iPrints Professional
by Dale Laboratories
Create Prize-Winning Competition Prints in Minutes!

July 26, 2011
In This Issue
How To Design Competition Prints in Minutes


Lab Corrected vs. Studio Corrected Color
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Dear Subscriber,
 
This year's Florida Professional Photographers convention is taking place from Saturday, August 13th through Wednesday, August 17th in Orlando.

Learn what's new at the trade show. Participate in seminars...or join this year's competition and show your best work. 


Entering the FPP competition has never been easier. This year you have two choices:
  1. Enter an electronic image, with an optional "Exhibit Only" display print for public viewing. Or...
  2. Submit traditional, mounted prints that will be critiqued and carefully graded by FPP judges.
The deadline for submissions is August 10th. So, you have plenty of time to prepare your best images!
_________________________________

Why compete?

Competitions are a great way to
improve your craft. You get honest, constructive feedback from certified judges. You also see what other pros are doing.

The dilemma for many working pros is how much time
they can afford to spend on competitions. Designing a 16" x 20" competition print from scratch can be a very time-consuming process.

We'd like to help you get the display or competition prints you need...with easy-to-use ROES templates
that let you

Design prize-winning competition prints in minutes instead of hours!

How This Works

Our ROES system is fast...and easy to learn.

If you've used a ROES system from any other lab it will be a snap to use ours!

To follow along ...
please click here to download our free-to-you ROES program (if you don't already have it.)

Our ROES is organized into separate catalogs by paper surface.

Here's how to get to Competition Prints:

  • Choose the catalog with the paper surface that best suits your picture.
    • Kodak Endura Lustre (E)
    • Endura Metallic
    • Endura Glossy (F)
Note: Select a Laboratory Corrected catalog if you want us to correct your color or a Studio Adjusted catalog if you'd prefer doing your own color corrections.
  • Click the Competition Prints tab.
  •  Select Either Use Our Design Templates or Design Your Own Layout.

    • Use Our Design Templates allows you to simply drag your image into any of ten beautifully designed templates. You'll click on Options to change your borders and the strokes around your picture.




Design time is under two minutes!
    • Design Your Own Layout  is recommended if you want to drag your own Photoshop layout (with its own borders & stroke) into our Open Template (16 x 20 CP). You can also modify (Edit) the picture shape in any of our ten pre-designed templates should you have an unusually shaped picture.
The difference here is that you'll be using Pager tools rather than Options to change your border (fill) and stroke.






Sample Color allows you to bring a color from your picture into your border or stroke...for a very impressive effect!

Design time is from one to ten minutes!

What About Photoshop?

You probably will have to use Photoshop to bring out the best in your pictures.

The main benefit of our program is that it lets you concentrate on enhancing your photograph; not doing a lot of "busy work" to impress the judges with fancy borders.

You'll be able to skip the extra work...and time...of creating border and stroke designs.


Example: The eye-dropper tool was used here to bring the
color of the groom's jacket into the background node.


How Good Are Our Prints?
 
Last week there was an Inter-Guild competition between the Professional Photographers Guild of Florida (PPGF - Broward) and the Professional Photographers Guild of the Palm Beaches (PPGPB.) Prints made by our laboratory (for both Guilds) scored very high. They included several first place winners and the Best of Show print.

The Bottom Line: We'll give you impressive 16" x 20" enlargements that conform to competition rules in a fraction of the time it would take you to design them in Photoshop! You'll get better prints and save money, compared to other pro laboratories.

Should You Choose Lab Corrected or Studio Adjusted Color?

Laboratory corrections
are recommended for competition prints because perfect color correction is critical. Judges will key in on what's wrong with a print rather than what's right. So, you want your color and density "dead on."

Precise corrections are easier for us to do in our lab because we can make and evaluate test prints.


We have a three-step corrective process: 
  1. First, we color correct your image on a fully calibrated monitor (as you would). 
  2. Second, we make a test print.
  3. Finally, we correct that test print after a visual evaluation under competition lighting. Then, we make the enlargement. If your print isn't perfect it is reprinted with an additional correction. So, you are assured of great color.
Studio Corrections...where you do the corrections... are suggested only if you have the skill sets necessary to do accurate color corrections and are using a monitor calibrated to match our printers.

Doing your own color corrections gives you complete control over the creative process. It is also a great way for you to save money. We save technicians' labor and pass the dollar savings on to you.
_________________________________

Color & Density Considerations For This Year's Competitions

Salon
Competition Prints require special color correction.

Judges view prints under extremely bright lights. So, your prints must be made far darker, with more contrast, than prints you would sell tyour clients.

Please keep this increased density requirement in mind if you're correcting your own color for the print competition!

If you are in the Electronic Image Competition and are using our Studio Corrected print service: Be sure to balance your public display prints for normal room lighting...not dark and contrasty.

If We're Correcting Your Prints (Laboratory Corrected Color):

Click an Options button...and we'll do the rest -

Electronic Image Competition: Click the ROES Options radio button "Natural Color for Normal Viewing". We'll correct your picture for public display. (Your print will not be judged.)

Salon Print Competition: Click the radio button "Competition Print Color (Dark & Saturated...)  to meet judging standards.

Prices and Service Times

Some photographers prefer to do their own mounting. Others would rather have us give them a competition ready print mounted on Gatorfoam. Please use Options, in our ROES program, to let us know your preference.



Our Normal Service Times:
Studio Adjusted Prints: Same day
Laboratory Corrected Prints: 1 - 2 days
Mounting: Add 2 - 3 days
Shipping: Next day delivery via UPS Ground in Florida. Priority Mail takes 2 - 3 days anywhere in the U.S.

Deadline For Ordering Mounted & Shipped FPP Competition Prints: Friday, August 5th

Rush Service:
Available on request

Subscriber, our competition print service will help you score higher points.

Getting great prints shouldn't be difficult. With our online ROES ordering it isn't. You can create and order a top-quality competition print in minutes.

If you're new to competitions we'll level the playing field for you. You'll be able to compete successfully with "veterans."

Pros with competition experience will benefit from our personal approach to color correction. (You'll find our 16 x 20s to be among the best in America.)

Our goal is simple; to be an extension of your creativity and make you look good.

Please telephone me directly on my cell phone at (954) 536-4290 if you have any questions. I'm always available to help you in any way I can.

Best regards,
Dale

Dale Farkas
iPrints Professional by Dale Laboratories
Toll Free: (800) 327-1776  •  Broward: (954) 925-0103


P.S. Many of our pros have found our Monitor Calibration Chart to be very useful. We'll be happy to provide you with a complimentary print of the chart. Please click here to download our chart. It's free.

Might I ask a favor? Could you forward this email to your Guild officers, friends or other Guild members who you think would benefit from our easy-to-use Competition Print service. They'll thank you...and so will we!

Photo credits and our thanks to:
John Davies, Image Photo Services, Grand Cayman for the Geisha picture.
Alan Duretz, Duretz Photo, Margate, Florida for the portrait of the little girl.
George Fiad, Fiad Photography in Miami for his picture of the couple in the clearing.
Curtis Smith, Curtis Smith Photography, Dania, Florida for the bridal couple in the window.
  

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