What's the best, cheapest option for matte photo prints?

April 19, 2019 3:02 AM

I've got a photo exhibit coming up. Nothing major, the walls of a local coffee shop. But you know, I want it to look good. What are my options for ordering affordable prints online, hopefully with a matte option? Everything from 8X10 to 20X30.

Bonus points for shipping flat, as opposed to curled up like a poster. I'm hoping for some optimal mix of quality and value. Love you!

posted by flod to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (7 answers total)

Are you a Costco member? Their prints are super cheap, offer matte, and max out at 20x30. I think, but can’t fully remember, that larger sizes come shipped in a tube, but if you pick them up in store, maybe they wouldn’t roll them?
posted by another zebra at 5:32 AM on April 19, 2019

I was looking for personal copies, but my previous ask on buying photographic prints might help. Some of the answers were from professional photographers who have purchased exhibition prints from various sources.
posted by FencingGal at 6:37 AM on April 19, 2019

Best answer: Cheap, good quality, fast? I'd go with AdoramaPix. We've had lots of photos printed by them when what we needed was outside our capabilities, and we've been happy with them.
posted by Making You Bored For Science at 6:53 AM on April 19, 2019 [2 favorites]

Best answer: I second AdoramaPix, they ship flat too.

Adorama sells Fuji Deep Matte, which look great and is super matte. You might also check out the luster paper-- they are a lovely combo of slightly glossy/matte without being annoyingly reflective.

I would recommend if you're going to get a bunch of stuff printed, take one or two representative photos, and get a 4x5 print in every paper that Adorama offers; it's great to have a little set of samples.
posted by gregr at 7:54 AM on April 19, 2019 [2 favorites]

I like ProDPI, mostly for the quality. Prices are reasonable, but the app required to get the images to them is a little cumbersome. Quality is fantastic for both matte and glossy.
posted by bluejayway at 8:55 AM on April 19, 2019

As mentioned in FencingGal's AskMe, the current favorite from The Wirecutter is Nations Photo Lab (they have an option for Kodak Endura Lustre paper); AdoramaPix is their second favorite.
posted by rangefinder 1.4 at 8:17 PM on April 19, 2019

Response by poster: Quick update: I ended up going with AdoramaPix, and am very happy with the results. I ordered up to 20X30-size prints, and everything shipped flat and looks great. As gregr suggested, I ordered small previews in all the different paper stocks, which ended up being very useful. I thought I would like the deep matte finish most of all, but, in person, the regular matte turned out to be the best mix of color, contrast and glare resistance.

Thanks, everyone!
posted by flod at 5:08 PM on May 21, 2019 [1 favorite]