There are lots of options available for getting your digital photos printed, but which method is the best and most economical choice for you? Let's look at some of the options and the pros and cons of each.
PRINTING YOUR DIGITAL PHOTOS AT HOME
Convenience and instant gratification are two popular reasons for printing your digital photos at home. Depending on your printer, you can print directly from your camera or from your memory card in most cases. Or if you want to touch up your photos first you can copy them to your computer, use your photo editing software (I like Photoshop Elements 3.0) to enhance your images, and then print right from your graphics program. You don't have to make an extra stop to drop off your photo memory card at the photofinisher or drugstore and then return to pick up your prints, and you save the shipping fees the online photo services charge.
However, printing your photos on your home printer may be more expensive than you realized. The per-print price can approach $1 per picture when you factor in the cost of buying a photo printer, high quality photo paper and lots of color ink cartridges. If you print a lot of photos you'll go through ink cartridges and paper rather quickly, which gets expensive, especially if you make mistakes and have to reprint. If you use inexpensive or off-brand paper, you will likely find that your photos may start to fade or discolor within a few months. According to industry experts, if you print at home, use the same brand name paper as your printer manufacturer (i.e. if you have a Canon printer, use Canon photo paper). Your prints will be better quality and last longer.
USING AN ONLINE DIGITAL PHOTOFINISHER
Online digital photofinishers like Ofoto and the new PhotoWorks make the process of printing your photos very easy. You can edit your photos either using your own photo editing software or download free software from the online line printing service to crop, fix red-eye, and add special effects or borders to your images. Then simply select the images you want to print, click to upload to the photo site, and you will receive your order, printed on high quality photo paper, in your mailbox in approx. 2-5 days. In addition to prints you can order customized photo calendars, photo cards, photo books, mugs, and other photo items. With some online services, like Shutterfly, you can even try out and order frames for your photos.
The downside: you do pay a shipping charge, so you may want to wait and order a number of photos or photo products at one time to make it more economical. Print costs for 4x6 inch photos range from about 19 cents to 29 cents, depending on the company.
Wal-Mart.com's prints are inexpensive and the bonus is you can upload your photos to their website and then pick them up at your local store and avoid shipping charges. Photo stores like RitzCamera.com or WolfCamera.com are also good options because you can either upload your photos to their website and pick them up at a local store in as little as an hour, or you can drop off your memory card at the store and pick up your prints later.
PRINT YOUR PHOTOS AT THE DRUGSTORE
Digital printing is now available at drugstore chains such as Walgreens and Longs. You can bring in your memory stick and use their photo kiosk to crop and edit your images and then print them. The cost is about the same as an online printing service, but you have to stand there at the kiosk and edit/upload your photos. Not something I really want to do, nor do I want to wait in line while someone else finishes their photo order. The good news is these drugstores also offer online photo services so you can upload your photos to their website and you can pick up your prints at their store usually the next day.
The other option is you can drop off your memory card or CD at the drugstore's photo department and pick up your prints anywhere from an hour later to a day later, depending on the service selected, just like the "old days" of 35mm film. The print cost is about the same as full service online photo finishers (less the shipping fee). There are frequent sales, so the per-print cost can be relatively low if you hit a sale, but you don't have the option of cropping or enhancing your images unless you edit your photos then burn them to a CD first.
My suggestion is to experiment with several methods and find the best one that works for you. Whatever you do, don't just let all those digital photos pile up in your memory card or on your computer, get them printed so you can show them off. Of course you can also share them online with family and friends, but that's another article.
Valerie Goettsch publishes the digital photography website http://www.digitalphotos101.com featuring reviews of photo editing and album software and digital photo printing services.
Lincoln Stretch rentals Alsip ..Think about Laurel and Hardy for a moment, or Charlie... Read More
Infrared photography is sometimes placed on the outside edge of... Read More
It doesn't matter if your emailing photos of your grandson... Read More
Almost any shot will look better if you take two... Read More
Night photographs express a special something that cannot be seen... Read More
Family vacations, summer weddings and family reunions are in full... Read More
Some of the best images can be captured during the... Read More
There are major obstacles to overcome to get into nude... Read More
Quite often I will have clients bring in old photographs... Read More
These parameters are discussed at 2 levels: -Based on... Read More
Are you buying your first digital camera? Well, you must... Read More
There are many different types of photography. You can take... Read More
Choosing the right digital camera for general use can be... Read More
Fuji digital cameras entered the market in the late 90's.... Read More
Once you have clicked photos through your digital camera, then... Read More
There are lots of options available for getting your digital... Read More
Why is a 3 megapixel camera better than a 1... Read More
Using a digital camera to take pictures is great. It's... Read More
If you're like me, you have hundreds of photographs sitting... Read More
Get a good face shot: Use Higher quality cameras at... Read More
Imagine taking your new digital camera on a vacation and... Read More
A few years ago I became interested in digital photography,... Read More
Digital Photo Diary - memories that last a life timeThe... Read More
There are two sources for obtaining the moulding for making... Read More
PrefaceIn order to understand color management, it is important to... Read More
Western Springs shuttle limo ..Digital Photo Diary - memories that last a life timeThe... Read More
One of the major problems of the larger cities of... Read More
Here's the challenge. You have to photograph small items for... Read More
There's so much you can do with an underwater video... Read More
The photos you took of the party are really great... Read More
So, you want to become a digital artist but paying... Read More
You arrive at your photo shoot excited about the images... Read More
Everyone has a digital camera today and we all take... Read More
Panasonic is a world-renowned consumer electronics company today. Its digital... Read More
STAY CONNECTED WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS.Making your own digital photo... Read More
A digital SLR camera or a single lens reflex (SLR)... Read More
Disposable Cameras (also called single-use cameras) first came on the... Read More
I once heard a lady say to a photographer that... Read More
When you're driving through the mountains somewhere, and you... Read More
1. Myth: Digital photos are pixilated or fuzzy. Reality: most... Read More
While it would be nice to live in a house... Read More
There are many kinds of disposable cameras. All disposable cameras... Read More
Family vacations, summer weddings and family reunions are in full... Read More
There are major obstacles to overcome to get into nude... Read More
Shopping for a new digital camera can be quite frustrating... Read More
Photography with the aid of a digital camera is beyond... Read More
Photography comes from the Greek words meaning "light writing" and... Read More
It was widely reported in the press (15 September 1997)... Read More
Some of the best images can be captured during the... Read More
Disposable wedding cameras (also called single-use cameras) will never replace... Read More
Photography |