Hey guys,

I'm just curious as to who you all print with and recommend? I don't know much about calibrating, etc. - so I'm looking for a good company/site that walks through that as well as has great prices, etc.

I've heard about WHCC & Pictage, but wanted to know if you had any reviews of them or others?

Cheers,
Chris

vindicatedx2x wrote:
Hey guys,

I'm just curious as to who you all print with and recommend? I don't know much about calibrating, etc. - so I'm looking for a good company/site that walks through that as well as has great prices, etc.

I've heard about WHCC & Pictage, but wanted to know if you had any reviews of them or others?

Cheers,
Chris

Chris,

I've been using WHCC for the past year and they do a terrific job. Most of the online pro-printers have you submit 4 or 5 images to do a free, sample print. This is a great way to see how close your monitor's calibration matches their's. Their fee for "color correction" is only 1.00 per print, so if you like the way the brightness and contrast look, but not the color, you can have them correct it. But if this is something you'll be doing long-term, then you should probably get a calibration system.

Online printing is awesome, send them your files and you get them delivered right to your door via UPS or FedEx. Files I send in the morning are shipped the same afternon and I receive them in 1 or 2 days. No trips to a storefront to drop off CD's, and the price beats having to feed your pro printer ink cartridge after ink cartridge. For example, a 9" X 12" print with canvas texture costs $4.26. For color correction, add $1.00. They also do great with their "float-wraps" and metallic papers. A 9" X 12" metallic print costs $4.56. All in all, I highly recommend them.

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

Be aware Pictage's sales staff have rabies. If you're not already certain you need what they provide, I'd probably not go down that route. They called me every day (and e-mailed almost as often) to find out if I wanted to sign up yet. And IMO, their interface was super clunky from both the client and the photographer's sides.

WHCC, on the other hand, they're awesome, crank out great prints, and have excellent customer service. If you're printing in any volume, I'd wholeheartedly recommend them. They don't have a whole-life solution like Pictage, but if you need prints (and not online proofing, online client ordering, and totally hands-off printing, billing, and shipping), that's kind of a moot point.

Either direction you're going, also check into local pro labs if there are any left in your area. Most of them do great work at very reasonable prices, and many today offer the option of a Pictage-like solution if you need it.

Thanks Nicholas,

How does a calibration system work? I calibrated my screen with the Sypder 3, but I'm not sure about the whole printing issue. I am mainly focusing on portraits in studio and on location for bands, headshots, etc.

Are you saying if I receive the photo and the color is off it's only 1 dollar to print again, or is that something different?

colinm wrote:
Be aware Pictage's sales staff have rabies. If you're not already certain you need what they provide, I'd probably not go down that route. They called me every day (and e-mailed almost as often) to find out if I wanted to sign up yet. And IMO, their interface was super clunky from both the client and the photographer's sides.

WHCC, on the other hand, they're awesome, crank out great prints, and have excellent customer service. If you're printing in any volume, I'd wholeheartedly recommend them. They don't have a whole-life solution like Pictage, but if you need prints (and not online proofing, online client ordering, and totally hands-off printing, billing, and shipping), that's kind of a moot point.

Either direction you're going, also check into local pro labs if there are any left in your area. Most of them do great work at very reasonable prices, and many today offer the option of a Pictage-like solution if you need it.

I guess I'm a little confused - how is Pictage different from WHCC, and how are those different from others? I thought most online printing places offered online proofing and printing, but they were just 2 separate companies. Essentially I'm doing photos for bands and other people - they'll need to see the photos, select them, and have them printed. Is it best just to have my clients tell me which they want and send them to WHCC? I'm trying to figure out a professional work flow that goes from shaking their hand to delivering prints, and I'm have a rough time determining the end part - finalizing photos and getting a tangible product.

vindicatedx2x wrote:
Thanks Nicholas,

How does a calibration system work? I calibrated my screen with the Sypder 3, but I'm not sure about the whole printing issue. I am mainly focusing on portraits in studio and on location for bands, headshots, etc.

Are you saying if I receive the photo and the color is off it's only 1 dollar to print again, or is that something different?

Chris,

No, you don't get a free re-do, either you have them print with your adjustments or let them color correct one or more of your prints.
I have the Spyder3 Elite, so you should be able to get very close to perfect results. It may pay for you to upgrade from the Pro to the Elite, you'll have more control of the black and white points. If you have a consumer printer and not a pro-level printer, then don't worry about how close you match your monitor with the printer, just concentrate on matching what WHCC gives you.

Good luck,
Nicholas

I actually think it might be Sypder 3 Elite - it's at home. And I'm actually not looking to print myself right now - if I ever become popular enough to require my own printing, I'll look into it then. But I'm a full time student right now - I'd rather expedite to someone else

Does WHCC give you a color profile or an example to match your screen with their printing services?

vindicatedx2x wrote:
I actually think it might be Sypder 3 Elite - it's at home. And I'm actually not looking to print myself right now - if I ever become popular enough to require my own printing, I'll look into it then. But I'm a full time student right now - I'd rather expedite to someone else

Does WHCC give you a color profile or an example to match your screen with their printing services?

I believe they prefer sRGB, but they will print Adobe RGB too. What you should do is the free sample prints they offer, then you'll see if you need to make major or minor adjustments to your monitor. The quality of their prints is outstanding, once you're dialed in color-wise, you should be very satisfied with them.

Nicholas

Mpix.com

I use Chrome out of San Diego. Reed out of the Denver, Colorado area (Boulder?) seemed good too. Both use Fuji Crystal Archive. Fuji lasts much longer, and I have generally preferred their look to Kodak.

I don't use calibration but got good results, I have had really good results with Chrome's staff but I think Reed would be good too. Call them about calibration.

I tried WHCC and didn't like them at all, but as I said, I am not calibrated, so I can't say for sure it was their fault.

Here are websites:

http://chromedigital.com/

http://www.reedphoto.com/

Chrome is great esp. talk to James

Reed seems really good too, but Chrome had a sale on 20x30's so I did a lot of business with them. Reed may be more what you want, so look at them too.

I have been to over half a dozen pro labs including Duggal and I highly recommend Chrome.

Oh yeah, one more thing, have you considered an epson 3880 or 4880? I have 3800 which goes easily up to 14.5 x 21.75 inches. How big do you need to print? Can just send out for larger sizes or get bigger printer. A thought.

I print with an HP ML1000D. Google it!