Poster-size from an XT: How and who does it for the best price?

I have a couple of shots I'd like to have printed in a larger format for framing- anywhere from 11"x 14" on up to 18"x 24". Apparently no local shop can handle that, except for the pro photographers, who charge an arm and a leg (and, I suspect, just mail it out to another shop anyway.) Question one: Who is a good, relatively inexpensive source for getting a large or poster-sized print made? I'd collected a couple of links, but a recent glitch toasted most of my bookmarks. I'd also like to get opinions from actual customers, rather than just Google results. Question two: Generally speaking, how does it work? Do I just E-mail (or FTP) my 3456X2304 image, or will it need to be rescaled/resampled up first? Is there any reason I couldn't put graphics (text, logo, shop URL, copyright info, cookie recipie, etc.) on the image prior to their processing? Currently, everything is in JPEG, though I can convert if necessary. Is there any printer service that doesn't work with JPEG? Should I convert to TIFF after any upscaling or other changes? How good would a decent, reasonably sharp 3456X2304 image look when blown up to 18"x 24"? Thanks for all your help. Doc.

Is it just me, or is the HTML/PHP not cooperating? Doc.

That or your enter button is broken.

I have used the Kodak servives thru iPhoto before. They did a good job. I dunno about the pricing.

I like http://www.ezprints.co​m/ Choose the classic site on the left for professionals and you can choose between gloss, matte, and lustre. I think their quality is great and prices reasonable.

We just discussed that the other day.

A 20"x30" print for $10.

The point is that every online print company does it a little differently, and you have to check them for details before you send them your JPEG file. Some want you to upsample your file before you send it, and some will do that on their own if necessary.

What you want to keep in mind is that the resolution standards vary depending on the print size. If you are printing small, then 300 DPI is a nice goal to meet. But if you are printing bigger, then you will need to adjust your resolution standards downward. By the time you get to a really large print, you may be down at 100 DPI.

If you want, you could keep upsampling it to maintain 300 DPI, even at the large print sizes. In some cases, that gets good results, and in other cases it does not. To a certain extent, that depends on the printer.

---Bob Gross---

I regularly get poster size prints made from my 1D files (4.15 MP) and they look great! Mind you, I get them done at Camera Canada which is a local place that happens to have a LightJet printer. The prints are fairly expensive ($35 - 65) dollars but the printer has it's own up-sampling algorithms which apparently are the best in the business. BTW, these are 16 X 20 in size......I don't think you should have a quality problem with a sensor that has 2X the MP of my 1D!! I also often get 11 X 14 prints done at a local print shop (about $12.99 CAD) and they also look great!

I get my large prints done here, the place that Bob referred to, $10 for a 30*20 print. The quality's great. Make sure you read all their FAQs, especially around color spaces and not over-sharpening your image.

I'm convinced that the problem is not finding a good online print company to do large prints.

The real problem is finding the wall space to hang them.

---Bob Gross---

Absolutely Bob, I have 5 on my lounge walls and I don't know where to put other ones. Framing or getting them put onto a backing board works out more expensive than printing now I use Elco.

Mounting them on foamboard shouldn't cost much.

I think I pay about $3.50 per sheet for foamboard in 20x30 size.

Then it takes several blasts of a good contact adhesive.

I find the cost of matting to be a bother, especially in the large sizes.

---Bob Gross---

What's foam board? And for that matter, what's foam core that I read about so often? I get mine put onto a wood backing board, then they're lacquered to protect them.

Wood sounds heavy.

Foamboard has something like two sheets of heavy paper separated with a center of stiff expanded foam. All of it that I buy is 20x30 inches and 3/16 inch thick. It is sold in different colors, but white is the cheapest. Some of it is sold under the name "Sturdy Board."

One photo, with matting on the front and foamboard on the back, is still light enough, when framed, that it can be hung pretty easily.

---Bob Gross---

The wood isn't very thick or too heavy - maybe 8mm thick particle board - that's 1/3 of an inch for Americans It's still going to be heavier than card and plastic though. The wood's blackened around the edges, and the coating over the pic makes it a bit more durable.

Tim, your wooden backing sounds good. I would sure use that if I needed to hit somebody over the head.

The lightweight stuff I am talking about facilitates hanging on a wall with a minimum of tapes, nails, or hangers. It also makes it a lot cheaper to mail off to a client.

---Bob Gross---