Jane Mansfield & Sofia Loren Iconic Image

This iconic image of Jayne Mansfield and Sophia Loren came in other day from a wonderful client. Needless to say we were so excited to frame this beautiful image. This image was taken at a party at Paramount Pictures in Hollywood. Loren is quoted as saying:

"Paramount had organized a party for me. All of cinema was there, it was incredible. And then comes in Jayne Mansfield, the last one to come. For me, that was when it got amazing. . . . She came right for my table. She knew everyone was watching. She sat down. And now, she was barely . . . Listen. Look at the picture. Where are my eyes? I’m staring at her nipples because I am afraid they are about to come onto my plate. In my face you can see the fear. I’m so frightened that everything in her dress is going to blow—BOOM!—and spill all over the table." Full article in Vanity Fair Magazine.

Agnieszka Sosnowska- Icelandic Self Portraits

Agnieszka Sosnowska is a talented photographer that we have been lucky to work with for the past several years. She has been very busy lately and get have been able to assist her with silver gelatin fiber printing and digital scans and prints. She was born in Poland, raise in Boston and currently resides in Iceland. Her everyday life in Iceland is the subject of her beautiful portfolio.

Recently, she was featured in CNN's online Living Section. James K. White writes "Her life in Iceland looks, well, brutal. But she allows her audience glimpses of her feminine and playful side, too."

We had an opportunity to assist her for an exhibition at the Reykjavik Museum of Photography titled "Verksummerki/ Traces of Life". We received these beautiful images from the artist. Make sure to check out her portfolio of images on her website!

Girls, Guns and Glory - Pledge Music

Girls Guns and Glory is local band raising money for a new band through the Pledge Music Project! As a reward, the band is offering limited edition posters from their first album cover.

We are happy to lend a hand in the printing and framing of this original artwork, and hope you'll support the band and others like them in making the world a more interesting place. Check it!

Vintage Performer Digital Restoration

We loved this restoration project!!! This was a clients mother was a actress and performer. He loved the images and couldn't wait to share them with his family.

Michael Hintlian- Big Dig Photographs

Michael Hintlian's "Big Dig Photographs" opening is tomorrow Thursday, June 11th from 5:30-7:30pm. Stop by the Paul Dietrich Gallery at the Cambridge Seven Associates to view these photographs. The show will run thru September 11th. Hope to see you there!

Panoptivan- Delivery Van

We are so excited to share this news. WE NOW HAVE A DELIVERY VAN!!!

Check it out! We have a delivery van that can accommodate images up to 56×70 inches in width! We can make deliveries on request to Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont.

We are so proud of our PanoptiVAN!

Nubar Alexanian- When the Fish Came First

We had the pleasure of working with the talented Nubar Alexanian for this upcoming exhibition "When The Fish Came First". The show runs May 28th - June 28th with an opening reception on Thursday, May 28th from 6:30-8:00pm at the Rocky Neck Art Colony. This is a wonderful opportunity to meet with the artist and view his beautiful works.

When The Fish Came First Gloucester Photographs by Nubar Alexanian

Rocky Neck Art Colony- The Cultural Center Gallery 6 Wonson Street, Gloucester, MA 01930

Artists Reception Thursday, May 28, 6:30­-8:00 PM

Press Release: The Rocky Neck Art Colony is pleased to announce the exhibition: When The Fish Came First, Nubar Alexanian’s photographs of Gloucester, opening May 28 and running through June 28, 2015 at the Cultural Center Gallery, 6 Wonson Street, Gloucester. Spanning forty years, the exhibit features a stunning series of color photographs originally published in GEO magazine in 1981 and never before exhibited. For this work, taken over an eighteen month period, Alexanian accompanied the Brancaleone family of Gloucester on four ten­ day trips to Georges Bank aboard the Joseph & Lucia II. It is the most comprehensive contemporary document of commercial fishing in New England before its steep decline.

While the Joseph and Lucia series forms the heart of this collection, the exhibition’s upland component features large format black and white panoramas juxtaposed with images of everyday life and the intimate and collective rituals that give Gloucester its unique character. “In his fish photos Alexanian finds a metaphor of the people of Gloucester ­ endangered, atavistic, communal ­ and they're as riveting as they are forlorn." Christopher Millis, The Boston Phoenix When The Fish Came First is a watershed one-­person exhibition that should not be missed.

One Stop Shopping for Exhibition Production

What is one stop shopping for exhibition production? Here at Panopticon Imaging we can assist you with all phases of your exhibition from file upload, paper selection, printing, scanning, image editing, image sequencing, framing consultation, custom box building and delivery! Planning an exhibition is exciting and nerve-wracking.  We work directly with you to make the production process as stress free as we can.

To start all you have to do is upload your images to our website. We can also create a secure FTP login for you, if you are printing over 10 large files ( over 10GB).  Most recently we have worked with the Flash Forward Festival to produce the exhibition "Boston: Irish" for Boston photographer Bill Brett.

Framing doesn't have to be a daunting task. We have a vast variety of mounting, matting and frame moldings for you to choose from. We are more than happy to assist in selecting the frame that will highlight your artwork and convey your visual aesthetic.

Once the exhibition is all framed. We take meticulous care of every photograph by individually wrapping and photo cornering the images. Also, on large scale shows we can mark each image with the thumbnail print out on the outside wrapping. This makes the installing easier as you can sort all of the images.

Also, we can create all kinds of boxes for photographs. Are they getting shipped? Or transported on a van for local delivery? We do not buy pre-made boxes instead we customize everything for you. Each box is built by hand to ensure that your images arrive in perfect condition. We created half boxes for these images for delivery to Boston. This will protect the images from shifting during transport.

We have a delivery van that can accommodate images up to 56x70 inches in width! We can make deliveries on request to Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Here at Panopticon we try and make it as easy as possible for so you can enjoy your opening! For more information on Bill Brett's work check out his website here.

Time Capsule in a Chocolate Box

We had some wonderful clients come in with their parents/grandparents film collection from 1946 Berlin. Close to 50 rolls of Kodak and Agfa film. They were stored in a wooden chocolate box for close to 70 years! It was like opening up a time capsule.

The film was all neatly marked with location and dates. None of the film was damaged except the paper wrapping was brittle to the touch. It was wonderful to hear the stories of the film and the travels of the clients father. We will make sure to post images as we develop them!

Digital Photo Restoration

We are always up for a challenge when it comes to our restorations. We recently had a client come in with a request to repair one of the few images they had from the Vietnam War. We were able to digitally remove all of the cracks and improve the overall color. The client was very happy that were able to bring so much life back to his treasured image.

This photograph was over 100 years old and was badly damaged by years of creasing and cracking. The emulsion was totally removed in many areas. Our determined Digital Techs went to work to remove all of the damage and even had to re-create a portion of the seated woman's face. It was no easy task but the image looks beautiful and the client was beyond impressed.

We enjoy restoring and bringing these images back from years of dust and dirt. Not only we do get to share in the history of these images but we bring new life to them for a new generation to enjoy.

Stop by Panopticon Imaging or give us a call at 781-740-1300.

Staff Intro: Nick Schietromo - Framer Extraordinaire

Nick Schietromo is our framer and has been with Panopticon for about 2 years! When you visit the office he can be seen working behind our professional matting and framing table. He is very meticulous, thorough framer and a talented photographer too!

One of things that sets us apart from other companies is that almost all of the staff here are working artists. Nick's work has been exhibited in such galleries as the Nave Gallery, New York Center for Photographic Arts,  The Photographic Resource Center , Gallery at Panopticon Imaging and the Vermont Center for Photography. Not to mention he was an Honorable Selection for the 2015 Magenta Foundation - Flash Forward. Also, we share Nick with Gallery Kayafas where he is the Assistant to the Director. Any questions concerning printing and framing presentation are welcomed and returned with valuable insight from Nick.

https://vimeo.com/112804347

Some facts about Nick. He loves cult classics,  collecting vintage images at the Brimfield Antique Show,  snacks, tattoos and vinyl records.

Flash Forward- Container Show & Fence

Flash Forward Festival Boston and the Rose F. Kennedy Greenway invite you to the Festival’s closing party. Six shipping containers featuring the work of Gregor Schmatz, Daesung Lee and David Magnusson will be on display, along with the Photoville Fence and a special New England Photographers Fence on Cross Street. We are proud sponsors and printers for the Flash Forward Festival. Check out these great local, national and international photographers featured!

Film is Not Dead

Did you know that we process Black and White Film? Paul & Liz are happy that the whole world has not gone digital. We can process 35 mm, 120, 220, 4x5, 5x7 and 8x10 sheet film!

We have a 13 tank Kreonite Dip and Dunk Black and White film Processor. We love this machine and let me tell you why. Our machine has constant agitation which leads to even & consistent film development. While alternative processes like Hand-line processing and rotary processors have very inconsistent agitation which can cause tonal variations in your film. Our Dip and Dunk minimizes handling which will prevent surface scratches which can happen on roller transport machines. Not to mention they have simple mechanics and are constructed to run 24 hours a day so they are robust machines!

Being photographers ourselves we take the utmost respect when handling your film. We meticulously handle each roll and will cut or not cut your film according to your specifications. We will accommodate special processing instructions too! #filmisnotdeadfriday

Flash Forward Festival

The countdown begins, only two days till the Flash Forward Festival begins! We are proud sponsors of the festival and we are happy to have printed some of the exhibitions (Incubator, Boston: Irish, Purity, Humanae, Futuristic Archeology, Toy Stories, While Strolling Up Larchmont & Amerikanare) not to mention the countless artists we worked with for framing. It is 10 days of exhibitions, openings and talks showcasing International and New England artists.

Check out there full schedule of events for times/date for openings all over the city!

Dates: April 24–May 3, 2015

Elizabeth Ellenwood - Boston Globe Review

WE ARE SO PROUD OF ELIZABETH ELLENWOOD!!! Our darkroom tech received a wonderful review of her show "Of Light and Line" by Boston Globe Art Critic Mark Feeney! The show is currently on exhibition at the Danforth Art Museum thru May 17th.

We have been fortunate enough to have this talented artist on our staff for 3 years now. Watching her grow as an artist and see her print work in our darkroom has been wonderful experience & process to watch.

For the full article check it out here.

Johanthan Hansen- Cuba From a Different Angle

We recently had the wonderful opportunity to print and frame Jonathan Hansen's entire exhibition! His work will be on display the Belmont Gallery of Art. The exhibition run from April 10 – May 15, 2015. There is an upcoming Gallery talk with the Artist, April 30, 7:30pm.

Jonathan Hansen is a Senior Lecturer on Social Studies and Faculty Associate, David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies at Harvard University, is currently working on a biography of Fidel Castro (Young Castro, to be published by Simon and Schuster). Research for the book provides frequent occasions to travel to Cuba. While on these trips, he has become inspired by Cuban people and culture, and has taken many intriguing photographs which are shown in this exhibit.

What is an Inkjet, Pigment, Iris and Giclee Print?

Question:

What is the difference between  Archival Inkjet prints, Pigment Print,

Iris

Print and

Giclée

prints?

Answer: Nothing! They are all the same printing process.

We call our prints Archival Inkjet prints. However, they are also known as a Giclée, Iris or Pigment prints. Giclée is just a fancy word for "spit ink". Pigment prints get there name from the archival pigment inks used. Iris prints were named after the printer used which was manufactured by Iris Graphics. Ultimately, they are all the same. Some labs or galleries like to use fancy words to charge more money or make it sound more specialized.

Image Courtesy of

Stephanie Goode

Now that we have demystified the print names. What are some things you should be asking? The most important question to ask are the following.

Is this paper archival?

One of the papers we prefer is Epson Hot Press Natural.  It has a smooth natural white surface with a high Dmax, beautiful tonal transitions and no optical brighteners. This paper is acid-free,

lignin

-free, 100% cotton fiber, 330gsm weight paper. They are printed on an Epson printer with "

Epson UltraChrome K3 with Vivid Magenta

" inks.

Another paper is Canson Platine Fibre Rag. It has a pure white surface with an extremely high Dmax and no optical brighteners. Internally buffered to resist gas fading. This paper is acid-free,

lignin

-free, 100% cotton fiber, 310gsm weight paper. They are printed on an Epson printer with "

Epson UltraChrome HDR

" inks.

Image courtesy of

Brenda Bancel

Does the paper contain optical brighteners?

Optical brighteners

are chemical compounds that absorb light in the

ultraviolet

and violet region (usually 340-370 nm) of the

electromagnetic spectrum

, and re-emit light in the blue region (typically 420-470 nm). Basically, they make paper brighter in the sunlight. But over time they can degrade and this will affect the your image and makes it non-archival.

Are the inks archival?

We have two different printers which use two different types of inks.

Epson UltraChrome HDR

and

Epson UltraChrome K3 with Vivid Magenta

. They are both pigment inks with high pigment density and feature a resin coating for each particle for more stability to produce prints of an even surface and gloss and that are highly stable on a wide variety of media including fine art, specialty and plain paper. These inks can deliver twice the density of our conventional pigment inks. As a result, they reproduce a larger gamut of color and deeper blacks.

Transformation Tuesday

Restorations are an everyday event here at Panopticon Imaging. We figured we could share some of the transformations we have worked on. It always bring a smile to our faces when we can bring these old family pictures back to life. #TransformationTuesday

Yeah, You Missed It

YEAH, YOU MISSED IT! which opens next Friday features the work of Panopticon staff member Nick Schietromo! Make sure to see it before it's too late.

Mills Gallery at the Boston Center for the Arts

April 17th and 18th, 2015

Curated by Robert Moeller

Opening Reception: Friday, April 17, 6-9pm

About the Exhibition:

And perhaps, that’s the point. You missed it. This exhibition continues to explore the very temporary placement of art in both traditional and nontraditional venues. The show, part of an ongoing series, features a rotating group of both artists and curators, organized by Robert Moeller, who work together to program very brief pop-up exhibitions. These can range from informal backyard events to the embedding of new work into an existing art collection in someone’s home for an evening. This exhibition at the Mills Gallery, lasting only two days, has in its title the most likely response to questions about its brief existence: Yeah, you missed it!

Digital Printing in a Digital World

Are you a Commercial Photographer, Fine Art Photographer or Novice Photographer? Here at Panopticon Imaging we would like to make the printing process as easy as possible.  When you visit our website you can upload all of your files/images directly here!

The "Upload Files" tab will transport to our Hightail account.This makes it super easy to upload numerous larger files to us!

Once we have your files we can review the paper options. We are more than happy to help you select papers. Want to stop by the office? We love visitors and we have 2 books you can look thru and feel the paper's weight and textures. Canson and Epson papers are our preference for their archival natures however, we can use any paper of your choice.

Want to print large or panoramic images? We can print up to 44 inches wide by however long your image is. We offer standard print prices along with square inch pricing to give you the most value for your image.

Want to make sure the colors or tones are spot on? We can provide test prints & strips for a small fee. Just like we did for Emil Cohen's Portraits in Provincetown series. Stop by, email or call and we are here to help with your printing needs.