang! And no glass to break or cause glare! That's what you get with our gallery-wrapped canvas giclées. Always a great value, now through May 31 we're offering an unbelievable deal to help you start the show season.

Check out these great prices:

8x10 gallery wrapped canvas - now only $45! 11x14 gallery wrapped canvas - now only $60!

If you haven't tried this service before, you are in for a treat. The canvas comes stretched around hefty 1-1/2" stretcher bars and the back is finished with an archival foam board dust cover and heavy duty D-rings and wire. And, the Special price includes the cost of printing on canvas.

The Fine Print: Offer good on previously printed canvas prints only. New images must be proofed 1st or sent in ready-to-print. If switching to canvas from another substrate, a $20 re-profiling and proofing fee may apply.

Fine Print Imaging, through its Art for Conservation program, partnered with the International League of Conservation Photographers to bring a powerful photography exhibit to Washington, DC.

The exhibit of 30 images from this project debuted April 29 at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington DC. This was the first of a series of events surrounding the Border Wall Expedition, which will be on exhibit in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, starting May 9, 2009.

According to National Geographic News, "The wall will begin just outside San Diego and run, with interruptions, to Brownsville, Texas. One chunk of the wall is to cover nearly 350 miles-virtually the entire length of the California-Arizona border with Mexico-and could have "long lasting" effects on wildlife that depend on unfettered migration corridors for survival, according to the conservation nonprofit Defenders of Wildlife, which worked with the International League of Conservation Photographers on the Rapid Assessment Visual Expedition (RAVE)."

The Climate for Life Exhibit, featuring photographs by ILCP members and printed by Fine Print Imaging through our Art for Conservation program, is now on display through July 12 in the Patio Gallery at the Desert Living Center, Springs Preserve, outside of Las Vegas, Nevada.

Climate change impacts even the most remote places rarely seen by human eyes. The visually arresting A Climate for Life exhibit accompanies a book with the same title, which is a collaboration between Conservation International and the International League of Conservation Photographers.

Photographic images portray diverse global perspectives of the effects of climate change, as photographers and authors explore the issues relating to climate change, while the book presents a clear plan of action. A Climate for Life proposes that adopting recommendations that span policy, technology and market innovations could stimulate the global economy, while providing for the well-being and security of humanity-and that alleviating climate change can grow economies, rather than stifle them.

It happened again! I talk to a group of artists about using social media like blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. I tell them that this is part of a marketing program and that, yes, it will take time. I warn them not to get sidetracked using social media and forget to go into the studio--that the studio is always the priority. Still, they grumble, whine, and make excuses. (I had spies at the lunch table after my talk!)

ALL worthwhile marketing takes time. You would love for me to hand you the name of an agent that will sweep you off your feet and whisk you off into the stars, wouldn't you? You'd prefer that you can just buy a bunch of ads or send out a single mailing and have all of your dreams come true. Yeah, that would be nice all right. But what planet are you living on?

This is Earth. April 2009. We're bombarded with hundreds of marketing messages each day. You have to learn to build meaningful relationships that will propel your career forward. You must keep your name in front of people you're in contact with. Networking online is one of the cheapest, easiest, and most effective ways to do that.

Acclaimed pastel artist, Clive R. Tyler, has announced two pastel Plein Air workshops in Winter Park, Colorado in June.

An award winning pastel artist, Clive R. Tyler currently makes his home in Taos, New Mexico. Clive was selected in January, 2009 as one of the Top Ten Artists to Collect and Watch in Southwest Art Magazine. He is the winner of six awards from the Pastel Journal in the last three years, participates in Quick Draws yearly and offers a limited number of plein air workshops each year.

Workshops are limited to 10-12 students. The workshops are relaxed, fun, full of information and one-on-one attention from Clive.

Plein air location will be in the Winter Park valley, the Frasier area and nearby locations to be announced at registration.

A supply list will be sent when you register.

Three Day Workshop - June 20 - 22. $330 Colorado Pastel Society members: $280

Two Day Workshop: June 24-25, $260 CPS members: $220 Register soon - Workshops fill quickly! Contact: Clive at clivertyler@yahoo.com or call 970-217-0385.

A $100 deposit is required at registration.

At Fine Print, we now offer a number of different options when it comes to stretching canvas giclées. All our stretched canvas giclées are stapled to the back of the stretcher bars, giving the sides a clean, staple free look. To avoid confusion when ordering stretched canvas, please let us know at time of ordering which options you would like:

Stretcher bars: 1-1/2" or 5/8"

Border options: image wrapped around sides, mirror-image border (see example, above), color border, black border or white border.

Backing options: foam board backing or no backing, hanging wire or no hanging wire.

Customer Service can help you decide which option is right for your image, and can give you an estimate as to the cost. Costs are determined by: size of image, width of stretcher bars, type of border requested, and whether or not you want the foam board backing or hanging hardware.

Keep in mind that your canvas cost will be more if you are wanting to stretch it on the 1-1/2" stretcher bars because we'll need to add a 3" border all around. The 5/8" stretcher bars require a 2" border on all four sides.

Tip#1: When signing your limited edition Lumira photographic prints or canvas giclées, use an archival pigmented ink pen such as Faber-Castell Pitt, Staedtler, Pigma Micron or Helix artist pens. For dark-colored prints, Sakura silver or gold paint pens work well. You can also try American Crafts Metallic Marker in silver or gold. Dexter recommends using a black or dark gray Berol or Prismacolor colored pencil on watercolor paper giclées.

Tip#2: For shipping original canvases, Dexter likes Air Float Systems manufacturers of Strong Boxes that come in multiple sizes with different custom foam inserts. Simply call them or visit their site and tell them where you reside and they will let you know of a dealer in your area where you can pick up a box to fit your artwork. You must give them all three dimensions (length, width and depth) of your framed piece to order the appropriate sized box. Strong boxes are a patented item and can be a bit pricey but are well worth the money to deliver your artwork safely. If you can't find a strong box in your area, a Mirror Pack Box might work for you. Mirror Pack boxes are available from moving and storage companies and are reasonably priced.