Printing Companies.

[Peter O'Connor]

I am trying to find the best online printers for post shoot print sales at various events.
Some I have found are too pricey, others a good price for clients but leave me with pennies unless I raise my comission which leave clients paying a fortune etc.
Photobox galleries is the most suitable I've found but the interface for clients is a nightmare.
I think I've touched on this subject before on this forum (or it may have been another forum..eeek!)
But It's time I really got to grips with this before the forth coming season,
So,
Who do You guys go to for this service?
Cheers,
Pete.

 

[Hamish Gill]

I dont offer it, so I cant help ... sorry buddy :/

 

[Davie Hudson]

can you not print the after sales stuff yourself? i've looked into this with my exhibition coming up and whilst the main stuff is being printed elsewhere i too am doing print of the photos myself (using very special paper admittedly) as my home printer seems up to the limited job i'm asking of it (i've canvassed people for opinions on print quality etc and shown them to the gallery and they too are happy)

 

[Peter O'Connor]

I just had a look at your voigtlander kit,, very nice.. D'ya get to use it much in the modern day scenario?

 

[Peter O'Connor]

@Dave,
#1, I haven't a printer of any photographic quality, just all in 1 printer/scanner/copier.

#2, I'm hopefully going to be looking at shooting events with 100's rather than 10's of people,

#3, I'm not organised enough to be printing, packaging, invoicing, sending etc etc,

#4, I don't want to be dealing with peoples ummings and aahings and ifs and buts!!

Shoot an event, give the website details, go home process, upload, forget about the rest...

I'm more than happy for you to tell me if this approach will/won't work, I've been applying myself to the photography pretty heavily for a couple of years now but this year I really need it to pay off in a pragmatic/efficient way...

Obviously, other more personal clients will be treated differently but for the events I think it's the way to go... Please tell me if you disagree... I've no problem admitting my junior level in the industry.

 

[Davie Hudson]

i see your point lol

 

[Chris Dodkin]

I use CostCo over here for my event prints - they use a Noritsu pro print machine and Fuji Crystal paper, and the results from a decent file are just stunning.

Prices are dirt cheap as well - just tell them to print with no color correction, and make sure you either use the color profile for that specific store's machine, or stick with generic sRGB.

I know CostCo are now in Blighty as well - anyone tried their photo prints in the UK?

 

[Peter O'Connor]

cheers chris,
I'll take a look.

 

[Hamish Gill]

I just had a look at your voigtlander kit,, very nice.. D'ya get to use it much in the modern day scenario?

I use it recreationally ... not really for work!
With the epson rd1 in tow, its a nice set up!
I recommend RF cameras to anyone willing to listen, very quick for focusing, smaller and lighter than slrs ... most enjoyable to use!

sorry for the slow reply ... been well behind with my responses

 

[Mark Yates]

what size prints do you plan on selling ?

it is getting to the stage where printing your own images on an inkjet printer is more costly than having them printed by a 3rd party
for example a 10 x 8 print can be had by the likes of snapfish for as little as 99p and 6 x 4 prints done in bulk ( 200 + ) can be had for as little as 5p a print from your local boots store
Prices and Services - Online Photo Print Service - Boots Photo

i know there's no way i could print 200 6 x 4 prints for 10 quid
i don't think i could buy the photo paper never mind the ink for the same price

i'm not sure i know what you want to do but my take on it is you want to offer prints from events you cover yes ?

an easy way would be to set up a free web site something on the lines of webs free website builder ( Create Your Professional Website Today - Webs.com ) and post the prints there and use the site to gather orders either for prints or just a full res image that they can have printed themselves
they can even pay via PayPal through the site if you set it up but it does have it's drawbacks
it's difficult to set up a click n pay type scenario you would have to get them to state which image they want and an address to send it to but it can be done and it's free

there are upgrade options that you can pay for and maybe there would be more flexibility on how to order i don't know because i just use the free bit

hope this helps