Fair price developing and scanning negatives?

[tyrone.s]

I live in a regional centre in Australia. $10.00 for develop and scan at my local shop. That's for 24 exposures. $12 for 36!

Very ordinary shop aswell (for a place that presents itself as being a 'proper' 'ask the experts' camera / developing shop. When they were developing my negatives earlier in the year I was getting spots on the prints - turned out their machine had a flaw in its lens or something. They offered to reprint my negs upside down!

But hey, for my $10-$12 I get the guy dragging the negatives all over the place for free!

 

[tyrone.s]

Thanks for the reply. $16 seemed really high. I would only be using the scans as sort of a contact sheet to pick the ones I wanted to blow up, and so don't care too much about resolution.

Is there much of a difference in the quality between the development of negatives at wallgreens vs. local pro photo lab? or is all the art in the printing?

Thanks,
-Ben

Sorry Ben, my last reply was more of a whinge than an answer to your original question.

I've found the quality really variable. Some cheap places have been more than good enough and some expensive pro places have been really disapointing. I've learned the hard way that being charged more and getting a more knowledgeable, expert level of service are not related in a linear manner.

I work in B&W mostly with my rangefinder. These days I use 2 scanners. A cheap Canon flatbed to make a contact strip of the roll that I've developed and then I scan and work on any negs of interest using my negative scanner. I then catalogue my work in Lightroom and 'develop' my image from there.

At any rate, hopefully your local pro lab will be pro in mindset and know more about the subject than its customers. Otherwise I'd be using the cheapest developing / scanning option and taking care of the rest yourself.


Cheers,
Tyrone

 

[djonesii]

I just paid $16 for a roll of 220 E6 done at the only place I can find in Houston to process E6. The came out beautiful. The claim hand processing dip and dunk only. The main reason that I went there was to get 4X5 processed.

As for black and white, I have just started doing it my self, and its easy. I do need to upgrade scanners as my Epson only does two frames (6x4.5) at a time, that sucks.

At another lab in town, I get my C41 processed, and they charge $10-12 for a roll + scans ( 110/220) It's a great deal as they really take care to do it right. Everything sleeved, The one guy who works in the lab always wears gloves, and its a pleasure. I think 35mm is a bit less, but I have never used them.

The one time I tired costco I did not care for their work, but I will give it a go again. My Sams has removed their wet processing.

Dave

 

[kuzano]

I just paid $1.80 (no digits missing) for C41 120 format

I just paid $1.80 (no digits missing) for C41 120 format

Picked up the pics and color negative. 15 3x5 prints and the negs from WALMART. Shot the roll in my Fuji GA645Zi. Fujicolor.

The Walmart here in Bend Oregon uses the Fuji lab and the process took ten days. The $1.80 covered processing, printing the prints I specified, and shipping both ways. I have a roll of E6 just sent off.

No scans...as I did not ask for them. You have to know how to fill out the order yourself using the kiosk drop and the Fuji envelopes, since the counter people just glaze over when you say 120 or 220 film.

I learned how to fill out the order from one of the posters here on RFF.

As I recall, 35mm film was in the $4 to 5 range, but who shoots such small film any more. Isn't full frame 4x5 inches???