Buyer’s Guide: Recommendations For The Best Photography Equipment, Software, Books, Magazines, DVDs, Online Photo Labs and More

I get lots of photo questions and many of them begin with “What is the best . . . .” They usually come from photographers or someone shopping for a photographer.

Here is my list of “best of the best” of articles recommending the best photo gear, software, books, DVDs, calendars, online photo labs, and a whole lot more.

Posted Nov. 19, 2016. Updated Dec. 28, 2016.

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The Best of the Best: Recommendations For The Best Photography Equipment, Software, Books, Magazines, DVDs, Online Photo Labs and More

The best of the best cameras, accessories, photo books and more.

The best of the best cameras, accessories, photo books and more.

It’s the time of year that the number of photo questions I receive increases dramatically. Many of them have to do with “What is the best . . . .” They usually come from someone shopping for a photographer, or photographers shopping for themselves.

So once again here is my list of “best of the best” of articles recommending the best photo gear, software, books, DVDs, calendars, online photo labs, and a whole lot more. I will revise some of these articles in November and December, but most of the advice is good as it stands. The best books on photographic composition or the best photo labs haven’t changed in the last 12 months. As I rewrite articles I will update the links below. You can check the date at the top of each article.

Originally posted Nov. 21, 2015. Updated December 11, 2015.

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The Best of the Best: Recommendations For The Best Photo Equipment, Books, Magazines, DVDs, Software, and Online Photo Labs

The best of the best cameras, accessories, photo books and more.

The best of the best cameras, accessories, photo books and more.

It’s the time of year that the number of photo questions I receive increases dramatically. Most of them have to do with the upcoming holiday season and gift giving questions: “What should I get for . . . .”

So once again I am revising my list of articles recommending the best photo gear, books, DVDs, software, calendars, online photo labs, and a whole lot more. As I rewrite each article I will update the links below. You can check the date at the top of each article. This is the most recent update to the list (Nov. 10, 2014).

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How to Get the Best Results from the Best Online Photo Labs

Online Labs Rated

The lab you choose and the kind of file you send to your lab can make a big difference in the quality of print you get back. How do you pick a good online photo lab? How do you get the best results from your lab? What color space should you use for your digital files and how do you convert your files to the right color space? How big a print can you make from your digital files?

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How To Get The Best Results From The Best Online Photo Labs

Online Labs Rated

The lab you choose and the kind of file you send to your lab can make a big difference in the quality of print you get back. How do you pick a good online photo lab? How do you get the best results from your lab? What color space should you use for your digital files and how do you convert your files to the right color space? How big a print can you make from your digital files?

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HOW TO GET THE BEST RESULTS FROM THE BEST ONLINE PHOTO LABS

Online Labs Rated

How do you pick a good online photo lab? How do you get the best results from your lab? What color space should you use for your digital files and how do you convert your files to the right color space? How big a print can you make from your digital files?

It’s the time of year that people think about making prints for family and friends, and more and more people send their files off to an online digital photo lab to have those prints made. So which are the best labs, and what can you do to get the best results? That’s what this article is all about. This article is revised and significantly enlarged from the version posted a year ago.

My short answer: Use Mpix and Shutterfly for prints of all sizes, plus a host of specialty items. Use EZPrints for panoramas. Why these three labs? Keep reading. For maximum color accuracy, convert the files to the sRGB color space before sending them to the lab, and turn auto enhance off at the online photo lab. Stick with the 300 pixel per inch guidelines. More about color space and auto enhance and resizing files later on in this article. First, let’s look at some online labs.

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GETTING THE BEST RESULTS FROM THE BEST ONLINE PHOTO LABS

Online Labs Rated

How do you pick a good online photo lab? How do you get the best results from your lab? What color space should you use for your digital files and how do you convert your files to the right color space? How big a print can you make from your digital files?

It’s the time of year that people think about making prints for family and friends, and more and more people send their files off to an online digital photo lab to have those prints made. So which are the best labs, and what can you do to get the best results? That’s what this article is all about. This article is revised and significantly enlarged from the version posted a year ago.

My short answer: Use Mpix and Shutterfly for prints of all sizes, plus a host of specialty items. Use EZPrints for panoramas. Why these three labs? Keep reading. For maximum color accuracy, convert the files to the sRGB color space before sending them to the lab, and turn auto enhance off at the online photo lab. Stick with the 300 pixel per inch guidelines. More about color space and auto enhance and resizing files later on in this article. First, let’s look at some online labs.

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GET THE BEST RESULTS FROM THE BEST ONLINE PHOTO LABS

Online Labs Rated

How do you pick a good online photo lab, and how do you get the best results from your lab?

It is almost Christmas (or any other time of year), you want some prints or cards made from your digital files, and you are thinking about sending them to an online photo lab. With so many labs out there, which lab do you  use? And how do you get the best results from your lab?

My short answer: Use Mpix and Shutterfly for prints of all sizes, plus a host of specialty items. Use EZPrints for panoramas. Why these three labs? Keep reading. For maximum color accuracy, convert the files to the sRGB color space before sending them to the lab, and turn auto enhance off at the online photo lab. More about that later.

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TIM GREY ANSWERS QUESTIONS ABOUT SHUTTERFLY

If you want to get the best out of Shutterfly, this post is for you.

With Tim Grey’s permission, I occasionally quote the questions and answers from his DDQ emails. If you aren’t on his DDQ mailing list, you can sign up for free. DDQ emails arrive almost daily and you can learn a lot just reading the Q&A’s.

If you want to search the DDQ archive or ask Tim a question, you will need to become a member. Either way, you can find more information here.  Tim provides a wealth of information when it comes to Photoshop and the technical aspects of digital photography. He has authored or coauthored several books.

Now for some DDQ questions about Shutterfly, followed by Tim’s answers.  In case you are wondering, Tim love’s Shutterfly.

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