Caring, award-winning family portrait and lifestyle photographer, offering studio or location photography at an affordable price.
As standard, all of my packages provide you with high-resolution digital images with print release (allowing you to print or share as you like).
Some people only use their images digitally - either on social media or simply email to share with family and friends. But when it comes to printing, there are a tonne of companies to choose from - how do you know which to choose?
Take a look at my advice below for the best outcomes.
Did you know that the shape of the digital image may not match the printing size?
A camera will often capture in a specific ratio, which means your digital images may not fit into a typical printing ratio size. This can occasionally cause issues if you have a specific size in mind, for example if you have a frame already.
If you experience this, feel free to contact me if you need help reshaping an image, use a mount on your image or alternatively choose a shape that works better for the frame.
The most common finishes for prints are matt and gloss - but depending on which you go for, the ambience of your photo will change.
Glossy images will be considerably more vibrant than matt, which could have a noticeable difference to when viewing your images on your phone. Something to be aware of if you have a particularly bright or dark image to print.
See this image comparison as an example. While the overall outcome of both is still quite nice, you can clearly see the gloss image is brighter, almost blown out in some areas of the bright cheeks, whereas the matt is a bit moodier in general.
Try some test prints in both before you splash out on pricey sizes, or contact me and I'll give you advice on what's best.
Whichever option you go for, ALWAYS remove any automatic colour correction or enhancement offered by the printer. This is usually automatically applied with a notification to advise you of such. As your images have already been edited, please ensure you turn this off otherwise the colours will not be the same.
I repeat, do NOT use screenshots for your prints. I can’t stress this enough.
Screenshots may be a speedy way to grab an image, especially if you’re having issues downloading, but by doing so you are drastically reducing the quality. Your images will be grainy, blurred and the colours will not print as they’re supposed to.
I also recommend avoiding sending images for print via anything other than email, as WhatsApp and Messenger etc will compress the size in order to send - not what you want when you're printing.
Your digital images are provided in high resolution so that you get the sharpest quality possible; always use the originals.
With some recent testing and refreshed calibration, my recommendation for printers are River and Coast; a local business who print professional prints for photographers across the country and come highly recommended. My test prints were so accurate to the digital edits; this is my only recommendation to print your images.
Price-wise, they aren't the cheapest but are not expensive. Avoid being tempted to save a few pennies when you've already invested in your photo shoot; you won't regret it.
This is a super popular app used by many smartphone users.
HOWEVER.
There is no option to turn off image enhancement and so colours come out much more vibrant, especially subjects on white backgrounds. My test prints were extremely saturated, with subjects looking grainy, with darks too dark and colours very warm.
Without this option to turn off their enhancements, I can no longer recommend this option for accurate colour printing - my most recent test prints do not represent the edits I provided to my clients.
If you are adamant using this app, I recommend the matt over the gloss option.
Including shops like Bonusprint (which is now Photobox), Jessops and Snapfish, your images will look ok, but not as they should. The colours will be different, as they don't have the same quality of inks and printers as professional print labs.
As a general rule of thumb, I recommend using a business that is a printer first, as opposed to (for example) Boots or Tesco who are a different type of shop that also offer printing.
Unless you’re strapped for time, purchasing an example print, rather than spending a fortune straight off, is recommended to ensure the quality and colour matching is accurate. Remember to turn off their colour correction.
Remember that if ordering a canvas, the texture will differ depending on the type they use. This isn't a problem with the quality of your image, but more because it is printing on a lumpy surface.
If you’re looking for professional-level quality, I can provide you with prints, canvases and albums directly, through my supplier.
Prints are sharp, colours are accurate, and the paper is strong with a lustre, soft-sheen finish. A large amount of print sizes are available.
Canvases are exceptional quality - 4cm thick, on a sturdy frame, printed on 340gsm cotton HD canvas in gloss or satin finish. I have an example canvas in my studio, where you will see and feel the difference in quality; just ask to see it on your visit.
Photo albums are really something special. In line with wedding album quality, these items aren’t exactly budget but the quality is exceptional, and totally unlike anything you could buy in a shop. Albums are seamless storybook style and available in a wide range of sizes and cover options, allowing you to custom design your keepsake.
If you want to purchase anything from my professional printing range, I would arrange an online consultation to ensure I understand everything you wanted from your investment.
Yuk.
Convenience at its best (or worst), but that’s pretty much all the good I can say about it.
Unless you’re super desperate for a print at that very moment, you are not going to benefit from the high quality of your digital print by using a self-service kiosk - they just don’t have the technical capacity to be great.
Instead, pay for priority postage and get something online for much better quality.
If you only read one section of this article, make it this one!
DO: download your images, use a dedicated printer, turn off their automatic colour enhancer.
DON'T: screenshot your images, use the cheapest option for your prints, expect your images to fit any ratio of frames (some frames are wacky sizes!).
I hope this guide helps you decide what method to choose when printing your images! Feel free to contact us if you need further support with the digitals I have provided.