Q: Where Should I Print My Photos?A: When my photography clients choose to include the disc in their package (so they can print photos) I always encourage them to find a good lab. It makes no sense to spend good, hard-earned money on photographic services but then print those beautiful photos on poor-quality paper with poor quality ink. A famous painter would not paint his masterpiece on cheap canvas and if you spent the money to purchase a DSLR, you shouldn't sell yourself short either. Skip Costco, Wal-mart, Walgreens and all those other instant labs and go with a company you can trust to do a good job to avoid color discoloration and grainy images. For my professional jobs, I go through professional labs but for my personal family photos I go to my favorite lab, Shutterfly. Whenever friends or even clients would email me asking where they should print, I always refer them to this lab for a number of reasons:
- They have an easy to navigate website
- They have quick turnaround and fast shipping
- They are constantly offering promotions and discounts
- I've never had any customer service issues with them
- There was a moment where I couldn't meet one of their offer deadlines, and so I emailed them and they extended it just for me!
- Their print quality is comparable to some of the "professional" labs I print from
- They are extremely affordable
- When you sign up with them, you get 50 free 4x6 prints automatically!
Let me just quickly tell you about their email promotions. About a week ago, I got an email saying that they were giving all their customers 101 free prints! Over the years I've been signed up for their email, I've gotten offers for free cards, several free calendars, free photo books, free coffee mugs and free prints. If they aren't sending me something for free, then I'm always receiving great discounts in my inbox. There really is no reason not to be signed up with them. I've used several other entry-level labs and the promotions and products Shutterfly has to offer beats them all, hands down.Either use my link to the left or click Shutterfly. If you are a new customer, you don't need a promo code to receive the new prints. Just upload your photos, add which ones you want to your shopping cart and it will automatically be discounted at the checkout. I want to say shipping was about $4 for 100 photos to California so it shouldn't cost you too much out of pocket. All you have to do is wait for the pretty orange box to show up at your doorstep and you are ready to start putting photos in albums and hanging them on walls.I really do encourage you to take the time to order prints of your photos. Yes, we live in a digital age but there is nothing like holding that tangible album that you can flip through so that guests and family alike can share in your precious memories. And while you're at it, snag a free Valentine's card with promo code CARD4U ;)