As you look around your production room, you may find yourself all alone. You may think of yourself as a one man show.
Believe it or not, you are not alone. You are not a one man show. You have a team. You have a lab to print your portraits for you, and your lab is a member of your team.
If you are just starting out in the field of professional wedding photography, you want to take great care in picking your lab. You need to consider a few other things than just price. First and foremost is quality.
What is quality when it comes to portraiture? Everyone’s answer to this question will be slightly different, but most photographers have a few things in common when it comes to the definition of quality. These commonalities are based mostly on photographer complaints when receiving prints back from the lab.
- Bumps between the print and mounting material.
- Bad mounting
- Long turnaround times.
- Damaged corners.
- Bad color
This list has something in common. These are real mistakes that your lab can make. These mistakes can cause the delay of your product, which can make for an unhappy customer, which can delay your cash flow.
As a beginning photographer, cash flow is a real issue for some. You may photograph a couple for their engagement portraits, but not have the money to immediately produce the portraits, which naturally causes delay in your production. But be careful to not let it cause to much of a delay. Your wedding clientele is on a strict time line. You need to make sure that you have the portraits produced in time to have on display at the reception.
This is where your lab can really shine! Make sure the lab you chose has the capability of having images delivered to you in 24 hours! You need the ability to upload your artwork to your lab for printing, and your lab needs to have the ability to take a rush order and overnight the final product to your studio, or directly to your clients home.
Having a lab/team that can get a finished print to you extremely fast can get you out any number of different situations. I talked earlier about someone just starting their career as a photographer and not having the cash flow needed to produce their product in a timely manner, but I know many can put themselves in the exact opposite situation. Can you imagine being so busy that you forget to place an order to the lab, only to receive a phone call from a Bride To Be asking if her portrait is going to be ready for her wedding this weekend? Or, it may be the holiday season, and you must have your completed product to deliver to your client on time.
You may be sitting there by yourself producing your work, but you do have a team. Your photo lab.
Chose wisely.
Don’t even get me started on framers!
Aric C. Hoek BFA, CPP, AuthorPPBF Administrator
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When I graduated with my degree in photography I went to work in a professional lab. It taught me a lot about customer service. I also learned a lot about how this particular lab worked. When I branched out on my own I didn’t use that lab. I carefully sought out a competitor who always provided me with excellent service, and if they ever damaged a print they replaced it quickly. My former employer will never know the amount of business they lost because of their poor quality and my inside knowledge of how they operated. I couldn’t agree with you more. Your lab can make or break you. Choose wisely.
You are so right Cindy. Labs today compete at all levels. Millers can deliver a print to me in 24 hours. How can you compete with that? I have labs calling me, asking for my business, telling me that they have great customer service. My definition of customer service is not having to talk to customer service.
I hope you are able to visit again soon Cindy.
Valuable information.
When starting all of these matters are very new. Getting some insight what to seek for does make a difference. I hope I’ll manage to find a good lab.
Thank you very much for sharing!
You are so welcome Marisol. Chose your lab carefully. You want to also find a lab that has a product line that matches your style of photography. I print my work on canvas/masonite. If a lab doesn’t offer that service, and can’t deliver it to me in 24 hours, and if I can’t place my order online, then it’s a deal breaker.
I hope you are able to visit again soon Marisol.
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One aspect of turnaround time is that many labs charge double for this service. It’s important to remember that if you’re being charged more for this service, up to 100% more, that you are able to charge more for this service. I had a client at the beginning of summer call me on the Thursday before her wedding wanting a canvas gallery wrap. Gallery wraps are not 24hr turnaround products. I called the lab and asked as was told it would be 100% extra for the rush. I then recalculated my cost and profit margin to reflect the rush charges, called the client holding my breath because I thought they would choke. Surprisingly they said yes and I placed the order. The deal got even sweeter when the lab said they would waive the rush fees as a customer courtesy.
So the lesson is as you’ve so eloquently stated. Your lab is a part of your team so choose wisely!