How many photographers do you know that have actually visited the lab that handcrafts their wedding albums… in Italy? I know a few, and now I can count myself as one of those dedicated professionals who takes their craft so seriously they have personally visited the lab to witness perfection face-to-face. 

Back in October, after I concluded a photography workshop with three master wedding photographers, I had the opportunity to tour the GraphiStudio plant. It’s an hour drive from Venice in Arba, Italy. I had no idea when I’d be in Europe again, so I planned the visit. With the help of Alicia O’Meara, my representative, and Maureen Neises, Jeremy Price and Martin Baynes, employees of Graphi, I planned and prepared for the perfect Graphi experience. When I arrived, Francesca Fontanin gave me the perfect tour.

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We spent nearly two hours touring the 107,000 square foot warehouse. I got to personally witness each phase a Graphi album undergoes before completion. I saw many of the things I already knew about Graphi and learned some new and exciting things first-hand.

I have been a Graphi client since 2013 and am currently one of less than 200 in the entire state of Texas who offers this line to their clients. Frankly, considering Graphi’s excellence and ability to remain an industry leader for 35 years, I don’t even know how that is even possible. I can’t fathom why more photographers wouldn’t want to offer this album exclusively to their clients. It is the only album company I have ever used and I never ever have plans to change.

With customers in 153 countries, GraphiStudio holds 20 international patents and copyrights. This is the company that invented the flush-mount album though it is now referred to by many different names (lay-flat, seamless). They have been in business since 1982 and have continually raised the bar for album design and manufacturing over three decades. More than 99% of their materials are sourced directly in Italy and they offer a limited lifetime guarantee.

The best part about Graphi—the one that I like the best—is that they offer a truly unique product. They are the only album company in the world who has the proprietary knowledge to print and bind an archival-quality, fine art, high definition paper into an album. I repeat. No other album company in the world can do this. What exactly does this mean? First off. Archival quality means that your images are printed on 100% cotton rag papers with archival quality inks free of optical brightening agents (OBAs). According to Canon and the Wilhelm Imaging Research, Inc., they have an image permanence rating of 300+ years.

These are high density prints in the widest color gamut available. This means that Graphi can reproduce all the subtle details in the deepest of shadows (the groom’s tuxedo) and the finest details in the highlights (the bride’s veil) in the image without losing any information captured by the camera’s dynamic range.

Secondly, printing AND binding a fine art, high definition print means that your images are super crisp! ALL OTHER albums can only be printed at 800 dpi. A GraphiStudio album printed on fine art paper is printed at 2400 dpi. Yes, it is three times as sharp as any other album in the entire world!!

If these two selling points alone don’t compel you to use a photographer who trusts this album company, then you just don’t value your family’s photography experience. You may as well be printing all your family memories at a consumer-level lab {insert Wal here} only to have them fade and yellow within a year of printing. Or even better, etch them on the side of a rock cave because that is just about how antiquated the printing technology is that you’re using.

But, wait… there’s more.

Since August of 2015, Graphi has been partnered with Canon®. I don’t even need to elaborate on this, or actually, I shouldn’t have to elaborate on this. Simply put, Canon, a $31 Billion company, trusts Graphi.

Astonishingly, GraphiStudio takes their color correction so serious, they calibrate their printers every 30 minutes without fail. This means, your images will always match your photographer’s vision because the printer is continually checked against the industry standard of ISO 12647. (However, I must also state that this is dependent of your photographer’s need to calibrate their computer monitor to that same standard.)

What is normally recommended in the industry? After a little digging, I repeatedly found the answers “after eight to 12 hours of continual printing or after a printer cartridge or head has been replaced.” Over time and even when the same consumables (ink, toner, paper) are used, printers suffer from “device drift.” Calibration brings the printer back to a repeatable and valid state to provide accurate, predictable printing. For every two or three times your lab has calibrated their printers, Graphi has performed 48 calibration tests.

GraphiStudio offers over 200 cover materials and literally thousands of different ways to personalize your wedding or senior album. You can incorporate a piece of the lace from your dress or match the exact napkin color that you spent months obsessing over. Graphi has fulfilled hundreds of specific requests to personalize these heirloom albums for their clients. I don’t think there is a request that they will not entertain.

San Antonio Wedding Photographer Visits Italian Album Maker

There have been instances when it was necessary for an album to be recreated years after the original creation due to death or natural disasters. Graphi saves all of their customers’ digital files when an album is made. In the future, this may change with the constant changes and advancements in data storage or the inability to continue the cataloging process due to higher volumes. However, Graphi has been able to retrieve about 80% of all requests for archived album designs and recreate these albums to-date. No other album company even attempts this service—another reason that helps Graphi stand separate from ALL other album makers.

GraphiStudio is dedicated to photography preservation—110%. They are making the highest quality albums in the world; there is no doubt. If you don’t have your family’s milestones preserved in a Graphi album, you are shortchanging your family’s legacy. You are cheating the generations that will come after you. After all, who is going to pass down a USB thumb drive?

Don’t let someone tell you you’re purchasing an heirloom unless it’s a Graphi!!

Take this tour of the Graphi plant with me and see for yourself what masterful artistry in a printed album looks like.