What did the job entail?

The book, which reproduces Ogden’s own paintings, is described as “a visual celebration” of some of the plants from his garden and combines the author’s two main loves – art and horticulture.

Andrew Ingram, sales manager of Wood Richardson, suggested some paper stock he thought would meet Ogden’s requirements exactly and the firm then used a combination of digital and litho print to bring the project to life. The initial print run was 150 copies, though 120 of those have been sold already so the company expects to print more in the future.

How was it produced?

After running the imagery through its Prinect pre-press workflow, Wood Richardson printed the 100pp inner text pages digitally in full colour on its Xeikon 5000. The firm used 160gsm Pro-Design Offset stock for the text pages; a smooth uncoated paper that Ingram said held the vibrant colours well and added a nice texture to the pages.

The 4pp cover with extended flaps was printed in full colour with an overall sealer on a Heidelberg Speedmaster CD 74 using 350gsm Essential Silk stock. The cover was matt laminated on the firm’s D&K laminator and creased on its Morgana AutoCreaser Pro 50. The book was then lock bound by Stallingborough-based finisher Khromatec.

What challenges were overcome?

“Phil wanted to get an earthy quality to the images so we had to take a look at some of them and decide how soft we were going to print them,” said Ingram.

The printer was also required to strike a balance between achieving high-definition print, to bring out the imagery, and a textured feel, to make the book easy to handle. 

What was the feedback?

“I wanted to produce something that was tactile, beautiful, uplifting to look through and was unique. I wasn’t disappointed,” said Ogden, who plans to promote Ogden’s Garden at a series of fairs and exhibitions over the coming months.