Another newby question

[KartGirlsMom]

How do you all print your photos? Do you take them to a lab or do you print them yourself? What is the cost difference? What kind of investment is required to print good quality photos?

Right now I am taking film pictures, developing them and taking them back to the race track/gym either the next day or the next event to sell (these are friends so I sell at a cost price).

[PacAce]

How do you all print your photos? Do you take them to a lab or do you print them yourself? What is the cost difference? What kind of investment is required to print good quality photos?

Right now I am taking film pictures, developing them and taking them back to the race track/gym either the next day or the next event to sell (these are friends so I sell at a cost price).

With a digital camera you can continue doing what you're doing with your film except that you won't have to "develop" the digital images. You can just take the memory cards to whereever you take your film and have them printed there.

However, the advantage of digital is that you can preview the images on the card and print only what you want printed. And you also have the option to edit and process the digital images before you print them.

But, to answer your original question, if I want prints made, I burn my images to CD and take them to a lab for printing. I don't print enough to justify buying my own photo printer although I do have it on my wish list of things to get.

However, if I were going to sell the prints, I definitely would not print them on an ink jet printer. I'd take them to a lab for printing.

As for cost of printing at a lab, it varies from place to place but they usually cost the same as having prints made from negatives. (Or were you implying that you do your own developing and printing in your own darkroom?)

[Jim_T]

I get most of my shots done at a photolab..

I do have a decent quality photo printer and if I need a shot right NOW, then I'll use it, but normally the lab gets most of my work.

I'm in Canada and use Futureshop online.. I find they do the best work. I upload the images over the net, then pick them up at the store a few days later.. I can even have them mailed to me so I don't have to leave the house if I don't want to. They're a bit pricy, but I really like the quality of their work.

Unless you get your ink cartridges refilled and use bargain grade photopaper, there isn't much price difference between using a lab and a quality photoprinter..

[MrChevy]

Don't know if you are a member at Costco or not, but they do 1 hour/digital etc next to you at Coon Rapids. Here (in Oregon) prints cost .19 each 4x6 and 8x12 1.99, 12x18 2.99 and have great quality for the price. It costs me about $5.00 to print a 12x18 at home.

They will burn your film pics to a CD for a few bucks more when they develope the film and you can edit those and choose which you want to print. I have always received great service from Costco for a decent price. www.Costco.com


Address:

Costco
12547 Riverdale Blvd.
Coon Rapids Minnesota 55433
United States

Regular Hours:
M-F 10:00am - 8:30pm
Sat. 9:30am – 6:00pm
Sun 10:00am - 6:00pm

Exclusive Business Member Hours:
M-F 10:00am - 11:00am

Warehouse Telephone #:
(763) 712-7763

Warehouse Features:
1 Hour Photo/Digital Prints (763) 712-7769
Bakery
Food Court
Fresh Meat
Fresh Produce
Gas Station
Membership (763) 712-7764
Pharmacy (763) 712-7762
Service Deli
Tire Service Center (763) 712-7768

Opening Date:
October 2001

[SoCal69]

I'll second the Costco idea. I have the Canon i860, which gives me great prints, however, given the low prices at Costco, I get most of my prints done there (after post-processing on the PC). I have never had a problem with the quality of the prints from Costco, although I find their 8x12 size a bit strange... I wish they offered a simple 8x10 print.

[MrChevy]

...although I find their 8x12 size a bit strange...

Chuck,

Why would you find that strange? That IS the size of your "negative" from the camera. ie 4x6 8x12 12x18 are all the same ratio.

Costco lets YOU crop off which end you want to, to make it an odd ball size like 8x10.

That's cool. And if you mat them, you can slide it back and forth and find exactly the way it looks best. :)

Any time someone gives you an 8x10, it isn't (at the ratio) what came out of the camera, it has been cropped. (at least from our 35mm SLR's and dSLR's).

[SoCal69]

Thanks, yes, I am aware that it matches the camera's aspect ratio of 2/3. However, 8x10 is a very common/standard print and frame size. The first time I dropped off an image there, I pre-cropped to 8x10, which they then stretched out to 8x12 in the final print. I tend to frame 8x10s for home display with no mattes (nothing fancy...simple 8x10 frames), and I would rather do the cropping before printing rather than after.

I guess it's really just a matter of personal taste.

[MrChevy]

Thanks, yes, I am aware that it matches the camera's aspect ratio of 2/3. However, 8x10 is a very common/standard print and frame size. The first time I dropped off an image there, I pre-cropped to 8x10, which they then stretched out to 8x12 in the final print. I tend to frame 8x10s for home display with no mattes (nothing fancy...simple 8x10 frames), and I would rather do the cropping before printing rather than after.

I guess it's really just a matter of personal taste.

Ah, then you have to develop a relationship with your Costco! Tell them to print with NO color/size corrections Chuck. The prints will come out with blank white paper on each end. I bought one of those Fiskars trimmers at Costco that trims it up nicely.

They load 12" wide rolls of paper into those $360,000 machines, thus the 12" wide (long in a 8x12) format.

The small machines in camera stores load 8" wide I think, thus you can choose 10" long or 12" long in the menu.

If you don't have one of those trimmers Chuck, then tell the wife that is what you want for her birthday :)

[jonnyhorizon]

running around with either film or CDs is a pain
you also lose some creative control
my strong preference is to shoot with a digital slr and print on an epson 2200
sure the printer is not cheap
sure ink costs sure paper costs
i get glossy in a 100 pack from office depot for 44.00

the quality is outstanding and the control over image editing / cropping / is great
once you do a few the process is quick and painless
...

[dn7elson]

i get glossy in a 100 pack from office depot for 44.00

Costco has the Kodak Premium Picture paper in High Gloss for $24.99/100 sheets of letter sized paper.

[Penguin_101_1]

I have never had a photolab print my pics because after I got my first digi cam I bought a Canon i950. That is when I started buying all canon after that.

[jonnyhorizon]

i always get roller marks with kodac paper in my 2200
might be the weight
maybe the paper you mention is different or perhaps it works well on a different printer...

[dn7elson]

i always get roller marks with kodac paper in my 2200 might be the weight maybe the paper you mention is different or perhaps it works well on a different printer...

Roller marks are often the result of the print path. My HP970 leaves marks (slight, but there) when it prints since it is a bottom feed around a roller and out 180 degrees from start. The Canon S9000 does not do this as it is essentially a straight through feed from top to tray. The new Kodak paper has gone up slightly in weight. The Premium Picture paper is 59/61 lb where the Picture paper is much less and therefore might be more prone to roller marks.

[jonnyhorizon]

thanks for the explanation
the office depot glossy i use is 69LB,10.25Mils
maybe i will try a small sample of the kodac to see if i still have the problem
as i understand you explanation my printer also has a straight path
i believe there is also something to say for drying time
i also use a lot of epson paper such as enhanced matt and premium lustre
and velvet fine art all work extremely well and are great looking but a little costly
...

[KartGirlsMom]

Thank you all for your replies. I guess my main concern in printing my own photos is quality. Is there a noticeable difference in the quality of a print made by a good quality home photo printer vs. a lab (thanks for the Costco hint!). What about --and excuse my lack of familiarity of the term-- longevity of the print. Should I expect a "home made" print to last as long as a lab printed photo. It would be so much more convenient in my application to be able to have instant prints, but not at the expense of quality.

[PacAce]

running around with either film or CDs is a pain
you also lose some creative control
my strong preference is to shoot with a digital slr and print on an epson 2200
sure the printer is not cheap
sure ink costs sure paper costs
i get glossy in a 100 pack from office depot for 44.00

the quality is outstanding and the control over image editing / cropping / is great
once you do a few the process is quick and painless
...

Just out of curiosit, how "permanent" are the prints from your home printer. If a drop of water landed on the print, will it smear or can you just wipe it off with no adverse effect to the print? I've been toying with the idea of buying my own printer but permanence and color-fastness were two of my main concerns about printing at home. I've seen too many home made prints hanging on walls in peoples offices that have just faded over many months and they weren't even in direct sunlight.

[jonnyhorizon]

print life depends on paper ink and how the print is displayed
i believe my prints will last longer than my remaining life
50 years?
there is lots of research to back that up if you do a search on epson 2200 and print life
the printer is truly amazing
if you want a sample you can mail me a 300 DPI file....

[dn7elson]

If a drop of water landed on the print, will it smear or can you just wipe it off with no adverse effect to the print?

I just found a material that you spray over the output from an inkjet that both enhances the printed image life as well as making the print water resistant. I just ordered a couple of cans and will give it a try when I know more.

Product is called Premier Art Print Shield and is a water resistant lacquer.

http://www.premierimagingproducts.com/finishingproducts/index.html