Wedding photo book printer, possibly DS Colour Labs?

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Moonchild

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Hi I'm new here, just found the forum and thought I'd stop by for some advice :)

I recently did my first wedding shoot and I'm looking to get a good quality book printed.

DS Colour Labs in Manchester have a great reputation as a printlab and I've used them on a few occasions for large prints, acrylics and canvas but I've never had a book from them.

My question is has anyone here had books printed by DSCL? Any thoughts on the quality?

If anyone has any potential alternative recommendations should DSCL not be up to it I'd like to hear them (don't mention Loxley though - I almost had a heart attack when I saw their prices!) :)

Thanks
 
If you want good quality then you have to pay for it.

IMHO photo books are what clients create on-line and order themselves. Wedding albums are a whole different ball game. I never understand why anyone would want a flimsy photo book for their wedding photos.
 
haggis said:
If you want good quality then you have to pay for it.

IMHO photo books are what clients create on-line and order themselves. Wedding albums are a whole different ball game. I never understand why anyone would want a flimsy photo book for their wedding photos.
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because they don't want to spend a whole lot of money on something they will only look at 4-5 times at the most.
 
what did you offer the couple when they hired you or have they just asked for a book. What did the couple actually pay for ?


If they paid for a bog standard photo book then you get them one, if they paid for a stupidly overpriced "wedding" album them you have to give them one of those.

or is this for you as a portfolio item?

Moonchild said:
Hi I'm new here, just found the forum and thought I'd stop by for some advice :)

I recently did my first wedding shoot and I'm looking to get a good quality book printed.

DS Colour Labs in Manchester have a great reputation as a printlab and I've used them on a few occasions for large prints, acrylics and canvas but I've never had a book from them.

My question is has anyone here had books printed by DSCL? Any thoughts on the quality?

If anyone has any potential alternative recommendations should DSCL not be up to it I'd like to hear them (don't mention Loxley though - I almost had a heart attack when I saw their prices!) :)

Thanks
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Albelli have a buy one get one free offer just now. Get the all singing dancing leather bound gloss finish lay flat book for them and keep the other one for your portfolio?
 
Where does everyone get there big professional wedding photo books done?
The ones with the photos printed onto thick hard pages?
 
POAH said:
because they don't want to spend a whole lot of money on something they will only look at 4-5 times at the most.
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Agree, but then the profit on albums is huge, so understand why people push them.
 
fracster said:
Agree, but then the profit on albums is huge, so understand why people push them.
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only huge if you make it huge.

more hassel - sell the bride a CD of images that she can print herself saves you time and effort.
 
POAH said:
only huge if you make it huge.

more hassel - sell the bride a CD of images that she can print herself saves you time and effort.
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Yeah and when they get **** prints back from jessops they blame the photographer! Or as bad, when they use uncalibrated equipment, cheapo paper and inks and still blame the tog. When their friends see the prints they also do the same then before you know it you've got a crap reputation through no fault of your own.
 
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or you take the time to explain to them about colour management and offer them advice. most people don't print out their images any they upload to facebook or email them to friends.

PSILVERMAN said:
Yeah and when they get **** prints back from jessops they blame the photographer! Or as bad, when they use uncalibrated equipment, cheapo paper and inks and still blame the tog. When their friends see the prints they also do the same then before you know it you've got a crap reputation through no fault of your own.
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Thanks for the replies so far,

POAH, I am supplying the couple with a disc of the images and a book, I will also be uploading images so that guests may view and choose any that they like for printing.

There used to be quite a few small good quality print labs dotted about but sadly a lot of these are gone, I'm guessing the predominance of high street vendors such as Jessops & Max Spielmann has something to do with this.

As a photographer I want to offer something a level above the high street or supermarket printers. DSCL is regarded among many photographer as a decent print lab, I've just not had a book from them hence my question. I should have kept my post a bit briefer I suppose :) essentially what I want to know is:

Has anyone here had a book printed by DSCL & would you recommend them as good quality books? Otherwise do you have any other recommendations?

p.s. I've had another look at the Loxley site and managed to find a couple slightly less expensive options there so I may reconsider them possibly
 
Psilverman is so right, where has the art gone, the passion, striving to to be way above what the public can produce in picture and presentation, on a regular basis I see brides cry whilst looking at their pictures (with joy I hope) never seen one cry as she opens the cd case! Loxleys for me as you say expensive but as I say worth every penny! IMHO of course :)
 
cash - people shoot for money. DVD of images was good for me as it kept costs down, kept my time down and gave the people want they wanted. I never cried at the video box of watership down but I did at the moive ;)


for me a £200-300 album is not worth the money but other people will and they still have the option of doing the work themselves and getting it cheaper than what the photographer would charge them
 
Video box lol :) they are crying as the open the album presentation box! But then I present it with flowers, chocolates and champagne and make a big hoo ha, just works for me!
 
Moonchild said:
Thanks for the replies so far,

I am supplying the couple with a disc of the images and a book, I will also be uploading images so that guests may view and choose any that they like for printing.
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If you supply a disk to the couple, your web sales will be minimal if the happy couple duplicate the disk and hand it out to friends
 
Tugster said:
If you supply a disk to the couple, your web sales will be minimal if the happy couple duplicate the disk and hand it out to friends
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That implies you'd get those sales anyway.

I was never bothered about that - once they had a disc that was it all over nothing else to worry about. colour management was explained to them.
 
haggis your good quality wedding albums are every bit as stuck together as coffee table books my friend the only difference is albums have a big piece of cardboard stuck in beetween pages to bulk it,and there photographic finish not press.
 
PSILVERMAN said:
Yeah and when they get **** prints back from jessops they blame the photographer! Or as bad, when they use uncalibrated equipment, cheapo paper and inks and still blame the tog. When their friends see the prints they also do the same then before you know it you've got a crap reputation through no fault of your own.
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I do a CD only package but I also do them 10 10X8 prints to show what they should be looking at.. seems to work well.
 
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