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Developing Makes a Difference
There have probably been many times that you’ve picked up your prints from the developer and were less than pleased. Before you jump to the conclusion that you have a faulty camera (or photographer), take a look at how and where the film was developed. It makes a difference. The more you use your camera and have film developed, the more you’ll start noticing how well (or how badly) it’s done. There are a few different options for having your film developed, all with their own set of advantages and disadvantages.  Send-Away Lab
Many people like to bring their film to a drug or grocery store or other convenient location, put it in an envelope, drop it in the box and pick the prints up a couple days later. It definitely is the most convenient and the cheapest way to go at as low as $4.00 a roll. Unfortunately, you often get what you pay for, so don’t expect your prints to be the best that they can be. The film is picked up and brought to a large lab and all of the rolls of film are processed the same way, which means your roll doesn’t get the special attention and care that it might at a mini-lab or a custom lab. You may be paying a great price, but you’re likely sacrificing the quality of the prints. For everyday photos that are only moderately important to you, this might be a good route, saving your more valuable photos for a more expensive lab. One-Hour Mini-Lab
Others like the satisfaction of having their prints returned quickly, so they opt for the one-hour local service, which most mini-labs offer. Mini-labs are also convenient, usually located in superstores, malls and drug stores, but they’re about twice the cost of the two-day service–-running around $8.00 to $10.00 a roll. Mini-labs are more reliable, although the quality of your prints still depends on the skill of the person operating the equipment. Since they do the developing right there, you have the ability to make reprint requests and examine your prints before you leave the store, in case for some reason you aren’t satisfied with the results. One-hour photo labs also oftentimes only offer matte- or only glossy-finish prints, so be sure to ask before you have them developed if you have a preference. Mail-Order Labs
Another option that people take advantage of is mail-order labs. The company sends you prepaid envelopes for you to send your film to them in. While this is a very inexpensive option, there are a number of possible drawbacks. Your film or prints could get lost or damaged in the mail, it may take several weeks to get your prints back, and if you have a problem with any of your prints, it can be time-consuming trying to get the problem fixed. It’s not like a local lab where you can talk to someone face to face to make sure they understand exactly what you expect. However, if you do run into difficulties, be sure to contact the company, because most will do what they can to keep you happy as a customer. Online Labs
Thanks to the internet, a new style of mail-order labs exists. You can upload your digital images to a photo lab, and have the prints mailed to you. You can also mail your film to them, and then view your images online before you decide which ones to print. Uploading (if you have digital images) eliminates or reduces some of the disadvantages of mail-order labs. There is also the added benefit of being able to turn your film into digital images, and then cropping, correcting or deleting them as necessary. Custom Photo Labs
Although custom photo labs can make mistakes too, they are your best bet for high-quality prints. Their prices are typically more expensive, but in many ways you are paying extra for the individual attention and extra service that they provide you. In addition to reprints or enlargements, they also offer many more services such as copying negatives, making slides, processing black & white film, offering different textures of paper for your prints and a huge variety of less common enlargement sizes like 8” x 8” and 10” x 12”. At a custom lab, you can request cropped images and color adjustments, turn a regular photo into a panoramic, or even create poster-sized prints. Wherever you decide to have your film developed, just remember the equipment can have glitches from time to time. I’ve heard it suggested that it’s not wise to bring all your film in at one time (if you have more than one or two rolls), so if the equipment happens to be working incorrectly, your film won’t all be destroyed. Try a few different labs to see what kind of results you get. Have three similar rolls of film developed at three different places and see how the results vary. Since the quality of the final prints often depends on the person behind the machine, you might be surprised by who has the best results. You may find that your local grocery store has a fantastic technician and produces prints that you are very satisfied with. On the other hand, the “pro-lab” in your area may have awful customer service. Remember...these are your precious memories that you’re putting into the hands of the photo labs. If you’re not happy with the prints they give you, make sure you ask them to fix them. You might not get much of a response at a mini-lab, but at a custom lab, they’re usually very good about doing what they can to get you the best prints possible. If they’ve tried to fix the prints and end up with the same results, try another lab before concluding that you need a new camera.
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