1. Test prints. Every lab gives free test prints. Try them all and see which labs quality and turn around time stands out to you. Personally, I feel the best way to test the prints are choosing three distinct photos. One high key, one low key and one with a lot of color. See how all three compare with each lab.
2. Prices. What prices fit you best? Does the more expensive prints actually have better quality? If you went with a more pricey lab can you up your own prices without you hurting?
3. Products. Do they have the products you want to offer? Paper options? Framing? It's great to look at all the different labs and see what they have to offer.
4. Customer service. This is a BIG one for me! Can you call somebody and know you're going to get a person on the phone to answer your question? If they mess up an order how would they deal with it? How long will it take them to fix it? I just found out that my lab will spell check my printed press cards for me! Good thing too because I had a couple of misspelled words and some of my words were bordering the danger line. Yup, they called to inform me. They just save me a lot of money!
5. Extras. Do they do over night shipping? Drop shipping? Packaging? Logo stamps? How much is all of it? Discounted specials? What mounts do they offer like gatorfoam? What ordering system do they use? Roes? Is it simple or hard to use because every lab is different. Does their website or Roes annoy you?
These are the things to look for and if I've missed anything go ahead and leave a comment. This list was in no particular order. Also if you find a lab that meets all your needs then good for you and if not decide which is more of a priority. Customer service or better products? Hopefully both, right? :) I wouldn't recommend using two different labs. As a photographer you want to be loyal with one lab and you may get rewarded in return but if you have two then it's less likely. Also labs do print differently and if you're using two you may see the difference in your products and that's not good. We want to be consistent. I hope this helps you in scouting a lab if that's what you're doing and again if you have any other tips in finding a good lab leave a comment!
Posts
Would love to see a post/video on the difference between prints..luster ..mataltic..mounts...all that stuff confuses me, makes me scared to print from pro labs.
ReplyDeleteWould love to see a list of some of the most common labs photogs use.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous: i use WHCC, and when I ordered my test prints, they also sent me a packet that included paper samples for all of the papers they offered, including cards and whatnot. I'll bet most labs would do the same, though you may have to ask for it.
ReplyDeleteSince I'm very new in my business I'm still in the learning process of which product I like best from which lab. I did test prints at several labs and narrowed it down to a few to start ordering the products from. But I ordered accordion books and press cards from different labs because I needed to compare. Now that I've done that I've chosen my lab that I'll use consistently. I'm still wanting to try a few more albums though since that I hope to sell more of those and there are so many different styles to choose from.
ReplyDeleteAnyone willing to share their favorite lab?
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone use MPIX?
ReplyDeleteI love Mpixpro! Their turnaround time is super fast and the quality is great! When you first sign up and send in your test prints they send you a catalog of products and paper samples. I have used WHCC too, but prefer Mpix.
ReplyDeleteI love BWC out of Dallas. (www.bwc.net) They also have true black and white prints...and you can really tell a difference when compared w/ those b/w's that aren't. However, I use WHCC for all my press printed products.
ReplyDeleteI have to use several different labs to accomplish everything I want to do.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite is probably PorDPI. I've been doing test prints with several labs to do a through comparison for you on Go{4}Pro. I'll try to be ready to share the results within a month!
I love Miller's lab! They are so fast and I love the free overnight shipping. However, I don't have them color correct my images. They seem to turn out more pink and saturated when I do that. I use the ICC profile they provide to edit in Photoshop and I just love the way they turn out. And my monitor's not even calibrated, although it probably should be. :/
ReplyDeleteI like the way you presented this. i am manager of Atlantic Photo , a Pro Lab in Canada.I rarely see proper Lab discussion.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing that we have found helpful when searching for a lab is to test for consistency. If you think you've narrowed your choices down to two or three favorites, order your test prints again. Do the second set of prints from your lab look the same as the first set?
ReplyDeleteI use MpixPro and have been very pleased with them!
ReplyDeleteI keep coming back to MpixPro as well. I've used WHCC and also H&H for press printed products. The one thing that is annoying with ROES, in general, is you can't put press products and print products in the same order. Each requires going into the separate catalogs and then you have to pay shipping twice. If that would change, that would be wonderful! Does ProDPI have the same ROES process? BTW, like the informative blog post topics Leah & Noelle!
ReplyDeleteI'm loyal to Photoworks out of San Francisco. (http://www.photoworkssf.com/)
ReplyDeleteI used to work there back in the day and the owners are great. The customer service and products are excellent as well. They're great for digital needs and yet still know what to do with film. I moved to Idaho 6 years ago and still send everything to them.