I tested 8 print labs across American to find the best!

One of the most frequently asked questions I receive from other photographers on my podcast is: "What print lab do you use?" I've tested quite a few over the years but I've always found myself wondering if I've found the best. I decided to contact thirteen photography print labs across the country to see if they wanted to participate and compete in the ultimate showdown, which I've also detailed out on my website:

https://www.mattpaynephotography.com/...

My podcast: https://www.mattpaynephotography.com/...

I reached out to the following labs:

Mpix, Bay Photo, Nations Photo Lab, Bumblejax, New Mexico Fine Art (NMFA), Nevada Art Printers, DuraPlaq, Artisan HD, Unique Imaging Concepts, Pure Art Printer, Metal Mouth Prints, Northwest Fine Art Printing, Whitewall, and Blazing Editions. In the end, the first eight of the listed labs participated in the competition/comparison, with Blazing Editions, Metal Mouth Prints, Northwest Fine Art Printing, and Pure Art Printer not responding to my emails, Whitewall refused to participate, and Unique Imaging Concepts dropping out and/or not responding. Some labs only sent me one or two of the three categories, while others went all out in sending more than I asked for.

I landed on comparing Canvas, White Matte ChromaLuxe Metal, and Acrylic prints as these are the most popular types of prints that are made by photographers looking to sell "ready to hang" artwork.

I evaluated each lab based on the following 11 criteria:

• Packaging / Shipping
• Production Time
• Communication
• Ease of Ordering
• Quality of Materials
• Color Fidelity
• Hanging Hardware
• Print vs. Screen Representation
• Quality Assurance
• Cost / Value
• Customization

Each lab's work was evaluated in the order in which I received them and started communication with each lab on the same date.

Here are timestamps for each section:

0:00 Introduction and Overview:
5:21 Mpix Review
8:36 Mpix Canvas Review
12:51 Mpix Metal Review
15:55 Mpix Acrylic Review
23:01 New Mexico Fine Art (NMFA) Review
27:12 NMFA Canvas Review
30:22 NMFA Metal Review
31:44 NMFA Acrylic Review
42:53 Bumblejax Review
44:33 Bumblejax Canvas Review
48:14 Bumblejax Metal Review
53:20 Bumblejax Acrylic Review
59:04 Nations Photo Lab Review
1:01:34 Nations Photo Lab Canvas Review
1:05:36 Nations Photo Lab Metal Review
1:09:48 Nations Photo Lab Acrylic Review
1:16:52 Nevada Art Printers Review
1:19:42 Nevada Art Printers Canvas Review
1:22:32 Nevada Art Printers Acrylic (Lumachrome) Review
1:36:01 DuraPlaq Review
1:38:32 DuraPlaq Canvas Review
1:41:16 DuraPlaq Metal Review
1:44:20 DuraPlaq Acrylic Review
1:50:32 Artisan HD Review
1:52:23 Artisan HD Acrylic Review
1:59:57 Bay Photo Review
2:02:17 Bay Photo Canvas Review
2:04:41 Bay Photo Metal Review
2:08:50 Bay Photo Acrylic Review
2:18:32 Conclusions and Recommendations
2:24:44 Pricing Comparison Chart

Thank you to all of the participating labs for sending these samples over and for sharing your time and expertise with me and our audience! Here are links to each of the labs:

1. Mpix: https://www.mpix.com/
2. NMFA: https://nmfa.io/
3. Bumblejax: https://www.bumblejax.com/
4. Nations Photo Lab: https://www.nationsphotolab.com/
5. Nevada Art Printers: https://www.nevadaartprinters.com/
6. DuraPlaq: http://www.duraplaq.com/
7. Artisan HD: https://artisanhd.com/
8. Bay Photo: https://bayphoto.com/

Link to white gloves: https://amzn.to/3MJMAY1

P.S. the above is an affiliate link - thanks for your support!