What file do you need for a giclée print?

A TIFF or high-quality JPEG at 300 dpi at final print size is ideal, in Adobe RGB or sRGB with the profile embedded. Send what you have — we check resolution before quoting and tell you honestly if an upscale will hold up.

Can I see a proof before the full run?

Yes. We send a soft proof by email or WhatsApp, and a physical strip or sample print can be posted for colour-critical work. Nothing goes into a full run until the proof is approved.

What is the minimum order?

One. There is no minimum — a single print is a normal order. Pricing per unit improves at roughly ten, fifty and one hundred pieces, and we quote the tier you actually need.

Do you offer white-label and drop-ship?

Yes. Prints can ship unbranded with your own packing slip, direct to your customer, with no studio paperwork in the box. Useful for artists and online sellers running their own storefronts.

How long do archival pigment prints last?

On genuine archival cotton rag or poly-cotton canvas with pigment inks, prints are rated for decades under normal indoor conditions and away from direct sunlight. We specify the media used on your invoice so you know exactly what you are selling or hanging.

Can you print and then hand-paint over it?

Yes — this is a Dafen speciality. A giclée base can be hand-embellished with oil so the surface carries real brush texture. It sits between a print and a painting in both cost and appearance, and we quote it as its own option.

Fine Art Giclée Printing — Archival Pigment Prints & Canvas from Dafen, Shenzhen

Print or paint

Two different products, honestly compared

We sell both, so we have no reason to oversell either. Here is the straight comparison — the one we give buyers who ask which they should choose.

	Fine art giclée print	Hand-painted oil painting
Surface	Flat, even, photographic	Real brush texture, catches light
From a photograph	Exact reproduction of the file	Interpreted by a painter, can be improved
Best for	Photography, drawings, digital art, editions	Portraits, masterwork copies, feature walls
Identical repeats	Yes — every copy matches	No — each canvas differs slightly by hand
Lead time	Days	Weeks
Cost at scale	Lowest	Higher, and worth it for the surface
Combine both	Print the base, then hand-embellish in oil — quoted as its own option

Not sure which suits your project? Send the image and the room, and we will say which one we would buy.

Upload · Proof · Print

Three steps, four if you want a sample

The whole point of the proof stage is that you never discover a colour problem after a hundred prints are already boxed.

Upload

Send the file by WhatsApp, email or a transfer link, with the size, quantity and media you have in mind. We check resolution and come back with a price and an honest note on how large it will go.

Proof

Soft proof sent for approval. For colour-critical work we post a physical strip or a small sample print first, so you are judging ink on the actual paper rather than a screen.

Print

Printed with pigment inks on the media you approved, then inspected individually. Canvas is stretched or rolled; paper is trimmed to size and interleaved.

Deliver

Packed flat or rolled in a tube, boxed for postal networks or crated for freight. Your label or ours, direct to your customer or to your studio.

Media

What we print on

Four working categories. If you have a specific brand or a house paper you always use, tell us — we will source it or tell you honestly that we cannot.

Archival cotton rag paper

Natural white, acid-free, heavy weight. The default choice for photography, drawing reproduction and limited editions that need to be archivable.

Gallery look

Poly-cotton canvas

Matte or satin, printable and then stretchable onto bars. Used when the finished piece needs to hang unframed like a painting, or be hand-embellished afterwards.

Depth and gloss

Baryta & semi-gloss

For black-and-white photography and images that need a deeper black than matte paper delivers. Handles contrast well; shows fingerprints more easily.

Contemporary

Metallic & textured

Surfaces with a sheen or a tooth, for work that is meant to catch light or read as something other than a flat print.

Inks are pigment-based for permanence. The exact media, weight and finish used on your job are listed on your invoice, so what you sign off is what you get.

Who uses this

Four kinds of print order

The service is the same; the brief is what changes.

Artists & illustrators

Limited editions

Your work printed as a numbered edition, unbranded, with or without certificates. Ship to you in bulk or drop-shipped one at a time as you sell them.

Photographers

Colour-critical prints

Proofed against the media you will actually sell on, so the print you approve is the print your client receives. Sizes up to the file's honest limit.

Hospitality & interiors

Volume for projects

Dozen or hundreds of the same image for corridors, guest rooms and restaurants. Priced by tier, packed to a schedule, and matched to the room's palette.

Online sellers

White-label drop-ship

No studio paperwork in the box, your own packing slip, shipped straight to your customer. Useful if you run a storefront and would rather not hold stock.

Sizes & finishes

Standard sizes, or yours exactly

Common sizes are below. Anything outside them is quoted on request — including very large single pieces and panelled sets.

Paper

A4 · 21 × 29.7 cm8.3 × 11.7 in
A3 · 29.7 × 42 cm11.7 × 16.5 in
A2 · 42 × 59.4 cm16.5 × 23.4 in
A1 · 59.4 × 84.1 cm23.4 × 33.1 in
A0 · 84.1 × 118.9 cm33.1 × 46.8 in
Custom trimOn request

Canvas

40 × 50 cm16 × 20 in
50 × 70 cm20 × 28 in
60 × 90 cm24 × 35 in
80 × 120 cm31 × 47 in
100 × 150 cm39 × 59 in
Panelled setsOn request

Add a border for stretching or mounting, hand-embellishment in oil, or stretcher bars and framing — all quoted separately so you can choose.

Questions

What print buyers ask

What resolution do you need?

300 dpi at the final print size is comfortable, 180 dpi is usually acceptable for large canvas viewed from a distance. Send the file and we will tell you the honest maximum size before you pay anything.

Can you colour-match to something I already have?

Yes, within the limits of the media. Send a reference print, a swatch or a Pantone and we will aim for it on the proof. Perfect matches across different paper stocks are not always possible and we will say so rather than promise it.

Do prints come with certificates?

On request. For numbered editions we can supply certificates with edition number, media and date, either with our studio details or plain with yours.

How are prints packed?

Paper is interleaved and shipped flat in a rigid mailer, or rolled in a tube for large sizes. Canvas is rolled with a protective layer, or stretched and boxed. Bulk orders are cartonised and palletised for freight.

Can you print artwork I intend to sell?

Yes, provided you hold the rights to the image. We ask you to confirm ownership of the file before a commercial run — it protects you as much as us.

Is hand-embellishment worth it?

For large canvases seen up close, usually yes: it removes the flatness that gives prints away. For small pieces behind glass, it makes little difference. We will tell you which case yours is.

The Dafen Authority

Printed in the same village that paints the originals — so both options are on the table.

Proofed Soft proof as standard, physical sample for colour-critical work.

Archival Pigment inks on acid-free cotton rag or poly-cotton canvas.

Flexible No minimum, white-label, drop-ship, hand-embellishment available.

Real studio & warehouse in Dafen — visit us in Shenzhen Preview before the full run Tracked worldwide shipping

Get a print quote

Send the file, get a number

Tell us the size, quantity and media — or say you are not sure, and we will recommend. Quotes within 24 hours.

Chat on WhatsApp — Instant Quote Wholesale & projects

Prefer email? dafenarthub@gmail.com · Trade enquiries: trade@dafenarthub.com

Archival prints,
proofed before they run.