Costco Printing

[22littlereasons]

I've been using costco for the past year and have been pretty happy. I'm probably there once or twice a week getting prints done for different clients - usually 8x12's.

So, I'm visiting a Black's photography (Canadian franchise). They just upgraded their facilty here locally to be more digital friendly. I ask them about their pricing because it's 30% to 40% more for print processing than costco.

When I ask why it's more dough... they tell me costco's fujinon printing process is about one level up from using an inkjet printer... basically their claim is costco prints will be faded within years.... non-extistent within a decade!!

So, is this true? Can anyone shed some light on this?

[andygrif]

I don't know about the fading issue, personally I think it's unlikely. I've had film prints from Costco for several years and not had a problem, I assume digital is the same print process.

I get most of my everyday printing done at Costco, it's cheaper than using an inkjet but for something special I would use a speciallist lab.

Sounds like sour grapes to me, but I'm not a printing expert so I might be VERY wrong!!

[lostdoggy]

I might be wrong but doesn't Fuji make the Frontier series printer???
I think the Frontier prints on photo emulsion paper, same as film prints, and they have been time tested. So the guy at Black's is blow clouds up your where the sun don't shine.

[Hellashot]

And which inkjet prints was he referring to? Certain new inks now are rated at 100-200 years. Sounds like he told you something to try and justify their higher prices. Anything you buy from a camera/photo store is going to be a lot higher than if bought at a discount store.

[ElleG83]

i think he's full of BS. i talked to one of my professors who specializes in printing and he told me that the prints at costco would last a lot longer than a decade, probably more like a century, and for sure wouldnt fade in a couple of years. he uses costco himself.

[lostdoggy]

i think he's full of BS. i talked to one of my professors who specializes in printing and he told me that the prints at costco would last a lot longer than a decade, probably more like a century, and for sure wouldnt fade in a couple of years. he uses costco himself.

Good to hear that pros are not too proud to admit that they have their prints done in Costco.

[22littlereasons]

Just as I thought... the salesguy was full of it. *s*

[grego]

I use Costco. They print on high quality paper. It's not like cheap piece of crap.

And from what I have heard, there printers are made by Fuji.

[CanonLaw]

I have tried MANY different places to get my prints done. Costco, Wal-Mart, Fred-Meyer, Rite-Aide Kits (or Ritz) Cameras.....by far Costco seems to do the best job.
Pictures at places like wal-mart and fred meyer seem to be done on cheap paper that warps in a frame. Ritz, which is supposedly a "PHOTO STORE" wanted $9 for an 8x10, and costco does it for $2. I asked the guy at Ritz and he said it was more expensive because the quality is so much better, which is crap. I have printed there three or four times before discovering costco and the prints never looked that good and they were always inconsistant as far as colors go...sometimes they would be washed out, other times too dark...dont ask me how they managed to do that.

Anyways, those are my thoughts....

[TonyKInTexas]

I ran a test some years back against CostCo, the local camera shop and one other place (can't remember now). CostCo beat everyone then. Now I have WHCC and another pro shop I can use and I find myself using CostCo still. Great pricess, good, quality product and ease of use are the reasons.

Take care,

[SWPhotoImaging]

I just picked up four 12x18 digital enlargements from my neighborhood Costco, and I must say, they are excellent.

I used two images, shot at full-resolution (6.3Mp) with my 10D, cleaned up and fine tuned in PSCS2, then I saved the TIFF files and then made two duplicates of each.

The first of each shot I converted to 8bit, JPG, changed color space to sRBG, and saved at max resolution, size 12 JPG.

The second I did the same thing, but used view proof setup, changed it to the custon ICC profile supplied by DryCreek Photo for my local Costco's Noritsu printer, and saved it with the applied profile (no ICC profile embedded, the Noritsu can't read it).

Both sets of images were uploaded separately, as two orders, to my local Costco Photo dept., and "lustre" paper was selected, as was "no enhancement".

The plain old JPG files came out beautifully, and if I did not have the other two with the custom ICC profile applied to compare against, I would say they were perfect.
The ones using the costom profile for the Noritsu are fantastic. I don't think I'll ever waste paper, ink and time printing anything bigger than 8.5x11 on my i9100 again. I can't see any difference between the Costco "best" prints and the same image created on my Canon i9100 on Ilford Gallerie Classic Pearl (with appropriate custom ICC profile), which is my "benchmark" combination.

I would highly recommend following the workflow described on DryCreek Photo's site, and using Costco for hardcopy, at least up to 12x18.

Just my $.02

[toddb]

I don't get Costco print that much any more. It's ok, but for the price different, I think MPix.com is a whole lot better. Everytime I ever tried using the luster paper at Costco they were just dim looking compared to the glossy...and the glossy paper was so smooth that it stuck to the glass (maybe my apartment has too much humitity. Costco is alright though, I wouldn't think twice about getting prints to family since they probably wouldn't tell the difference.

The std paper at Mpix is more like the luster texture...but it's as bright and colorful as the glossy at costco and the color do seems richer. I was a huge fan of Costco prints until I got some prints from MPix. I do think for the price, it's hard to beat Costco tough. Oh, and as far as being better then inkjet prints, by far Costco is way better. I have a problem with "nicking" my inkjet prints and the ink just scraps right off...I know when I print on the inkjet it won't be around too long unless it gets framed right away.

So Costco is great, but mpix is worth the extra cost especially if you don't client work I think.

[mdmedicgod]

I Ritz, which is supposedly a "PHOTO STORE" wanted $9 for an 8x10, and costco does it for $2. I asked the guy at Ritz and he said it was more expensive because the quality is so much better, which is crap. I have printed there three or four times before discovering costco and the prints never looked that good and they were always inconsistant as far as colors go...sometimes they would be washed out, other times too dark...dont ask me how they managed to do that.

Anyways, those are my thoughts....

Sounds like your Ritz is ripping you off! Ritz published price for 8x10 is $4.99! Never had a print issue at my local ritz.

[ATucker]

I second SWPhotos comments regarding use of Dry Creek Photos's profiles with Costco Noritsu printers and following Dry Creek Photos printing instructions.

www.drycreekphoto.com (http://www.drycreekphoto.com)

Costco uses Fuji Crystal paper.

[SWPhotoImaging]

And then there is speed!
Today, at about 1:30pm my time (on a Sunday), I uploaded three 11x14 images to Costco for printing.

Within seconds, I got the usual automated e-mail saying my prints would be ready the next day (8/1-Monday) at 2pm.

24 minutes later, I got a second e-mail, saying my prints were finished and ready for pickup.

That's way less than 1-hr service, on a custom enlargement order.

They came out great, too.

[grego]

And then there is speed!
Today, at about 1:30pm my time (on a Sunday), I uploaded three 11x14 images to Costco for printing.

Within seconds, I got the usual automated e-mail saying my prints would be ready the next day (8/1-Monday) at 2pm.

24 minutes later, I got a second e-mail, saying my prints were finished and ready for pickup.

That's way less than 1-hr service, on a custom enlargement order.

They came out great, too.

Yeah, I love this online service. You can upload them at any time of day and then get them pretty quickly, usually faster than the estimated time.

[toddb]

And if you don't use the Dry Creek profiles, make sure you convert to the sRGB color profile. If you work in Adobe RGB and leave it, the prints don't look that great...but that's true with about any place you get prints from.

[goatee]

Thanks for the DryCreek hint - I get my prints done at Costco, and have found them to be pretty good, but now they'll look even better!

[digital92805]

I use Costco. They print on high quality paper. It's not like cheap piece of crap.

And from what I have heard, there printers are made by Fuji.

Some Costco stores use kodak printers. All Sams and Wal-Mart stores have Fuji printers.

[jimtfoto]

Agree the Black's guy was trying to blow smoke up yer wazoo .... looks like he was trying to justify higher print cost by dissing the competition.
A word about Black's and processing ... a couple of years ago when we were still shooting film, I dropped off 50 rolls of film to Black's for processing. This was from a once-in-a-lifetime shoot in Russia. Every roll came back scratched from their processor. They tried to tell me that my neg scanner had scratched the film ... until I brought in about 40 rolls that hadn't been put through my scanner. Scratches were evident throughout. They offered my a $50 gift certificate. I refused it ... said adios to film ... and to Black's.

cheers,
jim

[PhotosGuy]

Some Costco stores use kodak printers. All Sams and Wal-Mart stores have Fuji printers. Most have upgraded to Noritsu which is comparable to Fuji. The BIG difference is the quality of the personnel that are running the printer. I've never been able to stump the costco people with a question, & they've turned off all corrections to their printer by default.
... a couple of years ago when we were still shooting film, I dropped off 50 rolls of film to Black's for processing. Sad that you had to learn a new lesson the hard way. I'd come back with 300 rolls of slides after a one week shoot.
After the shoot:
NEVER ship (mail, UPS, etc) more than 20% of the film out in one batch.
NEVER process more than 20% of the film in one batch.
NEVER process more than ½ the rolls of a variation in one batch.
The last one refers to bracketing slide film to CYA. More on it is here:
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=24269&highlight=bracketing

[toddb]

I gave Costco another try and want to update my findings. I converted my profiles to match my Costco printer (and each location has there own profiles). I ordered them online and it turns out, there is not checkbox to say use a particular printer or what not (My Kirkland Costco said you need to request a certain printer so they knew which to print on.) I went ahead and ordered them unchecking the "color correction" option. Later I talked to the photo tech at Costco and she said that is the way they know if you want to use a particular profile is by unchecking this options.

So my glossy's looked pretty much the same, not a noticeable difference I thought. The luster prints though seemed to be much brighter (I was never going to get them again after last time), but this time they seemed noticeably improved. My wife noticed though a greenish tint on some of the darker images (I say my wife saw it not because I didn't notice it, but she notice it without me telling her which means it's not me being my anal self). I send the exact same ones as sRGB to MPIX.com for comparison and the mpix ones had no greenish cast. For the price difference Costco is still pretty good, but I wouldn't use them for anything I was selling. The other thing about Coscto prints is that they roll up where the MPix use better paper and lay perfectly flat.

One thing I tried on my last order is the postcards. Those get sent to another lab and are mailed to you. I don't recommend them. The quality of the stuff printed on the back is very good, but my photo on the front looked like a very reduced color depth (like 256 color monitor). I'll send them through the mail sometime and see how well they hold up but they don't seem to be worth the price.

[The Hardcard]

How does Costco compare to an eight-color Canon, especially if you have to convert to sRGB? I have been planning to get one specifically because I figured it would do much closer to the aRGB's extended gamut in the blue-greens.

[PhotosGuy]

I ordered them online and it turns out, there is not checkbox to say use a particular printer or what not (My Kirkland Costco said you need to request a certain printer so they knew which to print on.) I don't know where you got the "checkbox to say use a particular printer". Checkbox? Mine only has 2 printers & one of them is ONLY for film. The other is ONLY for digital. So my glossy's looked pretty much the same, not a noticeable difference I thought. The luster prints though seemed to be much brighter ( When you follow the link I posted, you'll find that there is a SEPARATE PROFILE for each type of paper. Seems that you're using the same one for both, which is probably why the results differ.

[Bodog]

I noticed the last time I checked Drycreek for new profiles, that some of the stores do have more than one printer and you do need to specify which printer. The Kirkland store is one of those.

[toddb]

When you follow the link I posted, you'll find that there is a SEPARATE PROFILE for each type of paper. Seems that you're using the same one for both, which is probably why the results differ.

I'm using luster for luster and glossy for glossy profiles. I've had pretty good results with just sRGB and glossy at Costco. Bodog, yes, Kirkland was one of those with multiple printers. There isn't a checkbox online for a particular printer. It's only a check box stating if you want your images to be color corrected. If you uncheck this, they said that this will "flag" the images and then they will see what profile it has and use the right printer. You select glossy or luster as well online, when I did my last batch I did two orders one of each for comparison.

[Bodog]

I just picked up my first order from the Kennewick store and am pretty impressed. I thought I was getting an 8X12, but must have checked the 12X18 by mistake. Very nice though. And I'm sure the profile for that store is out of date too.The 4X6's are better than I ever got from film (at least on a consistent basis). I'll use them again. Cheaper than printing at home... BTW they were installing a new Noritsu when I picked up my order.

[PhotosGuy]

some of the stores do have more than one printer and you do need to specify which printer. That's seems unusual considering what they cost. I suspect that the new Noritsu will replace the two digital ones. I thought I was getting an 8X12, but must have checked the 12X18 by mistake. I've had to double check before finalizing the order. Once got 2 12X18" of the same print in a 5 print order & have no idea how that happened except that maybe it was added when I went back to another order. No problem, as they didn't charge me for it. Also once had a tiny dust spot on a car hood. Same thing. The 4X6's are better than I ever got from film (at least on a consistent basis) That's the key thing for me. At times I've made a few 4X6" prints of a 100% crop just to check the colors at the available resolution before printing a 12"X18" print. The colors of the small print have been consistent with the final large print.
Then I'll make a 12X18" proof to check the final details. $3 for the first one to check for things that need slight changes, & $3 for the "finished" print. So I can get a "final" print within 24 hours of the time that I upload the first file, which beats the local pro labs which charge $25 and deliver in 3 days.

[jimsolt]

I just picked up my first order from the Kennewick store and am pretty impressed. I thought I was getting an 8X12, but must have checked the 12X18 by mistake. Very nice though. And I'm sure the profile for that store is out of date too.The 4X6's are better than I ever got from film (at least on a consistent basis). I'll use them again. Cheaper than printing at home... BTW they were installing a new Noritsu when I picked up my order.
I'm very impressed with Costco but I too am a little confused by which paper they choose to print on -- I will say that if you ask they will trim to your specifications.

In my case, I order 8 x 10s and they come exactly as ordered in the top, left and right borders or lack thereof, and with the specified bottom border + 2 inches. Explanation: That's the size paper they use. If you look very closely you can see the line where the print should have ended and as I say they will willingly cut on that line. I leave happily, having paid for only what I ordered -- never a suggestion it should be more because of the larger paper.

I think their quality and service is the buy of the century if you don't wish to print your own.

Jim

[johnnybfan]

I use Costco all of the time . Quick and easy. Consistant colors.

I do have a question. What program do I open the icmfile(default) with? Thanks

[Bodog]

Jim, are you referring to the printer profiles for their printers? If so, see this link on how to use the profile: http://drycreekphoto.com/Frontier/using_printer_profiles.htm I would also suggest reading (and understanding) the stickys about color management before jumping into this...

[PhotosGuy]

Update: I had some prints made today & forgot to check the type of paper. Didn't see much difference but didn't have the 1st proofs to compare, so I asked them & they said that they didn't ever see any difference either. I guess I'll have to try it with a true test print sometime.

Also they said that they update their profiles with Dry Creek every Fall & just sent this years file in to them, so there should be a new one posted in a few weeks for my Costco. You might want to check with yours.

[jimsolt]

Jim, are you referring to the printer profiles for their printers? If so, see this link on how to use the profile: http://drycreekphoto.com/Frontier/using_printer_profiles.htm I would also suggest reading (and understanding) the stickys about color management before jumping into this...

If I'm the Jim you are referring to, I am fully conversant with the profiles and how to use them. My question was why when I order an 8x10 they print my 8x10 to my precise specifications but on 8x12 paper -- not, I'm sure, a profile matter -- but thanks anyhow.

If I'm not the JIm you are referring to, as they say, "ignore this message.":lol:

Jim

[Bodog]

I use Costco all of the time . Quick and easy. Consistant colors.

I do have a question. What program do I open the icmfile(default) with? Thanks
This Jim. Sorry, I should have quoted.

[jimsolt]

This Jim. Sorry, I should have quoted.

No problem . . . with a name like Jim you quickly realize you're not the only one.:lol:

Jim

[Wilderness Willy]

OK, so this is an old thread, but I just got involved. Anyone still listening? :)

I just sent a few pictures to our Alaska State Fair of which I am pleased to say that I got Honorable Mention on a PhotoShop'd piece I literally spent days on and am still not finished.

Anyway, I went through all the Dry Creek setups and to keep this simple, I sent in a full gamut shot and again the same shot with a reduced gamut that supposedly fell within the range of COSTCO's Noritsu printer according to PS. The full gamut was nicely saturated but the reduced gamut was weak - just as on the screen. I'm not sure I get it. I expected the reduced gamut to be about right and the full gamut entry to either be dripping ink off the page or a black mass of color goo. There must be a 1-1 correlation between PS Gamut Warning and the actual capability of the printer for the shots be as on screen. I think in the future I will not worry about the gamut warning.

Anyone else experienced with this?

[René Damkot]

How did you go to "reduced gamut"?

What color spaces? Describe the workflow in a bit more detail. Some screenshots might be helpfull as well.

If colors are out of gamut, they will not be printed. The "next best" in gamut color will be printed instead.

So both prints should have been looking quite similair (depending on rendering intent), but the out of gamut areas should be clipped in the first.