Walmart PHOTO processing [Archive] - Canon Digital Photography Forums

mbze430

9th of February 2005 (Wed), 01:28

Not enough information to explain what went wrong.

However I can tell you a few reason why it might went wrong....

Usually the first thing that goes wrong is because its not calibrated correctly. Most Costco, Sam Club, Walmart machine doesn't get calibrated for up to 1months...or more.

Second, operator's errors. Maybe the last person had told the operator to turn off all the auto correction features on the machine. (highly not the case)

Third, user's errors. If you edited your images yourself. Tagged the images or converted the images to the wrong colorspace. Fail to mention to the operator that you need auto everything turned off.

So it really all depends.

queenbee288

9th of February 2005 (Wed), 11:42

I use walwart and and my pictures look great. I have had several 8x10's done there. I have my monitor calibrated and they look just like they do on my monitor.

hawgerdawger

9th of February 2005 (Wed), 11:53

I've been really pleased with Wal-Mart, too. Prints always come out looking just like they are on my monitor. Also love the one-hour processing via the Internet. I've seen some nice inkjet prints, but nothing that beats the chemical processing.

OceanRider

9th of February 2005 (Wed), 13:24

that funny...up here is canada Walmart does an EXCELLENT job with my stuff, and cheap too!! I took a 5X7 to an independant lab and he could do it for 7.50 + tx and Walmart did it for 1.99 =tx and he saids they ARE USING A 400,000 DOLLAR printer that he could not touch!!

thunderstang

10th of February 2005 (Thu), 09:58

ive tried walmart a few times just to get 4x6's and a couple 5x7s done. I do think i will go to walmart again to get photos printed. All werer terrible, poor colour, detail, they looked like they were drawn with a crayon. I took the same photos to blacks and they were way better. However i did get a couple of 8x10's done by walmart and they were actully pretty good. However its too hit and miss with them for my liking.

pdrow

10th of February 2005 (Thu), 13:13

I have had similar experiences at Walmart. Many of the photos that I photoshopped and saved as a jpeg look almost dirty when processed there. It almost seems like a film is over them. I asked at Walmart which color space they used and what the dpi should be set for. They looked at me like I had two heads. I thought since they all seemed so much darker that maybe it was a problem with the dpi, but could get no where with them on that question. Does anyone know how to set the file for Walmart?

ssim

10th of February 2005 (Thu), 13:46

As much as people would like to "broad-brush" Walmart after an experience in one facility, I find it a little bit on the unfair side.

We think that with all the fancy processing equipment that everyone has these days that there should be some level of consistency. I certainly have not found that. One has to keep in mind that there is still a human running these machines and making adjustments to the images they are printing. As long as the human touch is involved there is the potential for inconsistencies. Having said that, there is no excuse for having recieved substandard quality. I would take them back.

My local Walmart give excellent prints for the money you pay. Now I have taken that same digital image and sent it to a pro-lab that charges about 4 times as much and the images were better. I have to decide for myself if I am recieving value to for money.

When I went to India I took about 8 rolls of film. I took them to a local pro-lab (not the one above) and they did a horrid job.

mbze430

10th of February 2005 (Thu), 13:58

By all means, for those that are happy with their Walmart results. Stick with it. As the saying goes, "If its not broken why fix it?"

Now for those that wants to take either photographs to the next level, try to understand this. It doesn't matter if the machine cost $400,000. If its not calibrated and operated correctly, it's no better than $100,000 machine. Even than, I will let you know that the $400,000 machine is only $400,000 because 1) prints faster or 2) prints larger or 3) has more options, ie multi path paper handling, better chemical handling...etc..etc... If anyone knows RA-4 processing, it's not the machine, but the man behind the machine.

Find yourself a good lab for those important pictures. And you can find a good lab either in Walmart, Costco, Sam Clubs. As long as the operator is knowledgeable, it will be a good lab. It just takes time to talk to the operator, and find out.

Anyone that shoot film should chim in.

Anyone had a good amount of work with professional neutral tone film will tell you finding a right lab (the operator), its critical. This goes for both printed film, and reversal film.

I don't talk about digital files, because 91% of the places let the machine make the decision on how to treat your files. Only a handful of people understands the ICC workflow. If the user themselves don't understands the workflow, it becomes even worse.

OceanRider

10th of February 2005 (Thu), 14:11

the walmart guy up here in canada said the little self serve machine are set to 250 dpi so burning 300 at home prior to going in seems useless. right off the card at 250 i was impressed. the only time i had a problem was when I screwed up the colour and they printed it exacrtly like it showed. I went home to PS and edited the colour and bango it was perfect form them!

CaseyScofield

10th of February 2005 (Thu), 21:54

hey all...

been reading this post for a couple of days now...thought I'd pipe up.

Here in Colorado (at least the western slope of Colorado) Walmart seems to really like red. At least every print I've made through them (that I can remember) has had bright red flowers, red trees, red grass even red sky!

Luckily I only use them for film so I was able to scan in the negs - and after a little tweak in Photoshop they turned out great! :D

signed up for shutterfly yesterday - Thanks to Minard - we'll see how they do! :)

DocFrankenstein

10th of February 2005 (Thu), 23:03

They have a printer... They are supposed to pour the old chemicals out after some number of prints, and then pour in the new ones...

They save money on running it on the same chemicals 2-3 times longer than they're supposed to.

Quite sad actually.

Cheers

mbze430

11th of February 2005 (Fri), 01:26

Actually in the RA-4 process its 3 fluids. Developer, Bleach, and stabilizer(wash). And it is true, many many photo lab will go on using the developer for extensive period of time to save on money.

Next time ask your local lab how often they change their chemical, and how often they test and balance their chemical.

Canuck

11th of February 2005 (Fri), 02:43

OceanRider

11th of February 2005 (Fri), 12:01

just got some more pics today 4x6 and 5x7 form wally mart and they were BANG on! Cheap to!!

tupe

9th of March 2005 (Wed), 22:16

I've had good results with WalMart and Walgreens here. WalMart will make pictures in an hour. The Walgreens has a kiosk that lets me choose the pictures I want right off my memory card or CD and prints them on the spot. 4X6 inch prints (10X15 cm?) for .29 US each.

musthavemuzk

14th of March 2005 (Mon), 20:04

i have used shutterfly for a little over 2 years now and have been pleased as pie.
recently i grabbed 50 pics from my collection and had them done at 5 places.
shutterfly and winkflash from the web
walmart, target and ritz camera locally.
target just plain sucked with their perfect touch processing. it ruined alot of pics. .27 per
winkflash was easily the cheapest. .16 per pic and .99 flat mailing fee. not the best pic but definitely up there.
shutterfly was good and with the prepaid pics i had left they were .23 each and the 2.99 fee was waived as i had 50 pics. a special they had going.
ritz were fair. a little drab on some of the pics. .27 per
walmart had the best pics overall. of course a few were poor but overall they were the best and they had them to me in an hour. .24 each.

this past week i had some done from my 20d at walmart and the price was .19 each. woohoo
now i just need to take some worthwhile pics and have them blown up to see how good they are.

for what i have done so far i am happy with the results from shutterfly, walmart and winkflash.
now once i get deeper into this and am wanting larger pics this might change.
as i have seen mpix recomended here. as well as ophoto

my monitor is semicalibrated. well using a the adobe thing.
not as good as it could be if i got a better monitor and hardware calibration gear, but good enough for now

Monty

johnnybfan

14th of March 2005 (Mon), 22:03

Hi, I've had most of my pics done at Sam's Club - 18 cents each. The only time I had any problems there were when I put together a picture and a tennis team list. The colors wouldn't come out right. It was an adjustment I had to make on my computer. About the only complaint is that they only do matte if you want one-hour photos.

jdbulldog

15th of March 2005 (Tue), 15:24

I have used Sam's Club (SH 121and Ohio Dr - Plano, TX) for all of my printing for sizes 8x10 and under during the past year. (Totalling more than $3000.00). It is NOT the site but the operator of the equipment. I still believe that Fuji Crystal Archive printing is the best available for the price and most Walmarts and Sam's Clubs are currently using these machines. The one thing that is not consistent is the operator. If he or she does not understand the equipment then your prints are going to be bad. I have spoken to the manager several times about employees and training. Most are given 2 days of training and told to get to work.

I took test prints to several area Walmarts, CostCo, Sam's, developers, etc. I watched who printed the images and noted their names. Once I found a good operator I went back and built a relationship. Now I have 3 people I trust to do my prints. (I had another but she was transferred to another Walmart in McKinney to be the manager of the photolab). I state specifically who I want to print my items and I am willing to wait to have that person operate the machine.It seems time consuming but my clients have all been extremely pleased with the products. I just hope that I can keep in touch with these people and that they train the new staff.

One other helpful tip is to find out the ICC profiles on the equipment as well as when the last density test is run. (I found out when the maintenance team was visiting and drove by and visited with the team leader about the machine to have a full understanding of the system). If the operator is loading new paper into the machine a density test should be run to calibrate the entire system. And as stated above, calibrate your monitor.

JD

Down to the final trimester and the new baby will be here!!! I have to buy more stuff now before my wallet is drained.

TSEE

15th of March 2005 (Tue), 15:38

I've used Walmart before and aside from "accidentally" tinting my B&W I've never had a problem with them, colors come out great.
How about York Photo? I believe they have a money back guarantee if you're not satisfied, I've used them a few times, think I'm gonna use them for the upcoming wedding just simply becuz they do prints up to 20x30 (walmart only goes to 8x10 unless I missed the larger sizes somewhere?!) and the money back guarantee is an extra perk. ;o)

PhotosGuy

16th of March 2005 (Wed), 08:59

As JD says, the operator is more important than the equipment used. I've had best results from one operator at Walmart on the Frontier 370. Walgreens, only at stores that have the Frontier 350, comes in 2nd.

Mike Panic

16th of March 2005 (Wed), 09:04

How about buying your own photo printer? Print whatever and wherever you want with prints that are superior to places like WM and drug stores.

thats all fine and dandy - but cost per print price is WAY over what a pro lab can produce.

yes inkjet printers like epsons 2200 ($699 usd price) make great inkjet prints... but there is a differance between that and a 6 figure true photographic printer from fuji or noritsu

booggerg

16th of March 2005 (Wed), 13:12

Walgreens is GREAT.. give it a try!

shybull

17th of March 2005 (Thu), 10:00

rolltide1661

18th of March 2005 (Fri), 12:15

Have walmart send it in to fuji, and they will do some great stuff with your pics, just dont let them do thereself.

musthavemuzk

21st of March 2005 (Mon), 17:23

I've used Wal-Mart several times with very good results. You can upload your pictures on their web site and pick them up at any Wal-Mart in the country that has processing. It's nice for familys that live far from each other.

this is kind of the reason i use shutterfly as i can share the pics with those who have a net connection and they can print what they want or pic the pics and have them shipped to the person i want. as i have a split family. some have the web and some do not, but i like to share pics with all.

had a funny thing happen on saturday. i had went through and randomly picked a bunch of pics to get printed at walmart since i was going that way anyways. the closest walmart is 60 miles (1hr) each way. in all i had over 500 that i wanted done, but felt it a bad idea to get them all done at one time. so i get my 1hr slip and figured i would come back in 2. well i get back to pick them up and they said it dbl printed my 200+ order. they say it happens on occasion but not often. so they printed 400+ pics for me. they had tossed the dbl prints though or i would have taken them for a reduced price. had i known that 400 is not a huge deal i would have went ahead and had the 500 done.
oh well.

Monty

Croasdail

14th of May 2005 (Sat), 20:44

don't know if you have a costco near by, but I have used them and they are both good and cheap. Once of the consumers mags did a review also recently and Costco came in second to some pro-lab. Wallmart came in last. Of course it all depends on who is running the machine... I am sure there may be good operators at Wallmart and some bad ones at Costco.... but I have been please with their work. They are also very fast - usually well under an hour.

smittymike19

14th of May 2005 (Sat), 22:17

hey i think YOU messed up the order not walmart. You need to calibrate your monitor. if you calibrated your monitor to your printer, you may be looking at the wrong image. I calibrated and sent my pics of to walmart and let me tell you, the 8x10s were BEAUTIFUL. My family is interested in getting some portraits done for my moms 60th and wnate dto hire a photographer. well i showed them the pics i took of me my wife and son and got printed at walmart, and they said, "hey these are great, matbe we'll just use your photographer for the portraits". they didnt believe it was me, tahts how nice the quality was. And the pics were dead on. If you dont like the shots they have a refund policy.

Poco

15th of May 2005 (Sun), 00:17

Regardless of whether Walmart does a good job or not, compared to Costco they charge a lot. Up here in Canada Costco does 4x6 for $0.18 (Which is about $0.14 US) and 8x12 for $1.99. Walmart is $0.25 and $3.97 respectively. That kind of difference adds up in a hurry.

So far I have only had one heavily processed underwater photo come out bad from Costco. The highlights were blown out. I think I went a bit overboard with the levels.

BrianEE93

15th of May 2005 (Sun), 10:00

Everytime I have used Walmart(tried two different stores) they come back very dark. I recently tried WinkFlash and they seem sharper but still a little dark. They are much better than Walmart. I sent some of the same pictures and Walmart had more of a red tint and much darker then WinkFlash. My Canon printer produces prints that are much brighter and close to my monitor. I am sure a good calibration would help(beside Adobe Gamma) and as far as a home printer goes you get the ICCs to print at least on their paper.

Hellashot

15th of May 2005 (Sun), 11:13

thats all fine and dandy - but cost per print price is WAY over what a pro lab can produce.

yes inkjet printers like epsons 2200 ($699 usd price) make great inkjet prints... but there is a differance between that and a 6 figure true photographic printer from fuji or noritsu

You know this for a fact? The only difference might be the speed at which the store printers can spit out prints. I see prints fall out ever 2 seconds or so at walmart, where it takes a couple of minutes on best quality on my R1800 sitting to my right.

Poco

15th of May 2005 (Sun), 14:08

I agree with Mike.

First there is the cost per print when you factor in paper and ink. There is no way that I can make a 4x6 print from my inkjet printer for $0.18.

Second the way they print it is different. As I understand it a professional printer exposes the image onto conventional photo paper like it would your 35mm negative. This can result in a very high quality print. This is also why digital prints should be cheaper than film since the process is simpler (they don't have to develop the film).

badrotation

16th of May 2005 (Mon), 10:08

I have had several problems with wal-mart over the past few months. I normally try to only go to the local photo lab, where they know me by name and what I want...

But when I need to get cheap prints, I head to wal mart.

It is really hit or miss with them. SOme of my photos come out great, while others are horrible. You have to be careful with the 8X10's since they NEVER crop them correctly (I have only had 2 or 3 come back cropped correctly, where heads were not cut off)

The operator running the machine is supposed to crop them correctly in the machine (to match up to the 8X10 aspect ratio)

Here is an example. 4X6 is perfect, while the 8X10 has the head, and some of the bottom cut off. The operator should have moved the crop up, to keep the full head, while cutting some off the bottom.

http://img159.echo.cx/img159/3733/img4103large1mf.jpg

Also, another major gripe is the automatic 'color correction'. most of the time my photos will come out with a green or red hue, since the color correction was turned on. As you can see in the above pic, they have a pinkish hue, especially on skin tones.

Also, more often than not, the photos come out extremely dark, while the same file at other photo places come out spot-on.

PhotosGuy

16th of May 2005 (Mon), 10:27

As has been said before, the "operator" makes the difference. Mine makes NO corrections to the print. And, I crop & resize the prints before I give them to her.

embdude

16th of May 2005 (Mon), 11:01

An online group called Dry Creek Photo has done color profiles for many of the fuji machines around the country. You can check the list for your state here:

http://www.drycreekphoto.com/Frontier/

I have no persona expirence using them but I figure why go to all the trouble if the results were not worth it. Anyone given it a try?

SWPhotoImaging

20th of July 2005 (Wed), 12:25

.

It is really hit or miss with them. SOme of my photos come out great, while others are horrible. You have to be careful with the 8X10's since they NEVER crop them correctly (I have only had 2 or 3 come back cropped correctly, where heads were not cut off)

The operator running the machine is supposed to crop them correctly in the machine (to match up to the 8X10 aspect ratio)

Here is an example. 4X6 is perfect, while the 8X10 has the head, and some of the bottom cut off. The operator should have moved the crop up, to keep the full head, while cutting some off the bottom.

Why would anyone take or send a digital image to a printer ( a pro-lab, WalMart, or anyone else), expecting that the people there would correctly guess how you wanted your 3:2 image format cropped to another ratio? Why would you even chance it? Just crop your own images to your liking according to how they will be printed before sending the files off. Of course that way you can't blame someone for not reading your mind . . .

lostdoggy

20th of July 2005 (Wed), 12:41

I use Winflash @ $0.12/print and $0.99 for shipping it can't be beat. The time I use them I ordered almost 500 prints for my wife and the shipping cost them almost $5.00, but was still charged only $0.99. Now that's a deal.

I suggest before pasting blame yet try printing your picture in another lab and another computer printer combo. Here is another suggestion go to circuit city or bestbuy and talk the salesperson to demo the Epson Photomate with your picture on a Flash media such as Compactflash or SD and see how it comes out.

awp

20th of July 2005 (Wed), 12:58

Wal Marts prints are great, I prefer them. The only problem I am having with them is when I upload to them, no matter how I size them they crop. As far as home printers go. I have the Olympus P440, it is excellent for glossy prints. I also have HP photosmart inkjet, it is pretty good.

bogleric

20th of July 2005 (Wed), 14:41

I have used Walmart, Sam's Club, Ophoto, snapfish, and mpix for my photos in the past.

For what you get I find ophoto / kodak is over priced. Snapfish is ok, and in my area Sams is much better than WalMart. I think they have the same machine however the walmart prints look like they stuck together or something most of the time. Definitely the operator. For the best quality so far I use MPIX.

I have not been able to verify this, however I was told by a machine repair tech once that some systems at stores like: walgreen, CVS, Wal-Mart, etc run an alogrithm to help make pictures from lower MP camers look better. This has a side-effect and makes pictures from the high MP cameras look worse. I don't know if this is true or it is a past thing,

Tixeon

20th of July 2005 (Wed), 20:06

At Sams Club you can tell the operator to not Crop or use Image Intelligence. They will turn both off and print as-is. In order to get this service you must hand them your CD etc. & let them enter the images for you behind the counter, not out front at one of the order machines. This has worked great for me.

Tim

bogleric

21st of July 2005 (Thu), 05:48

i will have to keep that in mind.... thanks.

Becca

27th of July 2005 (Wed), 05:50

I have always used Walmart for photo processing in the past, but this week when I went to get some printed, their machine was out of service. I took them to Ritz Camera instead and I was amazed at the difference in quality. I don't know why, maybe the operator was more "photo savvy" but the images were clear, sharp, absolutely gorgeous! It cost a bit more than Walmart, but I will continue taking pictures to them.

Of course, it could also be that these were the first pictures I have had printed that were taken with my new Canon! (All others were with my Fuji A3800)

PhotosGuy

27th of July 2005 (Wed), 06:39

In ONE WM the prints are done with no corrections & have been very good. The same WM with the prints ordered online which sends them through Fuji first has had mixed results. The same print ordered twice within a 15 minute period (decided that I wanted more than one) came out underexposed & overexposed w/high contrast. Sunsequent prints ordered online came out OK.
Generally though, it's hard to beat the convenience of ordering online & picking them up at the store. I always take a CF card with the files on it with me just in case, but have only had to use it that one time. ;) Of course, it could also be that these were the first pictures I have had printed that were taken with my new Canon! (All others were with my Fuji A3800) I think you've found your answer there!:D

Curtis N

27th of July 2005 (Wed), 09:06

Of course, it could also be that these were the first pictures I have had printed that were taken with my new Canon! (All others were with my Fuji A3800)It's always problematic to change two variables and then try to figure out which variable made the difference.

It should be easy enough to have a few of the same files printed by various labs, then you can compare apples to apples. I have done this on a few occasions.

Whichever lab I use (and I have used several according to which is more convenient at the time), I always request "no adjustments." Good or bad, I want the prints to reflect my work, not theirs.

PhotosGuy

27th of July 2005 (Wed), 09:43

I always include a standart test print (http://www.gballard.net/psd/srgbforwww.html) in each order & carry previous examples with me. Then there's no argument who did what. The nice thing about THIS WM, is that I've only had to use them that one time. Other stores have been all over the map.

CookieMonster

30th of July 2005 (Sat), 00:08

this might seem like an awkward question in this thread, but has any one had pics not printed by the walmart/sam's club labs because they looked too professional. i've heard rumors that they won't print photos that look too professional because of copyright laws... just wondering if anyone had any expirience with that. if anyone has run into this problem, what is the best remedy for it.

thanks in advance

cookie

Tim23011407

30th of July 2005 (Sat), 00:18

Walmart has a release form that can be signed by the photographer if they suspect that the photo belongs to a studio or someone else. If it's your photo, you can sign the release and they should give you your pics. I've been asked a couple of times, but it hasn't been a problem.

TheObiJuan

30th of July 2005 (Sat), 00:59

My walmart can only do digital prints via the kodak kiosk. There is no control, so my image looked like crap. It's automated adjustments turned my pic ugle, really fast, too.
Green was introduced, where it shouldn't have been, same for magenta.
I got mad and shredded the pics, then left. I went to walgreens, and it printed on a fancy epson printer, no problems there!

queenbee288

30th of July 2005 (Sat), 07:56

I found WAlmart to me inconsistant. The first few times I had 8x10 printed they looked good. Next time too dark, I got sick of it and finally just broke down and got the Canon i9900. Now my photos look great all the time and I have found it to be very cost effective when used with ILFORD Printasia premiem photo pearl paper.

Char

Curtis N

30th of July 2005 (Sat), 23:56

My walmart can only do digital prints via the kodak kiosk.Not necessarily true. It depends on the store. All of the Wal*Marts in my area have a Fuji kiosk for uploading (some have 2 or 3) and the printing is done on a Fuji Frontier machine. I know they look at the images before they print, and I know they can adjust them. Whether or not they adjust them, and the human competance involved, varies widely as one might expect.

TheObiJuan

31st of July 2005 (Sun), 00:18

Not necessarily true. It depends on the store. All of the Wal*Marts in my area have a Fuji kiosk for uploading (some have 2 or 3) and the printing is done on a Fuji Frontier machine. I know they look at the images before they print, and I know they can adjust them. Whether or not they adjust them, and the human competance involved, varies widely as one might expect.

how is it not necessarily true... I said "My Walmart"
I asked, the told me, so I know its true, sadly of course.
I am on the verge of just getting into doing my own prints.