Zenfolio and me…..

Ah, what a strange post title.

I’m writing this puppy by request, so hang on faithful readers………

Earlier this year Scott Kelby’s blog site made mention of an online printing service that peaked my curiosity.  MPix.com was the company that Mr. Kelby spoke of, and it sounded pretty cool so I checked it out.  The timing was perfect.  I’d started doing prints for Ian’s old gallery, and I was looking for a printing service that could handle larger formats for me.

Living in an Airstream means you don’t get to drag around large format printers with you.  Heck, even small format printers often take too much space.  Food sometimes takes too much space too….. Yeah, space is at a premium here.

When Ian requested a few larger format prints I decided to give MPix a whirl.  Photos were uploaded, and I waited…..for an entire day.  Can you believe that?  One day.  My order was shipped via Fed Ex, and the day after my upload and payment I had my prints in hand.

The print quality was amazing.  Everyone who saw the prints found them to be perfect.  In fact, the prints were so impressive that my friend Josh decided to give MPix a whirl as well.  The best part…..their prices weren’t back breaking, they were reasonable.

So, what does MPix have to do with my decision to use Zenfolio?  Simple, the other month these two sites partnered.

If you pop by the Zenfolio site to see my pictures, and maybe even order my prints (just saying), you will be dealing with MPix as well.  Zenfolio handles the display of my images, the shopping cart, the credit card processing, the whole ball of wax.  The order is then fed into MPix, and the product you receive is direct from MPix!

By the way, you should really try this process.  Click the link above and buy a print or ten.  Heck, send the link to friends and family.  Tell them to try it just to see how good Zenfolio and MPix work together.  The bonus from your enjoyment of the shopping process is that you’ll get some cool prints for me.

Sorry about the shameless plug there…..couldn’t help it!

So, in the end my decision to use Zenfolio was a simple one.  MPix had already proven itself to me.  When Zenfolio started working with my “remote lab” it was a no brainer.  I had a way to offer my prints on line, I didn’t have to mess with shipping and packaging, etc.

If you’re wondering how it all works, give MPix a try.  See the quality I’m talking about.  Then consider what they could do for you if you set up your own online gallery……

And by the way, now I do have my own lab right here in Prescott.  My new printer allows me to be my own lab.  While my prices are “competitve” with MPix, I can’t match the power of this online service quite yet.  Give me a little time……  If you’re local and want to get proofs of your work before printing I bet I could help you out.  If you’re not local (Northern Arizona) then I’d say give MPix a whirl!

And yes, there will be times when I still use MPix.  They’re not competition in my mind.  Just another partner in my own business.