Atlanta Wedding Photographer | Chris Walters Photography

Hey everybody!  Well I wanted to share with you my recent findings when I had several of my images printed through SmugMug (my print fulfillment company), Shutterfly, Costco and Walmart.  I printed the exact same images through all of the companies for the most accurate results.  I think many of you will be surprised with the results, just as I was.  Here’s a little background before we begin.

Being an Atlanta area portrait and wedding photographer that gives away the print rights with every session has its pros and cons, and lack of print quality control is a MAJOR con.   I realize that customers want to be able to post the images to Facebook, share them with friends and family (which both ultimately get more exposure for my work), and not pay and arm and a leg for a print, so I have always given away digital use rights and print permission from the disk.  This comparison, however, has me rethinking the latter.  I may do a great job capturing, editing, and delivering a digital image to a client, but if the client has a print made through an inferior print company, how does that reflect on my work?  Not very favorably.  Then if others see that inferior print, and ask who took the image, there’s more negative press for a product that isn’t quality controlled by me.  SO, all of that being said, I’m still thinking about the print release issue, and ultimately I just want my clients to have the best possible experience from shoot to finished product.  Enough Jibber-jabber, here are the results, in order of WORST quality to best:

4. Costco: Yep, that’s right, Costco comes in dead last for print quality based on my review.  Surprised?  Me too.  The images are dark, dull and soft compared to all of the others, and compared to what I see on my screen when editing the images.  The colors also appear to be shifted, resulting in unflattering skin tones.  There is a definite loss in detail in the dark and light areas of the image.  Overall, the images look soft (not sharp) like the digital files they were produced from.  Based on all of this, I give Costco a grade of “F” for overall print quality. Great place to feed your face with free samples, but I would pass on the photo printing services.

3. Shutterfly:  The prints from Shutterfly displayed much more accurate colors than those printed from Costco, but the loss of sharpness was almost as bad as those from Costco, landing Shutterfly in 2nd to last place for print quality with a grade of “D-”.  The whites aren’t as white, and blacks aren’t as black as compared to the best print company reviewed (how’s that for a teaser?)   Don’t get me wrong, we LOVE Shutterfly for printing photo books, and we have made one for every month of Leah’s life so far, but when it comes to prints, I’d pass.

2. Walmart: Walmart comes in 2nd, but not a very close 2nd, in my overall review.  The range of tones is better than the previous 2 companies, but it still lacks that snap that you see in the winning company (I think I’ve given it away now ).  Overall, the images also look significantly darker than they do on my screen. Still the number one issue, and thing that sets the winning company apart from the rest, is the issue of sharpness.  Walmart’s prints still appear soft in comparison landing them with a grade of “C-.”

1. SmugMug: In 1st place, by a wide margin, SmugMug with a grade of “A+!”  I just can’t tell you how much better these prints look than all of the rest.  It’s night and day.  The images look exactly like they do on my screen, properly exposed, SHARP, and the colors are spot on.  It’s like comparing a High Def TV to a tube TV.  The subjects absolutely leap off the print because of the sharpness of the subject, compared to the creative blur of the background.  The colors are vibrant and rich with no noticeable loss in detail in the blacks and whites of the image.  These are the only prints that do my 5D Mark II any justice in terms of print quality. I was going to scan in the prints and do a side by side comparison, but that doesn’t do it justice.  You’ll just have to take my word for it, and I’ve provided an easy way for clients of mine to do just that below.  :)

Summary:

Well I realize how this may look,”Of course he’ll say that his print company is the best because that’s where he makes his money.”  But believe me when I say that this is not where I’m coming from.  I want my client’s experience to my incredible, from the first email they receive to me, until the product is delivered (digitally and/or in print).  From my review of these print companies, SmugMug provides the best quality hands down.  And why would I not want the best for my clients?!  SO, for clients of mine that want to see for yourselves, I am offering a 20% coupon code for print orders placed through my SmugMug proofing site.  All you have to do to get the coupon code is opt-in to my email list (and no I won’t sell or spam your email address!)  Here is a link to signup for my email list - http://eepurl.com/gSkq9  Once you complete the signup process, you will receive an email with a coupon code to use during checkout through my SmugMug site.

Well I hope this review has been helpful and informative, and I’d love to hear your comments and questions below!  Thanks for stopping by (and stay classy)!  (Bonus points if you recognize the movie reference).

Chris Walters | Chris Walters Photography | http://www.chriswphotography.com/ | chris@chriswphotography.com