Do you print photos

29 cents for a 4x6 at a lab that's just a couple of blocks away is unbeatable in my case. I used to have a photo printer and the heads got clogged for not using it regularly. If I have orders for large prints, say 16" and up (now these ones are indeed rare), then I'll go with a lab in Alberta: way better quality than what I'd be able to obtain in-house (where the humidity is so fluctuating that I'd end up with twisted prints anyway).

I will print A4 or 10×8 on my Canon Pixma MG5150 at home. I use Canon Platinum Pro paper and always use OEM ink. Being in the UK this works out quite expensive, about £2.50 per print all in. I have used other non OEM inks in the past with Epson printers and they always resulted in disappointing prints. Sticking with all Canon consumables I get really nice results. This is OK if I just need one or two small prints, I don't normally print smaller than 10×8.

I use two pro labs for most of my printing, the main one, DSCL, does 16×12's on Fuji Crystal Archive papers, Gloss or Luster, for only £1.15 each. The lab ships same day if you upload the images before 1pm. I use the standard PO shipping which is supposed to be a 3-4 day service, but they seem to usually arrive next day anyway. This is only £4.50, and I usually order nine or ten prints so that the overall cost is about £1.50 each. I also keep an eye out for their offers, just before Christmas they had 30×20 Fuji Pearl (metallic type paper) prints on offer at only £9.99. I had one of those, a 24×12 panoramic and nine 16×12s done, and with shipping it was under £30. It actually worked out at an average £2.62 a print, pretty darned close to the cost of an A4/10×8 printed at home.

The alternative lab that I use, Whitewall, is at the other end of the cost spectrum, but they offer some fairly unique services. They do monochrome prints on traditional Ilford silver halide papers. They have both resin coated MG IV paper, and also the Multigrade fiber based Baryta paper too, although that is a very expensive option for a paper print, a 16×12 image area with additional 1.18" white border comes in at 37.95 plus shipping! The standard RC paper is better at around £20 for a same sized print.

DSCL is based in Manchester in the UK. Whitewall is an international operation, I use the Berlin based lab from here in the UK. They also have a presence in the USA. Both labs offer absolutely top notch quality and service.

I have been considering printing monochrome onto clear film to make my own large format negatives and printing them myself as contact prints. The problem is that I would really need an A3+ photo printer using pigment inks, and the Canon Pixma Pro 10, which is IIRC Canon's base level printer of this type, over here costs around £500. On top of that a 16×12/A3 negative is going to cost around £5 to produce and about the same to print. I guess what I really want is a digital enlarger for use in a traditional wet darkroom. Edit in LR/PS print, without the dodging/burning etc, on photo papers. That really would be the best of both worlds.

Alan

BigAl007 wrote in post #17847461
I guess what I really want is a digital enlarger for use in a traditional wet darkroom. Edit in LR/PS print, without the dodging/burning etc, on photo papers. That really would be the best of both worlds.

Budget for a Durst Theta 76HS, the 'wet darkroom' processor is built in, you can pick one up used from Korea at $33K

Going back to school for photography in 2014 i went from a humble.canon.mg3220. To a pro100. Lovely inkset by the way. Deep blacks for dye. And i must need therapy cause i got a ipf5100 17" taking up space in my room. It uses a ton.of ink cleaning itself, but its fairly common on large printers. Inkset is outdated, but still relevant.

I just printed a 24x30" print from a 5D file (12mp) upsampled thru the new amzing algorithms PS has. Quite happy.

I used the pro100 on precision colors inkset for the 4-10 picture critiques that we had. It ran amazing with epsons premium luster paper.

chuckmiller wrote in post #17846708
Does anyone print anything anymore? I've noticed there isn't a sub-forum to discuss photo printers.

My 22 year old HP LaserJet 4+ (yes, monochrome) is still going strong but the LPT interface is becoming a hassle with having to add in a card. I'm educating myself on color lasers and noticed they are rarely discussed here.

Heya,

I print, but I don't print at home, I just go to a local mom & pop type place and help keep them in business. Mostly because I print larger photos and don't want to fool with the home equipment and costs it would take to be able to do 16x20's at home, let alone a 30x20 now and then. I do a lot of 4x6, 5x7, 8x10 for the family. But at least a few 16x20's a year of the special photos as we like to update what's on the wall of our daughter and other things that we did for the year so to speak. I get my stuff printed at Harmon's (Gainesville, FL).

I used to think I wanted a printer, until I saw the cost of what it would take to print large. *shudders*

Very best,

I have two places I get prints made: Walmart & Walmart.com. Cheaper than doing it at home.

No point in having more than a 4-8Mp camera if you don't print. Just sayin.

.

chuckmiller wrote in post #17846708
Does anyone print anything anymore?

No. I don't really have much of a need for prints - I like the way that photos look on my computer much better than I like the way they look printed. On a computer monitor, it is as if the light is coming from within the image itself! Whereas with a print, you are depending on light that comes from another source and shines onto the paper. It's just not as dynamic of a viewing experience, in my opinion.


Anyway, for those rare times that I do want a print, I know I can't do as good of a job as a high-end lab, so I would rather hire it done by those folks that are able to do a better job than I could ever possibly do.

.

I have all of my printing done at a local drug store. I'm incredibly pleased with the job they do, turn around is quick, and I like not having to maintain a printer.

I print and usually print at home unless I'm doing something large or canvas. I just prefer the ability to select different papers than you can get by going to one of the local stores. There is just something about holding onto a print that is on high quality paper that just can't be beat elsewhere.

Yes. I print all the time. I have a PRO-10 and love it. Friends that have used Costco have said my prints are better. I've used Wallgreens and they are nowhere near as nice. I've used AdoramaPix but still like mine better using the new Canon Print Studio Pro software. Buy the Canon paper once or twice a year when they have their killer sales and you never have to buy again. Dabble in higher quality paper as you wish and make your prints really sing... sooooo many paper options not available from other sources.

Print your photos... or risk losing them.

http://www.dailymail.c​o.uk …black-hole-knowledge.html