photos too good to print
 

Today I need a quick couple of 8x10's for someone and since I couldnt get it done from my regular place I logged onto Walgreens website. I upload a the photos and was planning on picking them up after work. When I got to the store to pick up my prints I was informed that they looked too much like professional work and they didnt print them and deleted them from there system. While I appreciated the comments concerning the quality of my work, I was mad as hell concerning there subjective decision on what to print and what not to print. I had clicked on the agreement that the pics were not copyrighted that was on the page when I uploaded the photo's. All I could get from the manager was that the lady in processing felt they "looked like professionally done photos," my explanation that I was a professional did nothing to help. A call to customer service did get my pics resubmitted and I was give credit for 10 4x6's whoopee. the Walgreen was a block from my house and I could get the prints today was only reason I used them

That makes no sence to me at all, it must be nice to be a corporate giant! Most other companies cannot afford to turn away paying customers! Why won't they print professional prints?

They wont print pro photos because they are afraid of being sued. When I have photos that need printed at Walgreen's or WalMart, I call after I submit them and let them know to go ahead and print them and I will bring a release when I come to pick them up. You can find a release online that will work, or Walmart has one on hand that they will let you fill out. This has eliminated the problem for me. If all else fails, use Sams Club, they never give me a problem.

Sued! Lawyers have made the world so pethedicly safe, its out of control!

develop a relationship with your printer, Walgreen's, WalMart, or WhomEver and you will never have this problem. Don't criticize them for doing their job. How on earth are they supposed to know from an uploaded image that it WASN'T swiped?

Do they KNOW you?

Image the H#$% they would catch from you if they had printed your images for someone who stole them off the web....

Take it as a compliment and go on.

Just print your own. Then you know you have full control and truly have a color manged workflow for start to final print.

I just can't imagine letting a photo in box place do any kind of printing.

Just wait until you start selling your images.. You may start thinking differently. In the wedding photog industry (especially if you rely on revenue from prints) you can't afford to have your images copied/scanned and then illegally printed and distributed to anyone and everyone. Anytime I release an image to a client, I send along a business card and written release so they may have them reproduced. I have on more than one occasion had to fax in those items to various places (Sam's Club and Walmart on that list) for images that I have given to family members to print.

They are trying to eliminate stolen photos like people scanning a professionally done portrait and reprinting it. Anyone who actually sells prints should be glad that they do this. There's nothing worse than someone ripping you off and reprinting your photos themselves to try and save money. For one thing they usually aren't the print quality of the originals. Then when people ask who took the photo and they tell them pro photographer so and so, it looks bad on you if the print quality isn't up to par. With today's technology it is pretty easy for someone to just buy a 4x6 they like, scan it, and enlarge it themselves. It sucks but that's how it is.

When dealing in bulk such as 100s of proofs, it's much more economical to send to a lab...WHCC is who I use for bulk or large prints (over 13x19), metallics, and/or gallery wraps, mounts, etc.. My prints from them come out every bit as good as my R2400 prints with calibrated profiles.

Now if its single or even low quantity orders...Yes.. I definitely print myself.

If I had enough bulk orders and wanted to print myself (although I haven't the time for it)...I'd get a different printer (perhaps a Epson 4800 with roll/papercutter).. Ink in the prosumer/consumer line is just not economical at all for bulk printing.

weeelll....

I COULD take offense to that, but i'm not gonna.

I work in a photo lab (wolf camera) and I deal with pro photos on a daily basis (and some). Now, we're not like walgreens/walmart/cvs etc. Each lab operates as its own entity, as does each printer.

When I print I print for more saturated colours, and color consistency. My co-worker doesn't do as much in terms of density and saturation, but more 'pleasing' colour. So my batch could be different to hers (mine are more saturated, hers are a little washed out).

When a pro comes in and asks for prints, I follow THEIR instructions. Now, if they're claiming to be a pro but the photographs look, well, like crap (and I get those), I'll do my best. We have alot of pros do internet ordering, and if in doubt, I call the person first to see if they took them, if not do they have a release. They give me a release, i'll give them the prints. They don't give me a release, well, those prints stay until they can get me one, if not, they're just counted as waste.

But to assume, and just delete without anything so much as a phone call, thats just wrong. I've had pros come in with stuff printed at one of the local pro labs here in denver, only to be disappointed with the results. I've printed some that look better than what a pro lab will do.

Its not the lab itself, its the individual printing the photos that makes the difference. Yes, equipment comes into play, but whenever we do a paper change (even if it is just a magazine swap to different paper finish) we do calibration on it to make sure that we're getting consistent results. The same cannot be said for some places.

It all depends on who is in charge (and printing) on that particular day.

I get te fact that its good that they try to protect you from people stealing your images to copy. Its the sued word I hate! Its way overdone. Everyone is so afraid to be sued, you can't hardly do anything anymore.

you also have to have a look at the general clientele that they deal with on a daily basis. I doubt that they get a buttload of pros come through the door, so naturally, they may be a little more suspicious that the OP may not have taken the photos.

What gets me is that they never bothered making contact before the OP went into the store, and when he did they seemed to have blown him off.

When I was in college, a "buttload" = 5. A "Sh$tload" = 20.

Just wanted to clear that up for those wondering.

:grin:

wow.. no one ever refuses to print my work :down:

Take it as a compliment!!!
I have had a customer call me for this same reason from her trying to get prints from Wal-Mart and they would not print them.