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phuocle
16th of April 2001 (Mon), 18:06
Hello everyone,

As much as I love digital photography and messing around with the photos on my computer, web site, etc., sometimes for really good photos, I'd like to get prints to share with friends and family.

I have two options for this:

1. Print it out on my Epson photo-quality printer (which I do, but it's rather slow and as great as the output is, I can tell it's not a photo) or

2. Go through an online service bureau like http://www.ofoto.com

Normally, I go with the second option because the prints are much better than what I can get at home and the service allows other people to order prints should they want to.

The quality I get with Ofoto is very impressive and I like the service a lot, but it's rather expensive. I normally order 4x6 prints and they're at $0.49 each. This is competitive with one other site that I've seen - http://www.zing.com.

Other sizes that Ofoto offers are 5x7 and 8x10. At the 8x10 size, it's not as competitive anymore - $3.99 at Ofoto vs. $2.99 at Zing. At Ofoto, I can also order other products, namely photo cards & calendars and a framing service. That's about all the products that Ofoto offers.

I know at Zing they offer some similar services, except they have more gift options like t-shirts, towels, etc. The main thing that I like about Zing is that they offer a large print, poster service. However, I've never used Zing before for their print service.

My questions are:

1. Has anyone ever used Zing to order prints? If so, how impressed were you with the quality? If you've used other services before, how does Zing compare?

2. Does anyone know any service bureau that offers larger size prints (especially 11x14)? The Zing posters are just that; large size posters on heavier than normal paper, but not print quality.

3. Are there any less expensive service, say $0.25 for 4x6?

Thanks in advance,

Phuoc

moonstone
16th of April 2001 (Mon), 18:23
Hi,

check out this page

http://www.andromeda.com/people/ddyer/photo/albums.html

Its seems that DotPhoto.com offers $0.29 for 4x6 :)

-Malcolm

John - NJ
16th of April 2001 (Mon), 19:33
Phuoc:

I have printed photos on an HP inkjet printer at work (932c ?) using HP Premium Glossy Photo paper. The prints look as good as lab photos.

I have an Epson 880 next to the HP. I took one of Pekka's photos from his website and printed it on several different papers on both printers. I used Pekka's photo because I thought it was much better than my own and wanted to focus on the print samples only. The HP did a better job than the Epson with every paper. Using the HP with the Premium paper makes it look very good. People in my office could not tell it was done on an inkjet.

It's not cheap but I can fit at least two 4x6 prints on an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet. I fit 8 wallet size per sheet.

It may be worth a try because the HP was less than $200 and may be cheaper now. YMMV

phuocle
16th of April 2001 (Mon), 22:46
Hi Malcolm,

That was exactly what I was looking for! Thanks! I'm going to try uploading some of my pictures to DotPhoto and order some sample prints to see what they're like.

I'm impressed with their generosity - 60 free prints when you join. Thanks again.