printing photos for project life

Written by

Today I want to talk about the options of printing photos for Project Life. When you commit to doing this you really need to figure out what works best for you, because you are going to be printing a lot of photos and if you figure out how to stay on top of it you’ll be well on your way to keeping up. In my opinion it’s OVER half the battle. I’ve tried a bunch of different routes and they all have benefits and drawbacks, so let’s discuss.

Mail delivery

One option is to use an online service to have your photos shipped to you. Many companies offer this; I have done it before using Snapfish and I’ve heard that the quality of Persnickety Prints is awesome. I’ve also used the PostalPix app on my phone for Instagram prints and that was fun, too.

Benefits: higher quality (usually), cheaper per print

Drawbacks: wait time, paying for shipping (but you may be able to find a deal)

This is a good option if you are going to do a bunch of spreads in bulk, that way you make the shipping cost worth it. If you are trying to keep up with weekly or bi-weekly spreads it might be harder since you’ll need your photos quickly.

Same-day pickup

This is kind of like the old one-hour photo. You still use an online service to place your order, but you choose to pick them up in-store instead of having them shipped. This is the option I use most frequently, and I’ve had good success with Snapfish. You can also do this directly through the photo lab that you choose, like Walgreen’s or Costco.

Benefits: get your photos quickly (usually within an hour), still affordable

Drawbacks: quality is very dependent on the photo lab you choose and might never be quite as high, the price per print is higher, limited sizing of prints

I like this option because it enables me to complete my spreads in a timely manner but it’s still fairly affordable as far as prints are concerned. If you are going to choose this route I recommend trying a few different photo labs to test the difference in quality. I’ve found that my local Walgreen’s does a decent job and it’s super close, so I use them. I tried using Wal-Mart once and there was a whole fiasco so I stay away from them!

Printing at home

This might be an option to consider if you are someone who needs a lot of flexibility in your creative process, or if you aren’t going to be printing a whole lot of photos (because it can be pricey).

Benefits: flexible, get your photos at any time almost instantly, quality can be very high depending on your printer, easy to print different sizes

Drawbacks: the combination of initial investment in a printer, paper, and ink can get expensive

Personally, this option is too expensive for me to rely on for all of my photos, but I do like having it available to me. I have a Canon Selphy which prints a max size of 4×6. I love it. The printer itself wasn’t too expensive, it was incredibly easy to set up, it’s quick and easy to use (I do all of my printing wirelessly from the app on my iPhone), and I love being able to use it when I just need one or two photos here and there.

These are the main ways I know of to print photos, and I use a combination of all three depending on the situation, but same-day pickup is what I use most often! Did I miss anything? What’s your preference? Have I convinced anyone new to try Project Life yet? ;)

***

Affiliate links used when possible. Thanks for your support!

Comments

7 responses to “printing photos for project life”

May 7, 2014

lauren w

Still loving project life! I need to get out the one I’m making for my high school photos and put the finishing touches on it!

Reply
May 7, 2014

Jen

I can’t remember the last time I got photos printed. How awful is that? I’m just not a scrapbooker AT ALL, so I’m like – what do I do with 3,000 iphone photos when I’ve printed them? :/

Reply
May 7, 2014

Stephanie Stuber

I use an app called Groovebook – They print you 150 pictures for $2.99 a month. Ships in the mail every month…The only catch is you have to take pictures from your phone, but you should check it out. If you’re interested let me know I have a coupon for a few books!

Reply
May 7, 2014

Nora

I’m a Walgreens/same day pick-up kind of gal. The one near us does a great job and I’m kind of obsessed with the coupons & free prints they offer on a regular basis. The quality has been great, so much so that I use them for our Christmas card printing, too.

In order to Project Life I guess I’d have to take pictures, and that I do not do enough of. I guess it’s cause I only need so many photos of me working out, making food and etc. I’m not the most exciting person these days :)

Reply
May 7, 2014

Alisa Beth

I’ve really been enjoying your increased blogging and especially your project life entries. I also love Elise Cripe’s blog and have been following her lead in the monthly spreads. I love how I can group like photos together instead of keeping them by the week (for example – places we ate out during the whole month, special things I did with my middle one while the oldest was in preschool, weekend adventures or nature walks). I have been using Persnickety Prints and I LOVE IT! I even splurge and have them round the corners for me. It takes me a couple days at the end of the month to decide what I’m going to have printed, orientation, and size and then I order the whole month’s worth of prints. Once they come in, it’s pretty easy to knock out a month of layouts during one nap time. The journaling takes a couple of days worth of nap times but like you, I keep pretty good notes and a calendar so it’s easy to go back and remember. I have a huge problem of taking (and printing) WAY too many photos and I think I’m going to end up with two albums for this year. It’s such a great way of memory keeping. I don’t do anything special with the layouts – just journaling cards from the kits and photos (which the occasional extra movie ticket or something). You’re doing such a great job adding an extra special touch to your layouts! I am going to try your stapled vellum trick one of these days.

Reply
1. May 7, 2014
  
  kapachino
  
  Thank you, I’m so glad you’re enjoying the posts! Sometimes I get a little sick of my own voice so it’s nice to hear. :)
  
  I love Elise’s blog too and I’m very drawn to the monthly approach! You may have me convinced to try it next year. The pros would be that I’d get to try Persnickety Prints and it would be super flexible and probably get me to be a little more creative. My worries are that I’d get out of the habit of taking photos and that it would take me too long to complete. Might be worth it though!
  
  Reply
May 10, 2014

Sarah

I’m nearly convinced to give PL a try…

Speaking of Elise’s blog, I think I found her through you and I am basically OBSESSED with her blog. It’s one of my favorite reads right now!

Reply