Printing for Clients

[metric_photography]

Hi-- I am just getting into providing prints for clients (I used to just give them a disk of the editted pics). Where do you guys print the pics? I have a good Canon printer here at my home, is it acceptable to provide prints from here? What do other photographers do? Thanks for your help!

[Jim Poor]

It's fine to print at home if you can manage quality. It's also more expensive than you can do from a good lab.

Some labs:
WHCC
MPIX
Millers
MyPhotoPipe
H&H

Originally Posted by metric_photography

Hi-- I am just getting into providing prints for clients (I used to just give them a disk of the editted pics). Where do you guys print the pics? I have a good Canon printer here at my home, is it acceptable to provide prints from here? What do other photographers do? Thanks for your help!

i send my clients images online to Adorama Pix. i always select the "luster" paper. they do an amazing job and prices are good... the only downfall is shipping is $5 (whether you are getting 1 print or 100+) and theres about a 1 week wait to get them back after ordering. but i wouldnt go anywhere else!!!

[Jim Bryant]

Remember, the more time you spend behind the computer, the less money you make in this business. I. do, however provide a custom printing service, but it's expensive as hell. You have to remember to charge an hourly rate for post processing, inks and paper. Most folks are happy with a .14 cent 4 x 6 from Costco or walmart.

[wri7913]

Inquire about local photography print labs. If you talk to other photographers or belong to a local photo organization (ASMP for example) you should be able to get a heads up about where to go and where others send their prints.

In Tampa, one of the pro labs is Reedy Photographic in St. Petersburg. I used to work with a few people there so I know quality is high and people will always get good results. You could print from home but be prepared for some up front costs and maintenance like printer inks and all the calibration necessary for professional printing. The other thing you want to watch is get print materials that are archival. Giving a customer a print that will last only two or three years won't foster good feedback or reputation.

Keep in mind that no matter where you print, you want to have a monitor calibration tool to help you. The lab I send stuff to sends out a calibration file. You print it out and include it with your prints to see how things are coming out. Calibrate as per needed and you should be pretty close.

Good luck

Originally Posted by ntinlizi

i send my clients images online to Adorama Pix. i always select the "luster" paper. they do an amazing job and prices are good... the only downfall is shipping is $5 (whether you are getting 1 print or 100+) and theres about a 1 week wait to get them back after ordering. but i wouldnt go anywhere else!!!

19 cents for a 4x6 at adorama...compared to walmarts 14 cents....for a professional quality look...ITS WORTH THE EXTRA 5 CENTS!!! heres a link to their prices...
AdoramaPix

[funcrunch]

I have my clients order any prints they want through my photo host, Zenfolio, which uses Mpix as its lab for U.S. prints. I charge only a small markup on prints currently (though I'll be introducing tiered pricing for different resolutions very shortly); clients pay me for my services and digital delivery.

Before I moved to Zenfolio I hosted with SmugMug, which uses EZ Prints and Bay Photo. I got an exhibit of my own prints done by Bay Photo, and they came out truly gorgeous.

[SuperDan]

i am currently using mpix and love em...

i am going to explore some other options too just to see whats out there ... i know where "my" family portraits taken by another photographer were through WHCC...

might try buckeyelabs (i think thats their name)


i use smugmug for my proofing gallery

[GadgetRick]

I don't even mess with selling prints below 8x10 most of the time (occasionally a 5x7). Most people buying a 4x6 wouldn't notice the difference in quality between a Walgreens print and a Bay Photo print. Just not worth the effort of selling that (imo).

I have used Bay Photo for a while and I'm quite happy with their quality. However, they're a little more expensive than many others.

I'm putting in an order for soccer league photos at Millers Lab. So far I'm very pleased with them. Great customer support. When you sign up, they ask for some files to print. They do this and send them back so you can see how your monitor calibration is (they print color corrected on their end as well as non-color corrected). They also send you a swatch book with paper samples to show your clients. All for free.

If I need something quickly, believe it or not, Walmart does a decent job. Had to print a few 8x10s and have them in a couple of days recently. Gave them a shot (after friends told me they're not bad) and, I have to say, quality wasn't bad at all.

Plenty of great labs around for sure.

[metric_photography]

I use Walmart and Costco for my personal pics (4x6s of trips, holidays, etc). I guess I was wondering if it was okay to send images to one of those places, who charge less than a dollar for a large print and then turning around and charging a client a marked-up price. I understand that they are paying for my time, processing, picking up pics, etc., but if I offer the disk, they could just get them printed themselves. Is is acceptable to use Costco for large prints and charge the client more than I paid at Costco?

What do you usually charge for prints?
4x6=
5x7=
8x10=
and larger?