Why Make Prints (and/or Back-up Your Image Files) of Your Photographs?

Should You
Print (or Preserve)
Your Photographs?

Here are a few good reasons why file preservation & printing makes sense.

#1 - Your Family's Pictures Need Life Insurance

Imagine how you'd feel if one day you checked your computer or cell phone and all the pictures you'd taken of your family were gone.

It's a fact. Hard drives crash. Cell phones are lost or replaced. Cloud uploads turn out to be low-res files that aren't of much use. Even file formats become obsolete and can no longer be read by current computers.

This happens a lot more often than you would think!

The solution? A lab-quality 4" x 6" print (49¢) on Kodak or Fuji photo paper will last for 100 years. The print you make today will be one your children can show to their grandchildren. Prints are the only sure photo insurance you can buy.

It's also important to re-save your old digital files in formats (like JPEGs) that can still be read. Otherwise, the important photo memories of your life may be lost in the very near future.

#2 - A Screen Image Is Not A Work of Art

Suppose you've visited the Louvre in Paris. You've paid admission to see the Mona Lisa and waited in a long line.

When you finally get to the front of the crowd there's a video screen of Leonardo's masterpiece instead of the actual painting!

Snapshots are fine on a cell phone. But, your best pictures should be printed for you and others to view and enjoy.

We can make you prints from wallet sized to 30" x 40" on photographic paper, canvas, or fine art media.

# 3 - The Most Important Events of Your Life Should to Be Printed

Do you have a wedding or other life event on a DVD? Lot's of people do.

It's not a good idea to entrust your images to a plastic disc for the long haul. Why? DVDs are not totally archival.

We recommend you make a printed photo album or book on archival photographic paper as soon as possible:

Contact your professional photographer to have him or her design a photo album for you. Or...
Use our ROES software to create a photo album or book yourself. Or...
Call us at (800) 327-1776. We'll give you the name of a reliable album company who will design, print and bind your album for you.

Each floppy disc held up to 36 images scanned from film rolls. Try to find a floppy disc reader today!

# 4 - Many Digital Formats Are Here Today ... Temporarily ... But Will Be Gone Tomorrow

One of the challenges with digital technology is how fast the technology and various image formats become obsolete and unaccessible.

Back in the '90s we made thousands of Kodak Photo CDs like this one to digitally archive our customers' 35mm film images.

Kodak set up a "forever" PCD format. They opened this format to the world. We did the scans in our lab ... as many other top photo labs did.

Photo CDs were designed to show film images on TVs when viewed with Kodak Photo CD players. Those players will still work for TV viewing.

But, unfortunately most of today's computers will no longer open the PCD format (even it they have disc readers ... which most new computers don't.) So, many of our customers can't open their Kodak Photo CDs. (Fortunately, most people ordered prints with their CDs and would have received negatives.)

Two Solutions If You Have Kodak Photo CDs and Want to Convert Their Digital PCD Files to JPEGs

1) There is a free software program called IrfanView that will allow you to open and convert PCD files. Link: https://www.irfanview.com/main_download_engl.htm. Please be sure that when you download Irfanview you also download InfanView's plug-in so you're able to use it.

Note that IfanView is not an easy program for computer novices to use. The program may also not be permanently available online.So, we recommend you convert and save your files ASAP.

2) Dale Laboratories now has a special service to open your Kodak Photo CDs and convert the PCDs to JPEGs. We're also offering optional prints.

Cost per Photo CD (up to 108 images) transferred as JPEGs to a USB ... $45
Price per 4" x 6" proof print of all images on the Photo CD ... 25¢

Please phone us at (800) 327-1776 if you're interested in this service.

Our Goal Is To Help You Enjoy Your Photography
We hope you'll give us the opportunity to print your best pictures.

Here are some links to useful lab services:

• iPrints Classic is our easy-to-use consumer site. Place online orders from your home computer or cell phone. No learning curve; just quality prints.

• i Prints.com will give you pro-quality prints on photographic paper or artists' canvas; including gallery wraps. Order from your cell phone, Mac or PC.

• ROES is for advanced amateurs & pros who are comfortable on computers. Click on the Design Your Own tab on any of our catalogs to add custom type.

• Shooting Film? Click here to mail your film to us for developing, scans & prints.

Serving America's photographers since 1973.