there are a lot of them, and each seems to have their own rabid fan-base. most have matured to the point that when you compare apples to apples, they will all be about the same in quality and very, very close in price. some of the main things to consider are
proximity to you. this can affect turnaround time and shipping costs (as well as impact returns).
range of products. some labs might excel at the basics, but have limited product offerings. others might offer everything under the sun, as well as what's beyond the stars.
ease of ordering. some only offer browser based ordering systems, some have ordering programs that you download that run a lot faster than the browser-based systems.
live customer support. some have only email/web-based support; some have live people that you can talk to.
it really depends on what you need. if you aren't doing much in the way of prints, costco and/or just about any major drug store (walgreens, cvs, riteaid, etc) can probably handle what you need. if you really need more than that, but don't want feel ready to go all in business-wise, you can use online services like shutterfly or snapfish.
if you're looking for the full-blown professional online services, check out
mpix
bay photo
richmond camera
adorama
i personally have been using richmond camera for nearly 10 years and have never had a problem with them. excellent customer service. they are also local to me, so i can stop by and pick up my prints the next day without having to wait around. even if your local lab isn't big enough to make it to the top of a google search, they still might be your best bet - unless they outsource their printing.
others may be able to give you more detailed experiences with their particular labs. also check out this lifehacker article on the subject.
Message edited by author 2014-08-29 05:41:28. |
