With its origins credited to Graham Nash of the group "Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young", the Giclée printing process began in 1989. Giclée (pronounced "zhee-clay") is the French word for "spray." By means of the Giclée process, prints, transparencies or negatives are scanned and stored digitally in a computer system. The image is then sent to a high-resolution Iris printer, which uses a continuous stream of minute ink droplets to layer inks onto the paper, creating the look and feel of original fine art.

Giclée prints have become renowned for their super-fine resolution, brilliant colour, and attention to detail. Within the photographic medium, the process has enabled photographers to produce images on a number of different surfaces (including photographic papers), using a variety of textures, with each one affecting the photographic image in a different way. Museums throughout the world, including the Louvre, have used Giclée prints to substitute works of art too fragile to be exhibited to the public. Similarly, New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim Gallery, and the National Museum of Mexico are among the many museums in Canada, the United States and abroad that have chosen to display Giclées.

For additional information, the World Wide Web has many articles on the Giclée and those who both produce the equipment that produce the final product, and those who test the Giclée for durability and longevity.