Printout (Malde-Ware) Platinum & Palladium Workshop
Cone Editions Press Price List
Cone Editions Press was founded in 1980 by Jon and Cathy Cone. It was the first to pioneer digital printmaking back in 1984. The studio has been constantly developing new materials and software. It developed the fine art market for IRIS Graphics from 1994-1997. It was the developer of and formulators of the first pure pigment inks for EPSON printers. It has developed color pigment inks for Roland and Mimaki. Most people know us as the inventors of the world's first and still best monochromatic inkjet system, Piezography®. Many of the inks we formulate are sold by Inkjetmall and we encourage you to print with our inks in your own studio.
When Cone Editions Press prints for you everything is done with our proprietary technologies. Every one of our processes (inkjet print, platinum/palladium print, photogravure) are produced from materials, software, and methods which we reserve fully for our own use.
In the 2010s we returned in many ways back to our photogravure and darkroom roots from the 1980s and 1990s. The studio now has a proprietary photogravure facility as well as a state-of-the-art darkroom with the world's fastest platinum print exposure system. Everything we print is fully calibrated to match a calibrated display, or we institute a contrast matching process for uncalibrated displays.
Below is our 2024 Price list for services.
Imaging Time
We charge $187.50 per hour billed in 15 minute intervals for editing images (such as color or tonal correction, print matching, adjustments and fixes.
ConeColor® or Piezography® Black and White Inkjet Prints and Proofs on various archival papers
You can upload your images to us to have prints made, or you can request from files we have in our archives. We will never print your images without permission. We do not charge any costs for storing your work on our server.
For color prints, we color manage to produce prints that match a properly calibrated display.
For Piezography Black and White prints, in addition to matching calibrated displays, we offer a number of different monochromatic tones from which you can choose here. If you are new to Piezography it is a beautiful way to print your photographs. We formulate the darkest Matte Black ink on Earth! So if you thought that glossy prints are darker - think again! We routinely achieve a dMax >1.85 on our matte prints! And our matte prints have a sumptuous surface quality because Piezography prints with about 35% more ink than a traditional Epson printer. The highlights and shadows are filled with detail as a result. The acuity is much higher. Our glossy and baryta prints are also unique in that there is no gloss differential between the inks and the paper. They are as close to a silver print as you will ever get.
These are the costs per image for making these types of prints at one time. A first print price is incurred each time an archived image is re-printed.
| Image Size | ||||
| 1st print | 2nd Print | 3-9 | 10+ | |
| 8x10 | $75 | $70 | $65 | $60 |
| 8.5 x 11 | $75 | $70 | $65 | $60 |
| 11 x 17 | $85 | $75 | $70 | $65 |
| 13 x 19 | $100 | $85 | $80 | $68 |
| 16 x 20 | $120 | $100 | $80 | $70 |
| 17 x 22 | $150 | $125 | $100 | $75 |
| 18 x 24 | $150 | $125 | $100 | $75 |
| 20 x 24 | $170 | $140 | $115 | $100 |
| 22 x 30 | $185 | $150 | $125 | $110 |
| 24 x 36 | $200 | $175 | $150 | $125 |
| 30 x 40 | $300 | $225 | $195 | $150 |
| 36 x 44 | $350 | $240 | $200 | $165 |
| 40 x 50 | $375 | $325 | $285 | $270 |
| 44 x 60 | $400 | $350 | $315 | $290 |
| 44 x 80 | $500 | $450 | $400 | $380 |
Photopolymer Gravure
Hand inked and printed on an intaglio press - the old fashioned way but with a new fashion. We have invented an entirely unique method of producing photogravure plates using a Cone Editions Piezography driven calibration method that assimilates very fine aquatint. There is no mechanical screening used, and no need for film or glass. The acuity of this system is therefore much finer than traditional methods of making gravure plates. The amount of grayscale values rivals platinum printing. We are able to make photogravure plates from digital images that produce gravure prints that match a calibrated display. The gravures are hand inked and printed on a variety of different traditional printmaking papers with an intaglio press. We charge separately for making the gravure plates, for proofing sessions, and for printing the gravures in editions.
If you like, we can make these plates for you to print in your studio. We can coach you if you new to an intaglio press, or you've had bad experiences with making photopolymer plates on your own.
Cost of Making Gravure Plates
Within the maximum plate area you can choose to have the plate trimmed to the image or include a plate margin (unprinted border around the image). The image will cause an impression to be impressed into the paper. The plate margin allows for there to be a border of un-inked paper around the image surrounded by an impression into the paper. These plate margins wipe clean very easily due to our proprietary process.
| 30 x 40 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $1200 |
| 24 x 36 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $800 |
| 22 x 30 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $700 |
| 20 x 30 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $600 |
| 18 x 24 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $450 |
| 15 x 20 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $350 |
| 10 x 14 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $275 |
| 8 x 10 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $200 |
| 7 x 10 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $175 |
| 5 x 7 inches maximum image including optional plate margins | $87.50 (min of 2) |
Proofing / Printing Session
If we're printing your plates, there is a $200 - $350 set-up charge that includes overnight damp packing of paper, preparing the intaglio ink/s, preparing the press, drying and flattening of proofs. The costs to make proofs and prints is next.
Photo Gravure Prints (and Proofs)
Generally, there is a two proof minimum (which is the minimum it requires to get an idea of how to proof a plate). Each time you have us make proofs or prints from your stored plate it requires another set-up charge. Therefore, we encourage you to do all your editioning at one time. It is better to offer a smaller edition to collectors than to not complete a larger edition.
| Printing on up to 11x15 paper | |
| 1-4 prints each plate | $115 each |
| 5-10 prints each plate | $95 each |
| 10+ each plate | $85 each |
| Printing on up to 15x22 paper | |
| 1-4 prints each plate | $165 each |
| 5-10 prints each plate | $150 each |
| 10+ each plate | $133 each |
| Printing on up to 22x30 paper | |
| 1-4 prints each plate | $275 each |
| 5-10 prints each plate | $260 each |
| 10+ each plate | $240 each |
| Printing on up to 30x44 paper | |
| 1-4 prints each plate | $500 each |
| 5-10 prints each plate | $420 each |
| 10+ each plate | $350 each |
Platinum / Palladium Print
This is the most collectible, permanent, fade-resistant of any photographic process. For this medium, we invented a calibration method for making digital negatives that produce platinum/palladium prints that match a calibrated display. Really no need to make small proofs and waste expense. We use the Malde-Ware method also known as the ammonium printing out method. Our sensitizer is made of 50% platinum and 50% palladium. We can offer a variety of tones from this sensitizer which range from very warm through neutral and into slightly coolish neutral. The dMax of our process is better than the potassium based develop-out method. We prefer to use Revere Platinum paper as we believe it offers the best Malde-Ware print. We can offer you other materials if you prefer. Currently we are offering a near neutral or a semi-warm. Interestingly, both are made from the same 50-50 mixture of platinum/palladium. The difference is the iron solution.
| PiezoDN Digital Negatives for Platinum / Palladium produced for our darkroom | |
| Up to 11x15 film size | $75 each |
| Up to 16x20 film size | $120 each |
| Up to 20x24 film size | $150 each |
| Up to 22x30 film size | $200 each |
| Up to 24x36 film size | $300 each |
| Up to 30x44 film size | $400 each |
| PiezoDN Digital Negatives for Platinum / Palladium produced for YOUR darkroom | |
| Up to 11x15 film size | $95 each |
| Up to 16x20 film size | $140 each |
| Up to 20x24 film size | $170 each |
| Up to 22x30 film size | $220 each |
| Up to 24x36 film size | $300 each |
| Up to 30x44 film size | $400 each |
DIGITAL NEGATIVE CALIBRATION TO YOUR DARKROOM requires 3 iterations of processing and measurements. Each iteration is $150 and includes a film target for you to expose, process, dry and return for measurements.
Platinum Prints on Revere Platinum paper
Maximum Image Size and paper will have about 2" margins unless specified by client. Your choice of clean margins (rod coated) or brushed margins (brushing outside image area is allowed to expose black).
| Platinum/Palladium 50/50 | 1st print | 2nd - 4th | 5+ |
| 6x7 | $240 | $170 | $150 |
| 8x10 | $320 | $225 | $195 |
| 10x12 | $380 | $266 | $232 |
| 11x15 | $410 | $285 | $250 |
| 13x19 | $560 | $395 | $345 |
| 16x20 | $695 | $530 | $435 |
| 17x22 | $795 | $555 | $485 |
| 18x24 | $895 | $630 | $545 |
| 20x24 | $980 | $785 | $640 |
| 22x30 | $1200 | $1000 | $910 |
| 30x44 | $4800 | $4400 | $4040 |
All platinum/palladium prints are cleared using the Ware process guaranteeing stability. Therefore, we offer prints with white paper margins or prints in which the hand brushing of emulsion past the image is permitted to go black.
Drum Scanning
The prices below are for "base scans." They do not represent the cost for a fully mastered print-ready image file as most of the time the artist's input is needed after a flat-contrast low-saturation positive (base scan) has been created. All additional cleaning and imaging labor to master the image file is charged at our normal hourly labor-rate rounded up to the nearest 1/4 hour. Prices indicate per-neg cost to scan. File sizes per scan range from 300MB to 5000MB depending upon the original film size. We scan at the highest resolution possible at all times. We do not discount for smaller file-sizes as 99% of the cost of drum scanning is labor and materials, not processing size.
| Film | Resolution | Bit-Depth | Print Size | B&W Negatives / Color Pos | Color Neg |
| 35mm | 7000+ppi | 48bit RGB | 40x60+ | $90 | $117 |
| 645 - 6x9 | 5500+ppi | 48bit RGB | 50x80+ | $130 | $169 |
| 617, 4x5, 5x7 | 3200+ppi | 48bit RGB | 50x80+ | $200 | $260 |
| 8x10 | 2000ppi | 48bit RGB | 60x80+ | $280 | $364 |
| 11x14 | 1200ppi | 48bit RGB | 60x80+ | $500 | $650 |
| 16x20 | 900ppi | 48bit RGB | 60x80+ | $600 | $78 |
* Each neg/positive is scanned raw and then brought to a positive flat-contrast low-saturation state. Then the negative is cleaned of any dust that got into the scan during the scan process. This is what we call a "base scan." All other labor such as surgical cleaning of old negatives, color matching or color grading, etc, is charged our normal labor rate. We charge $187.50 an hour in ¼ hour intervals for mastering and can give you a quote before running the scan if requested in your order.
Packing and Shipping
We ship most of our work flat up to 22x30 inches in very sturdy packing materials to make sure your prints arrive to your studio safely. For larger prints we prefer to roll against glassine and send in heavy duty tubes. But we can package as per your wishes.
Image Archive
We do not charge for this service. Your images will be archived and available to reprint.