On-site Printing

We use Sinfonia (Shinko) dye-sublimation printers for events. This technology the best for printing photos as it can produce continuous shades of colour (not discrete pixels like inkjet or laser printers).

These produce a 20*30cm (8*10 inch) or 20*30cm (8*12 inch) archival quality matte or glossy print in about 40 seconds, and when several units are combined combined we can offer a sustained printing capacity of over 400 prints per hour if required. The printers are rated for continuous (all day) operation, so we can cater for large events easily. Once we know the number of photos you require, and a rough time period needed to produce prints we can determine how many printers are required for your event, and plan accordingly.

The print size you need will vary according to what else is happening at your event. If you are offering signed autographs, producing 8*10 inch prints is best, as this matches the standard print size used for autograph signing. If you need photos of large numbers of people, then the wider prints can be handy. However the media is hard wired to produce a fixed print size for an entire run, so the decision has to be made well before the event. We recommend 8*10s, as they fit into any common A4 binder or plastic sleeve, making them far more convenient to carry.

Please note that the quote you will be provided for an event will have a minimum charge, based on the fact that the media for above printers comes in rolls of 120 or 240 prints. So it is cheaper to have fewer printers in operation, even if it might take a little longer to get the results.

The key point here is that we provide prints as fast as we can take the photos.

What do we need to Print at your Event?

Offering on-site printing has few requirements - just table space and mains power.

Each printer takes up about a half of a typical hotel tressle table (they need to be spaced apart for easy access, retrieval of prints and to keep them cool). The most common arrangement is two printers with the laptop that controls them, and misc' equipment across two tables.

Power requirements are only an issue if you require us to run a booth at an exhibition centre where an electrician must hookup power to the booth specifically. In this instance we generally ask for two or three 10amp power leads (this can power the lights, 2 - 4 printers, plus other equipment like laptops, rechargers...etc without any risk of a brown-out or a circuit fault)

If we are just providing a print service for your event, please note we require JPG files - not RAW images from your photographer. This avoids any issues dealing with the myriad brand and model specific RAW file formats that exist.

Adding Logos or Overlays to your Prints

Our custom printing software can add your event logo to the bottom corner of each print as they are generated. We can include other details like the photo number, or any text that you would like to include. We recommend these are kept small and unobtrusive.

You can also choose to use a photo overlay, which typically acts as a border for the entire photo. This is common for themed events and requires that the number of people in each photo be kept to 2 or 3 so they aren't accidentally obscured by the overlay graphic.

If you want to do either of these you need to provide the logo or design a few weeks before the event so we can ensure they print correctly on the day. It allows us time to discuss technical requirements such as file formats, pixel resolution and others with your graphic artists.

Note that these graphics are added to the photo during the print cycle; our software can keep a copy of the original image if required.

Offering Reprints at your Event

Offering on-site printing also allows us to offer your customers the chance to purchase reprints immediately.

If you intend to run events regularly, then we can also offer customers a chance to purchase reprints from your prior events as well. Regulars at events we operate at have supported this because if they lose or damage a photo taken previously, they know it will be possible to print another copy.

Note: if you require logos to be added to prints, we will follow your direction regarding making sure that the same logos are also added to reprints.