Digital Photography Printing

Getting digital photography prints from the camera to an album takes organization, research, more organization, and creativity. For those who have hundreds of photos saved on a hard drive, the process also will take quite a bit of time -- especially if the multitude of photos are labeled with strange number strings and saved in only one directory. The initial organizing will require sorting through the photos and creating separate folders for them. An easy system is to create a folder for each year. Within that folder, additional folders can be created for special events or perhaps by the month. This is a good opportunity for purging the directory of blurry shots or ones that just aren't any good. There's no need to have a photo taking up disk space when it isn't worth keeping. The time-consuming task of replacing all those numbers with specific keywords will pay off later when certain photographs want to be quickly found. This initial organizing may take several hours, but once it is completed, future additions can be easily filed in appropriate folders. The hard part is getting the system in place in the first place. The organized photos can be saved to CDs so that a backup is available in case the computer hard drive crashes. Once the initial organization and backup are complete, it's time to think about digital photography printing options for the best of those photos.

The popularity of digital cameras quickly created the need for high quality digital photography prints. Using the home printer just wasn't good enough for even amateur photographers. To meet this growing need, both established companies and visionary entrepreneurs began offering digital photography printing services on the internet. This is where the second step in the camera-to-album process comes into play. Photographers will want to research the variety of companies competing for the digital printing market. Several criteria may go into making the appropriate choice, but perhaps the most important one is the print quality. Most consumers will probably prefer paying a penny or more per print to get high quality resolution. However, other factors should also be considered. For example, the customer will want to pay attention to how easy it is to navigate a specific company's website. Uploading the photos from the customer's hard drive to the digital photography printing website should be hassle-free and relatively fast. The organizing of the photos into the customer's personal directory should be an easy process. And placing the order, even a large one, should be a simple undertaking. The customer also should be assured that all financial information, especially the credit card number, is safe from any security breaches. In addition to these set-up and ordering factors, the customer will also want to pay attention to the turn-around time. How long did it take from the time the order was placed for the digital photography prints to be ready for shipping? Once the package arrives, the customer can evaluate the shipping time, the sturdiness of the packaging, and quality of the prints.

Some of the established companies, those with retail locations, offer an additional option for their customers. The digital photography prints can be ordered online, but then shipped to a nearby retail location for pickup. The cost-per-print may vary depending on whether the order will be shipped directly to the customer or shipped to a company's retail location. Here is another neat option: a customer can order a print, pay for it, and have it shipped to a retail store that is close to a relative or friend. The relative or friend is then notified that the print is at the store and available for pickup. This is a great way to share photos with faraway family members. Having this kind of flexibility in shipping and pickup options may give the retail companies an edge over the businesses that have only an online presence. All these factors will need to be taken in consideration for customers who want to upload all their digital photos to one online location. The Proverbs writer says: "The wise in heart shall be called prudent: and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning" (Proverbs 16:21). Prudent customers will take advantage of the free trial membership or tremendous first order discounts offered by online companies. By taking advantage of these special offers, the customer can evaluate one or more companies before making a final decision.

More organizing is the third step in the camera-to-album process. Once a customer has selected one specific online company, she will want to upload all her digital photos to the member account she has created. No doubt, the company will have a feature that allows the photos to be organized into various albums. The customer can opt to have the albums of her choice to be shared with family members and friends who have the password to access those albums. This way, other people can order prints of the photos. Online digital photography printing companies usually offer a variety of picture sizes from the common 4 x 6 to poster-size or even larger. Consumers may also choose pictures with or without borders and with either a glossy or matte finish.

The final camera-to-album step is creativity. Digital prints can be inserted into online pre-formatted albums that even allow personalizing. Once completed, these scrapbooks are sent to the customer or to the designated recipient. What a great idea for sending newborn baby photographs to faraway grandparents! And photos just aren't for albums anymore. Companies offer a variety of creative ideas. Photos can be placed on t-shirts, coffee mugs, keychains, even blankets and jewelry boxes. Digital photography prints can even be blown up and placed on canvases for a very special and meaningful piece of artwork. It may be time-consuming, especially at first, but with the four easy steps of initial organization, research, more organization, and creativity, digital prints can get out of the camera and into the albums where they belong.

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