Quality digital prints?

[sharibrat]

Hi - I take TONS of pictures. About a year ago, I made the switch to digital and have been uploading my pictures to snapfish.com and getting prints made from there (12 cents each).

I recently had an enlargement done at a professional camera store locally. They were advertising digital prints at 29 cents each, so I asked them how theirs differed.

They informed that theirs are 'true photos' like you would get from film, and that the 12 cent varieties are not quality and will not last!

I have thousands of pictures of my children as babies and important events.......are they all going to fade or something? or was he just trying to sway me to pay his prices?

Does anybody know anything about the quality of online pictures, wal mart, etc?

 

[Anewman]

Hi - I take TONS of pictures. About a year ago, I made the switch to digital and have been uploading my pictures to snapfish.com and getting prints made from there (12 cents each).

I recently had an enlargement done at a professional camera store locally. They were advertising digital prints at 29 cents each, so I asked them how theirs differed.

They informed that theirs are 'true photos' like you would get from film, and that the 12 cent varieties are not quality and will not last!

Snapfish uses chemical based processing just like theirs, and will last just as long as 35mm prints will.

I have thousands of pictures of my children as babies and important events.......are they all going to fade or something? or was he just trying to sway me to pay his prices?

He was "trying" to justify his companies prices, and I am sure many many customers fall for it. The prints may even be processed on the exact same model machine and printed onto the exact same paper.

Does anybody know anything about the quality of online pictures, wal mart, etc?

Walmart at least in my areas has terrible service but the prints are done on Frontier minilabs(not great paper) and should last as long as film prints. But be carefull with those KODAK(self serve) kiosks that can be placed right next to the actual LABS, you know the ones that does the printing inside the kiosk. At one local Walmart workers at the lab actually point customers to the Kodak kiosk which charges more and produces inferior prints so they wont have to do any work.

I prefer Costco to all of the other (walmart,wallgreens, Ritz, etc...) ones in my area.

 

[Hermosa11]

Very good information. Thanks for asking the question and thx for the response!

 

[vertigo235]

I get mine done right now at Costco, they are also 12 cents for 4x6, and don't let those people fool you. These are also "true photos" they use the same machine to print film prints. And they print on Fuji Archival paper.

I like costco because I can upload them on the website then go pick them up in an hour, samsclub does the same, but costco lets you download custom color profiles on drycreek photo, so I can color correct my images...

 

[RadioNate]

I third Costco. For all the reason's above.

 

[vertigo235]

Costco also has very good prices for enlargements, as large as 12x18 if I recall.

 

[sharibrat]

THanks for the info. Perhaps I should join Costco!!

I love the quality of snapfish and the editing options, but with as many pictures as I order at a time (sometimes 400 at a time), I am starting to pay a lot in shipping.......but I do like the convenience of them being delivered to my door in a day or so!

 

[vertigo235]

I like being able to pick them up in an hour better!

 

[OCSurfCity]

I am a freelance photographer with 26 years in the photographic industry. The guy who told you that was giving you a line most camera stores tell their customers so that they will part with their money.

All images printed on Noritsu, Fuji Frontiers or other digital processors will fade. But the ones that will fade faster is your home printer ink jet. Dealers and manufacturers will tell you we use inks that won't fade.

There are two printer manufacturers who claim their inks do not fade. I did a test on them and had 8x10s made. I put them up on my wall that was exposed to normal room daylight. within 8-12 months there was a color shift.

The ones printed from a Noritsu or Fuji Frontier lab has not faded and they are well over 3 years old. But they will fade eventually as color dyes will change over time.

 

[jann1033]

i've used snapfish for years and my old pictures are fine still...i do know my old film photos i had done (professionally) of my kids 20+ yrs ago have faded over time

if you pay ahead for film(just got a digi cam. so haven't used them for that yet) it's cheaper with snapfish don't know if they have that option with digital uploads or not//target and wll mart in my area do a terrible job, so does my local grocery so i'd rather wait and get decent prints

 

[donaldduck1967]

I have used clubphoto.com for 4 years now and my prints have not faded any

 

[Charade]

All images printed on Noritsu, Fuji Frontiers or other digital processors will fade. But the ones that will fade faster is your home printer ink jet. Dealers and manufacturers will tell you we use inks that won't fade.

There are two printer manufacturers who claim their inks do not fade. I did a test on them and had 8x10s made. I put them up on my wall that was exposed to normal room daylight. within 8-12 months there was a color shift.

The ones printed from a Noritsu or Fuji Frontier lab has not faded and they are well over 3 years old. But they will fade eventually as color dyes will change over time

The Frontier (don't know about the others) digital printer uses the same chemical process (not ink or dyes) as is used to make prints from a film source (35mm) and they should last just as long as traditional prints (60 + years with proper storage by one measure). It exposes photo paper to a laser and then fixes the image in the machine so what comes out the other end is a true photograph (the only difference is the source was digital as opposed to analog).