How to Print on Canvas From Procreate – Bring Your Art to Life!

You have lovely digital art on Procreate app, but you don’t know how to print on canvas from Procreate.

You might be thinking of having your favorite creations to be displayed at your home for inspiration or decor.

Or maybe you’re thinking of turning your artwork as as a gift?

It can be a wonderful sentimental present for special occasions.

Some may be unaware or perhaps doubtful that digital art can be printed without losing the artistic details.

Yes, you can print your Procreate art on canvas!

For the skeptical, you’ll find valuable tips on how to print your digital art on the internet.

However, do take note that there are essential factors to consider.

For instance, your device settings, the printer, and the material you’ll print on.

You’ll also find here a few printing websites or online shops that you can tap for their service.

In addition, if you wish to contact them, they could recommend some ideas to get your desired results.

So, keep on scrolling down to know more about our tips on how to print on canvas from Procreate.

Color Management with CMYK and RGB

Color is a huge factor in printing digital art.

It would be very frustrating if the precision and accuracy you gave so much attention would turn out far different from your printed art form.

That would be a pain in the neck!

Whether you’ve made a one-toned or multi-toned illustration, it is crucial to learn how to format your colors.

To do this, you’ll have to familiarize yourself with either or both color modes, which are CMYK and RGB.

CMYK stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black.

You probably wonder why it’s not called CMYB since black doesn’t start with the letter ‘K.’

The ‘K’ stands for Key and refers to ‘Key Color’ or ‘Key Plate.’

‘K’ holds the details in each image for proper color separation or toning.

In 4-color printing, even if you do not print a black color, the printed material may still look similar but not as toned as having a Key Color.

On the other hand, RGB stands for Red, Green, and Blue.

When comparing color modes, you’ll notice that CMYK uses Magenta as an alternative to Red.

However, Yellow as an alternative to Green, and Cyan as an alternative to Blue.

So, what’s the difference between CMYK and RGB?

CMYK typically refers to the primary colors of pigments.

It is the standard color mode for printing.

On the other hand, RGB refers to the primary colors of light, and the color mode is used for any device screen.

Logically, your RGB color mode will be converted to CMYK color mode for printing, affecting your illustrations.

A great tip would be to know the closest CMYK color to the RGB color you use.

This is because RGB has a broader range of colors than CMYK.

Test printing would be an excellent checking technique to know exactly what your images will look like in print form.

Image Size vs. Canvas Dimension

Before you start creating your illustrations, it would be best to know if you will create a printed copy.

If you are looking forward to a physical copy of your digital creation, make an intelligent estimation of your canvas size.

This will help you prepare the proper image size for your illustration.

It might not be a big deal for beginners, but professionals will get the point!

Here’s an example for a better understanding of the relationship of your image size to your canvas size.

There is no problem in creating small images. 

However, imagine if you will use an 8×8 inch image for a large poster that is 24×36 inches.

You won’t be able to maximize your canvas, most likely having huge blank or unused spaces.

Some might try to stretch out the image to maximize the space.

However, that’s not a good idea.

The quality will be affected, and the proportions might be distorted. 

But if you’re not sure yet, it’s safe to use a large image size because you can compress the image into a small canvas.

Although, there are image resizing tools anybody can use.

Adobe Photoshop is just one of the best tools that professional illustrators, artists, and editors can use to resize.

Adobe usually provides a free trial period for its products before purchasing.

It will allow you to experience the versatility of a popular and premium program for the creative industry.

There are also free tools like Online Image Resizer (resizeimage.net), which is user-friendly and straightforward.

However, free online tools will always have limited functions for image editing.

They are recommended for rush projects and simple tasks.

But for experts that focus on the best quality at all times, free online tools won’t be the best choice.

Check Your Resolution

When it comes to printing, the image resolution is also something to keep track of.

In customizing your image size, you should see settings that allow you to format your resolution.

What is an image resolution?

It has something to do with the pixels in your image.

When you see images that become blurry or pixelated when you zoom in, that image has a low resolution.

In addition, if you print an image with low resolution, the printed form won’t be as picture-perfect as you expect it to be.

Pixelated images show you a rough image.

However, the lower the resolution, the more you see the very tiny boxes that form your image.

With the advancement in technology, you can create a high-resolution image that will allow you to view a smooth and almost realistic picture.

High-resolution images have more details because of a higher dot per inch (DPI) or pixels per inch (PPI).

In other words, we measure the number of pixels when talking about resolution.

The more pixel information your image has, then the more crisp your image will be.

Furthermore, let’s go through the difference between DPI and PPI.

When you are talking about the amount of ink dots on a printed image, then that’s what you call DPI.

On the other hand, pixels on a screen display refer to PPI.

The recommended minimum for images is 300 DPI, but 600 DPI for very high resolution.

There are online pixel calculators that professionals use for big projects.

For instance, you can check Pixelcalculator.com to convert DPI or PPI to millimeters, centimeters, and inches.

If you don’t need that overwhelming pixel calculator, go to your Procreate Custom Settings and make sure that you enter at least 300 DPI.

Printer Diversity

With an enormous number of brands and functionality of printers, we shouldn’t assume that all printers will provide the same results.

There are different printers in the market, primarily based on functionality.

Thus, the standard printers used are inkjet and laser.

Try printing one image to all those printers. 

There’s no doubt that you will have slightly to highly different results.

So, if you want to print your Procreate art, a test print on the printer would be the best way to go.

From there, you can make adjustments to your screen and your printer if necessary.

In addition, keep in mind that the material you’ll use can affect your printing results too!

Like how diverse your printers are, you can use various printing materials and show different image outcomes.

But in this case, the canvas is a type of fabric commonly used for paintings and other artwork for display.

This material is excellent for your digital art.

It helps to create that authentic and classy vibe for a piece of art, a great gift to consider for events like weddings, anniversaries, and others.

If you want to know more about the pros and cons of printing on canvas, Shutterfly explains all you need to know about it.

Know How Your Printer Works!

Professional printers can automatically adjust their settings according to your specifications.

For example, what material you’ll use, the size of your print material, and maybe color management.

Print shops would know how to manage this customization since they have experts that can help you. 

If not, then at least they can come up with the closest desired quality they can print.

Meanwhile, if you are thinking of using your printer, a trial-and-error approach is suggested.

It will cost less because you won’t have to pay a professional fee.

Yet, it might be costly to keep on printing until you get the image you are aiming for.

The bottom line is to know how your printer works. 

If you are unsure, then some professionals can save you time and effort in printing.

Color Vibrance

After fixing your colors, resolution, and size, and you still get a darker or lighter printed form of your illustration.

Why does that happen?

Screen vibrancy often turns out different from your print vibrancy.

This intelligent tool is perfect for controlling the saturation and tones of your colors.

It helps you reach that natural image.

In Procreate, you can adjust your vibrancy by going to your Color Adjustments Settings.

In there, you should find “Hue, Saturation, Brightness” settings.

Besides, you can also play around with the other color adjustments later on.

Adjusting the hue of your image focuses on the overall color tone. 

It allows you to choose a reddish tone up to a bluish tone.

Imagine wearing glasses with a green or yellow tint, thus allowing you to view the world from a green or yellow perspective.

Moving forward to saturation, this adjustment helps you control the strength of your colors.

Either you move further towards a gray color when you desaturate the image.

Or move in the opposite direction to reach the peak of vibrancy.

Over-saturated images pop out a few colors that tend to be unpleasant to the naked eye. 

For example, images wherein the red and yellow colors are so distinct from the other colors.

Lastly, the brightness helps control the lightness and darkness of the image.

If you think your printed image is a bit dark, adjusting the brightness to a lighter setting might solve your problem.

A test print can show if your adjustments are perfect.

You would want to note your adjustments just in case you need to do the same for your next printing session.

But as previously mentioned, experts in printing shops could help you in dealing with these adjustments.

Exporting To Your Desktop For Printing

Some printers can wirelessly connect to iPads which can print directly without exporting.

However, for some printers which can’t connect wirelessly, there are other ways.

You can proceed by exporting your Procreate file to a desktop computer connected to your printer.

When you export your file, you will have the option to choose what format to use (Procreate, PSD, PDF, JPEG, PNG, etc.).

After exporting, you can now print from your desktop.

It is advisable to use the PNG format since it stands for Portable Graphics Format, a great file type for small-sized graphics.

However, you could also go with the PDF format to retain the image and proportions.

Anyway, the format will vary for the user, whichever is most convenient and can deliver the print quality you are looking for.

Usually, when managing your printer settings, you need to export your image to your desktop before printing it.

Unlike printing directly from the iPad, you can’t manage the printer settings that gives you limited access to formatting.

Printer settings may vary because of the different models and brands.

But in most printers, you can facilitate your bleed and printer marks, besides the color format, size, and resolution as previously described.

Setting the bleed is usually a minimum of 3 millimeters on all edges.

It prevents those thin white lines around the border of your illustration.

So, ‘bleed’ is like an extension of the sides of your image for a delicate trim instead of making your print material look unfinished.

Aside from adding the bleed, you can also add printer marks.

With printer marks, registration marks, color bars, and crop or cut marks will appear at the sides of your print material.

This is very helpful for cutting accurately and for color checking.

Nonetheless, if you won’t have time to learn your printer settings, print shops are already knowledgeable of their equipment.

They can process these details for you, thus printing your graphics faster and stress-free.

Using A Canvas Printer

Canvas printers are just like your regular paper printers.

You just need to follow the directions indicated in the manual of your canvas printer in connecting to your device.

You can get a wi-fi enabled printer for convenience.

Also, choose a canvas printer that offers a wide variety of printing sizes.

In this way, you don’t need to resize your artwork and keep it as clear as possible.

Buying A Canvas Printer vs. Visiting An Online Print Shop

Is it worth every money spent when buying your printer?

It is a case-to-case situation.

It will depend on how often you will print and what kind of print projects you’ll have.

Then, If you start with a budget canvas printer, you might have issues in printing.

In fact, investing in a printer can help you expand your business in printing your artwork.

To know more about canvas printers, you can read a blog in the Art Side of Life that describes the best canvas printers for this year.

Online Print Shops

Booking with an online print shop is a great option as well!

You can process the printing services you want to acquire hassle-free.

However, don’t forget that there are many things to consider, too. 

Hence, it is better to inquire for clarity on:

• Delivery Terms
• Payment Method
• Refund Policy,
• And other matters you can think of

Usually, such websites like Canvas Prints (easycanvasprints.com) are transparent with their customers by posting a brief description of those necessary details.

But despite their quality customer service, you should also know how often you will need printing.

Moreover, you should know what kind of projects you will have the same considerations in buying your printer.

For example, if you need to print at least a hundred copies of your illustration, the print shop will have to reconsider your target date of finishing those printouts.

Remember that you are not their only customer, so you have to compromise with their availability too.

Both, buying your printer and contacting an online shop have their advantages and disadvantages. 

Just study your printing circumstance well before you invest in anything huge.

Final Thoughts

Knowing how to print on canvas from Procreate needs some practice.

However, once you get the hang of it, it will seem like a routine task for your regular printing activities.

It won’t hurt to ask for professional advice or even try learning how experts do it.

But if printing is not your cup of tea, many online services could help you out!

Though, for safety reasons, it might be better to go with in-demand websites unless you know someone that has tried and tested a small/new online printing business.

Hopefully, this article has answered some of your questions and has provided you great tips!

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