As discussed here in the Learning Center, a hand torn deckle edge can add value and a hand-made touch to your digital prints and reproductions. The technique is easy to learn, requires no specifically aquired tools and there is no right or wrong way to do it. Each tear is unique and variation can be achieved through simple changes in pressure and speed of the tear. Follow the steps below to get started, but feel free to experiment on your own. Practice on scraps and unprinted sheets until you're comfortable working on the real thing. Once you've got the basics you can add value to your prints and make each one a truly singular piece of art which your hands had a part in creating.

The Paper:
The best papers for this process are long fiber papers like cotton. We recommend Entrada Rag Bright, though lighter weights work too and are best for books and cards.

The Tool:
The only tools you need are your hands and a good straight edge of some kind. We recommend a simple ruler with a wood and metal edge as it allows for two different edges to pull against to fine tune the desired outcome.

The Tear:
Place the ruler at least 1" from the edge of the print and hold it firmly in place. With your free hand, grasp the paper and gently begin pulling the paper up and towards the ruler. The faster you tear, the less variation the tear will have, the slower and shorter the tears the more. A little practice and you discover what you like best. 

Fine art and advertising photographer Jody Dole gained commercial success in 1990 with his highly original worldwide advertising campaign for Smirnoff Vodka. Since that time he has become one of the photography world's rising stars, earning international recognition including Nikon's Legend of the Year and awards.

Jody was one of the first photographers in the country to use a high res digital camera to make still life images for advertising 15 years ago. However he's strongly rooted in the past, still creating beautiful tintypes and ambrotypes (see images below). Mr. Dole's studio in Chester Connecticut is half high tech digital, and half is a 19th Century collodion wetplate studio and darkroom, a very interesting juxtaposition that can be seen in his unique and stunning portfolio.

Visit Jody's website to see the images he creates with methods from the present & the past!

A great way to swap artwork or create homemade books and cards is through digital printing. Affordable, quality digital printers and a variety of fine papers that are safe to run through them have given us the opportunity to create reproductions of our artwork at a reasonable cost, at home. However, without evidence of the human touch, there is a misconception that it simply requires the push of a button to create and reproduce a masterpiece.

Introducing a small unreproducible or non-mechanized element to your print is a great way to remind the viewer of the artist behind the print. It will also harken back to the days when skilled artisans perfected the craft of creating fine one-of-a-kind prints. Adding a deckle edge to your digital print with a controlled tear is a simple and easy way to ensure that each print is unique and create value. It looks great float mounted and adds a nice element to books and cards as well.

*It's important to remember that adding anything to a print should be done carefully to add value to the print, not distract from the image.

Click here to learn the deckle edge process!