In praise of the pro labs and good riddance to Costco!

[Huss]

Until recently I used to use my local Costco for my 35mm c41 dev and scan.
They were always super busy which was a good sign, at least I thought. The people who worked there were always super cool to me. I loved shooting a roll, dropping it off, getting my scans back an hour later for about $5.
I was in c41 heaven, or at least I thought I was..

Actually what I was in was denial. Which was evident after corporate pulled the plug on the film developing even though this location was busy. They wanted all branches to have the same offerings, and the demand was not there at the other locations.
My initial period of mourning turned into a celebration, a new awakening thanks to having been forced to now use pro labs. Yeah my cost doubled for the same resolution, and I had to wait over a week to get my pictures but...

1/ No more of the occasional random blue scan lines that made me take them back and ask for a rescan.
2/ No more scratched/ruined negatives! Rare but it happened.
3/ No more shoddy dev and scanning resulting in murky grainy artifacted skies.
4/ No more dust or hair marks.
5/ No more messed up colour balancing.

So thank you Costco for giving up on film. It forced me to use labs that I should have used to start off with.

😉

 

[gb hill]

Those hair marks really suck. I think that's the main reason I bought a flatbed scanner.

 

[froyd]

Blue scan lines (dust) were the most common issue for me, but my expressions has been the opposite of yours. The pro lab in town that got my business after Costco got out of the film game provided good development, but slow service and average scans at 3x the price of Costco. At $5 a pop, I was willing to put up with the occasional trio back for rescanned. But at the pro lab prices ($30 for slides!), I'm less forgiving, and they are actually the reason I've picked up a coolscan and took over the scanning process... We'll see how long that will last...

 

[Thardy]

What pro labs ?

 

[farlymac]

My last straw with CVS was the gal who would pull too much leader out when loading the machine, and then try to tell me it was my camera that was at fault. First time I've ever had to call a drugstore employee a stinking liar to their face.

PF

 

[dtcls100]

I think the OP's comments completely ignore that just like other film processors, the quality of the film processing varied from one Costco location to the next. In the NYC area, the two Costco's that processed film both did a good job, but one of them consistently produced better prints with better exposure and a bit less shadow contrast. I encountered blue scan lines on the prints very rarely and those were swiftly re-printed at no cost and within 20 minutes once I brought it to Costco personnel attention, and I was given coupons for 100-200 free digital prints when this occurred. Also, the prints were better than some so-called pro-labs that I have used. So, I really don't see what the OP is complaining about and see his comments as way off base. If he didn't like Costco processing, he didn't have to use them. I really don't see how a reduction in choice of film processors is a good thing at all, especially the loss of a generally high quality and low cost film processor. Indeed, Costco's elimination of film processing probably resulted in many film holdouts abandoning film. Indeed, while I haven't abandoned film, I did buy my first DSLR as a result of Costco's move.

 

[froyd]

My reading of the OP was that Costco's abandonement of film processing was a catalist for the discovery of better options, kinda like a silver lining. However, I completely agree that the lab manager and machine operator make all the difference. My good experience with Costco is completely dependent on the great staff who worked there. The lab manager was the treaserer of our local photo club and caredabout providing a quality service.

 

[wjlapier]

Since I started developing my own C41 I'm about as happy as a film shooter could be. Up to 120 6x9 and scans are fine with me on the V500. I use a Coolscan V for 35mm.

 

[Huss]

My reading of the OP was that Costco's abandonement of film processing was a catalist for the discovery of better options, kinda like a silver lining. However, I completely agree that the lab manager and machine operator make all the difference. My good experience with Costco is completely dependent on the great staff who worked there. The lab manager was the treaserer of our local photo club and caredabout providing a quality service.

Exactly. I have no issue with Costco prints - they do a great job. Just one time too many of scratching my negatives and the rest.
The quality of the results were dependent on who was working that day. There were two ladies there who did excellent work, but the majority of the time it was the guys (very nice people don't get me wrong) who tried to do it as fast as possible. Haste makes waste and all that. I did witness them dragging a handful of negative strips across the floor on the way to the scanning station.

So yes, I am delighted that I have been forced to switch as now my images, ignoring the fact that there are no more scratches/dust etc, are much clearer, sharper and cleaner.

I use thefindlab for C41 and north coast photographic services for B&W and E6. Great prices, great service, great results. No affiliation.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

I never seen C-41 labs at Costco. 😉
But in terms of #1-5 Walmart did the same. 😎

 

[Huss]

I think the OP's comments completely ignore that just like other film processors, the quality of the film processing varied from one Costco location to the next. ...So, I really don't see what the OP is complaining about and see his comments as way off base. If he didn't like Costco processing, he didn't have to use them. ...

1/ Yes, and mine was poor (but I was ignoring that at the time) and the only one left in Southern California that still processed film. So I did not have any other choice.

2/ Off base because I started using someone that gave much much better results, not realizing the potential that I was missing all this time? Ok then.

3/ Read it again. I was in denial. I liked Costco because they were cheap and quick. I still use them for printing, they do great work there but it is far more automated than the film developing. I upload my images, mark them 'autocorrect off', they just push a button to get the printing started.

Costco film processing - thanks for the memories, wish we broke up a long time ago.
🙂

 

[KismetSky]

I abandoned Costco for processing last year after they hired on new people in the photo area. It really depends on who handles your negatives as I had great results up to that point. The negs were scratched, badly cut, and even (literally) torn to shreds. They acted as though they were doing me a favor for not charging me for that roll.

Since then I've been dropping the film off at a dedicated local shop (where I usually get my 120 developed) and the results and consistency have been much better.

 

[leicapixie]

I have used Costco, when I lived in Newport Beach CA.
It was OK, but scratches, marks and hairs part of the game.
Pro labs for me, mean expensive poor quality scans, hairs,
fingermarks and weird colors.
The lab I used recently in Toronto, was better..
that's not saying much. 😡
My scans of same negs on a lowly Canonscan were simply in another dimension.
C-41 can be stupendous.
I had TIFFs done, that 24 exp. filled a CD.
Naturally the service was stopped and now I seldom shop at Shoppers Drug Mart. :bang:
BW my preference.

Shock! My lady showed me a print I did before scanning, printed in my kitchen..
Yikes! It's been all downhill since then..

 

[Huss]

I have used Costco, when I lived in Newport Beach CA.
It was OK, but scratches, marks and hairs part of the game.
Pro labs for me, mean expensive poor quality scans, hairs,
fingermarks and weird colors.
The lab I used recently in Toronto, was better..
that's not saying much. 😡
My scans of same negs on a lowly Canonscan were simply in another dimension.
C-41 can be stupendous.
I had TIFFs done, that 24 exp. filled a CD.
Naturally the service was stopped and now I seldom shop at Shoppers Drug Mart. :bang:
BW my preference.

Shock! My lady showed me a print I did before scanning, printed in my kitchen..
Yikes! It's been all downhill since then..

Not all "pro" labs are the same. Some gave me worse results than Costco (which was ok if the right people were there at the time the film was developed/scanned. But I had no control over their schedules!)

My poor pro lab experiences - Samy's Camera in LA. Shockingly bad scans that they would fix when I complained, but who wants to deal with that all the time? And expensive.
thedarkroom.com - scan lines that made the images look like they were printed on linen. Often weird drip marks and sometimes the blue lines.
I guess I would only call them a pro lab because that is all they do. Also more expensive than the pro labs I use.

Excellent results from the two I mentioned.

 

[Lauffray]

What pro labs ?

What Costco process ? We never had those here

 

[kshapero]

I use The Darkroom. Some problems at first, but in the last 2 years they have done a great job.

 

[Huss]

What Costco process ? We never had those here

None anymore..
(my local one in Venice did it until a couple of months ago)