> Having worked in a lab in years past, I found their systems,
> checks and balances and quality control to be as good as
> anything I could ever imagine. They really do have their stuff
> together. As busy as they were, they gave each image the
> one-on-one attention that spoke of the consistancy that I've
> seen from every one of my printed projects. They had two people
> that did nothing but spot-checking prints for color-consistancy
> while everybody checked every print for overall quality. That's
> right, 100% of the prints were hand-checked.
Millers is indeed the gold standard for high-volume low-price printing. They
offer a lesson to many of the "digital drove us out of business" whiners.
>One observation that I made in my mind was that there are a lot of pros out
>there producing
> schlock images.
That's nothing new. Imagination was never a requirement for being a
photographer.
> I asked questions about uprezzing the files prior to upload and
> almost got my head bit off! "NO!" Their RIP and printers do
> the uprezzing on-demand and also apply a touch of sharpening and
> noise-reduction to the image.
I have a friend that owns a commerical lab. I've seen the Durst printer
first hand, and was shown some of its features. All the talk about GF and
stairstep makees me smile. The RIP software that is a part of the printer
alone costs more than GF, PS, and your computer. Why anyone thinks a piece
of $100 software can beat that is a mystery.
> The visit was very informative for me as I'm contemplating
> investing in a large-format pigment printer. My decision is
> going to get a bit tougher as I've seen their capabilities in a
> new light and got to meet the people and see their processes. I
> still don't have any clearcut answer, but at least I know I can
> continue to use them without fear.
It really isn't possible to beat someone like Millers. You can make better
prints on a high end pigment printer, but it is a long and costly road. Even
after you have the workflow down, their material costs are still a LOT lower
than yours, and if you include your time, you'll never win. I know there are
a lot of photographers that think they do better, but aren't there better
ways to spend that time?
And imagine this: they are set up for high-volume low-cost work. Imagine if
they applied the same quest for quality to a low-volume commercial lab. Just
think what a reproduction grade (remember them?) hand make print would look
like!
Bill Pearce
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