A question for those that use a lab for prints.

[ldelacruz]

Do you color correct your own photos or let the lab do it for you? Please let me know why you chose or not chose to let them? Thanks for your help.

I set up my account with Miller's and I would think they would do a better job at color correction than I would.

[kimberley]

I color correct all my own, you never know what you will get, in my opion :)

[Jeff_Green]

Originally Posted by kimberley

I color correct all my own, you never know what you will get, in my opion :)

That is a really good point! I ended up with a box of chocolates!

[ldelacruz]

Originally Posted by Jeff_Green

That is a really good point! I ended up with a box of chocolates!

Are you trying to be funny or did you really have a bad experience? This is not a laughing matter!

Seriously, do you correct your own?

[Howard Barlow]

Originally Posted by Jeff_Green

That is a really good point! I ended up with a box of chocolates!

That's all I have to say about that.

[Jeff_Green]

Originally Posted by ldelacruz

Are you trying to be funny or did you really have a bad experience? This is not a laughing matter!

Seriously, do you correct your own?

Sorry, it was a laughing matter for me. I did NOT order prints and end up getting a box of chocolates. lol I said that in reference to the "you never know what you are going to get" in reference back to Forest Gump when he made that famous statement.

I apologize for any confusion I may have caused in derailing this thread with my pithy comment.

For the record, I do not use the ICC profiles of the lab although I probably should.

[ldelacruz]

No apology necessary...I knew exactly what you were saying but I had to join in on the fun with my smart a** comment.

I quote Forrest Gump all the time. My favorite is " I know everything there is to know about the Shrimping Bitness"

[bondarnes]

I let my lab color correct. They have reference images so they know that I like my work a little darker and just a tad bit warm. It it too much work IMHO for me to keep calibrating my monitors. I realize the price is a little less if I did it myself, but it only takes one bad order to wipe out any savings. If I correct and it is wrong then I eat it. If I have the lab do it and it is wrong they eat it. My lab gets it right about 98% of the time.

[ldelacruz]

Thanks Don. That is the problem I think I will have plus I don't know what good color is supposed to look like. Do you sharpen and touch up and let them correct color or do they do it all?

[bondarnes]

We do most of our retouching and we only sharpen a small amount during raw conversion. We do color correct at this time, but only enough that it looks good on our uncalibrated monitors. If we get behind on retouching we use a company called retouchup.com. they do a great job for a very reasonable price. They turn it around in less than two days.

[ldelacruz]

I am going to give them a shot and see how it turns out. Don would you PM me your lab of choice?

[kimberley]

I use Color Inc and Bayphoto.

I like Color Inc, as they are the closest match to what i see on my monitor. Their tones are gorgeous and there color in my opion is beautiful

[ldelacruz]

Thanks for the suggestion Kimberley.

[bondarnes]

No need for a PM as I am happy to recommend Pounds Labs as they have been my lab of choice for over 20 years, however everyone should find the lab that is the best fit for them. I also like BWC in Dallas, Whitehouse Custom Color, Millers, and American Color Imaging. I have also heard good things about Bay Photo.

The key to finding a great lab is communication. The lab should be willing to listen to what you need and try to meet those needs. I used to change labs every time my current one messed up an order until I realized one day that every lab messes up an occasional order, but if they are willing to go the extra mile with you and correct any mistakes then that is more than half the battle.

[ldelacruz]

Don,
I am a business owner myself and I know that we all make mistakes but I tell all my customers that we are not perfect but if we do make a mistake, just pick up the phone and give me a call and we will make it right.

I don't have time for excuses, just solutions.