Putting My Money Where My Mouth Is – Big iPhone Prints

The full-frame mafia will probably want to take a hit out on me, but I’m old and can’t live forever so – well – here goes.

I have been advocating for people to use the camera they have with them, whatever it may be, to make images that tell a story or represent a memory or show a personal point of view.

In my case, I have been using my iPhone almost exclusively (outside a few cinema jobs where I have to use specific cameras according to a production agreement) and I remain constantly impressed with the quality of the images I can capture using nothing more than a smartphone.

I am working with a gallery – (more on that later) to do a show of my iPhone images and when I mean show I mean gallery-quality, big prints. 30 to 40 inches on the longest side – and yes – from an iPhone.

I will eventually be selling these prints in very limited editions of 25 each and using the proceeds to help fund wildlife conservation. But for now I will talk about the process.

I am working with WhiteWall printing service located in Germany. They are the gold standard for gallery printing and I trust them to bring my images to life in the form of very high-quality prints.

I got the first test print back from them and I am impressed with what they can do. 30 to 40 inches on the longest side on photo paper? Most people don’t think it can be done. Most people are wrong.

Lots of people print big on canvas. That is a secret that I openly share. Printing big on canvas is easy because it hides a lot of flaws. But printing on photo paper. . . under glass? That’s a whole different animal.

I put the 25″ x 40″ print on my reading chair to give you a sense of scale…

The first image in the set is shown here. It’s called “Tranquility At The Flight Deck Pond” and it is of course from Bosque del Apache, National Wildlife Refuge.

I am having a set of prints made from images I took using one of my iPhones. These images will all be between 30 and 40″ on the longest side. They will all be gallery quality. They will be exposed using the latest laser technology and then traditionally developed before they are printed using a photographic process on Fuji Crystal DP II paper. They will then be set behind acrylic glass with a durable silicone seal. This protects against bubbles or flaws caused by changes in temperature or humidity. It’s much more expensive than the adhesives used in most American photo labs. The acrylic glass has built-in UV protection and is nearly unbreakable.

The prints are ready to hang with sturdy aluminum Dibond backing and have mounting hardware suitable for any type of wall mount.

This process is detailed, extensive, by-hand, and expensive. It shows my commitment to treating images made with the iPhone in the same manor I would treat any of my serious photography.

I will publicize the gallery showing 60 days before it takes place, hopefully before the end of 2022 but certainly early in 2023 at the latest. There will be seven images in the entire collection. Each one made using the exact same process I just described.

Stay tuned for more. Remember, to get “professional results” out of your iPhone, treat it like a “real camera.” And that also goes for the prints you make from the iPhone too.