Lumaprints Litmus Test – Here’s What Happened From Start To Finish

In order to experience firsthand what Lumaprints customers experience, a Shutterbug staff writer uploaded a selection of images to the Lumaprints website for printing. Although this is a sponsored article, his narrative is a 100% objective report of the process and the results.

The image files, two color and two monochrome, were uploaded to Lumaprints’ secure site late in the day on August 12, a Tuesday. The process was easy and fast. The prints were completed on August 14 and shipped the next morning via FedEx from Lumaprints’ Louisville, KY lab. They also have printing facilities in Anaheim, CA. With operations on both sides of the US, customers enjoy shorter delivery times. All work sent to Lumaprints is professionally completed in the US by a staff of more than 120 employees using 50 printers dedicated to on-demand printing. They currently ship out 4,000 products daily.

Once uploaded, we had the option to leave them in a library so that additional prints could be ordered, if desired, without uploading again. This is an important feature especially for business users who order multiple copies of the same image over a period of time. And for the curator of the family photo album (every family has one) it’s a godsend because it keeps the handling of unanticipated reorders simple and efficient.

Process is Easy & Intuitive
The Lumaprints interface is friendly and straightforward. When you click Order, a box appears that lists the four steps.

From there you’re guided through the process in a can’t-miss manner.

First, upload an image or select a previously uploaded file from your Lumaprints Library.

Next, select product. Choose Canvas, Framed Canvas, Fine Art Paper, Foam-mounted Print, Framed Fine Art Paper, Metal or Peel and Stick. There are secondary options as well. Everything is clear and easy to understand. Before ordering, spend a few minutes becoming familiar with the features of each product. Handy thumbnails on the order entry page remind you what’s what.

Third, select size. Users choose from a long list of sizes, all common and many unique. It’s very easy to find dimensions that meet your needs. Even so, custom sizing is available if desired. You receive a warning if your choice conflicts with the format. At this stage you can center and/or crop the image, but if you do a bit of prep work in Photoshop or your photo editor, as many enthusiasts do, adjustments at this point will probably be minimal. For this review we resized each image to the dimensions we desired beforehand, but this step is not necessary thanks to the tools Lumaprints provides.

Finally, select options. See list above. Options vary depending on the product. Then add the product to your order.

Packaging
The products arrived at the staffer’s home a few days later. The two boxes were very sturdy, not like the thin self-destructive cartons sometimes used by online retailers these days.

Excluding the weekend, the entire process from end to end took five days. Rush and same-day service options are also available for a reasonable additional fee, but the normal pace was plenty fast. We were surprised by the low cost of the FedEx shipping charges, only $12.55 for all four large prints in two boxes. Even with a personal FedEx account, we don’t get prices that low. The products were shipped in two separate packages to accommodate the differing sizes, which made the shipping cost seem like a real bargain.

The inside packaging was somewhat like a sophisticated cardboard origami, with neat folds and plenty of tape to hold everything securely. Prints were sleeved in individual polyethylene bags. It took longer to unpack the prints than it did to upload and order them—and that’s a good thing! Needless to say, with this much obvious care, the prints were in perfect condition upon arrival.

Print Quality
One of the images had been taken using a smartphone, just as a test. Another shot with a modified infrared-only Nikon D5000 camera. One was a composite of two images shot 14 years apart, and the fourth, the beautiful dog, was captured with the staffer’s Fujifilm X-T5. In short, we wanted to throw a broad cross section of images at Lumaprints to simulate what Shutterbug readers might undergo.

To assure that the colors you see on your prints match those you saw on your monitor, some simple preparation is recommended. Lumaprints’ monitors and printers are calibrated regularly to ensure color fidelity. They recommend that users calibrate their monitor as well. By the way, this is important advice even if you never have any of your images printed.

The monochrome infrared image of the turn of the 19th century buildings along the shore at Ft. Handcock, Sandy Hook, NJ, featured in this story, was intentionally submitted as a challenge because of its extreme dynamic range and unique histogram.

We’re happy to report that the print quality was superb. Colors were spot-on and snappy, highlights were clear and shadows were clean and not muddy. The complicated infrared shot from Sandy Hook displayed excellent tonality from black blacks to pure whites.

Nice touch: Lumaprints installed a sawtooth hanger on the framed print at no charge.

Staff Writer’s Conclusion
Print quality is outstanding. Products arrived ready to hang. Handling, packaging and delivery were all top-level, and the prices were within the reach of hobbyists. It’s easy to recommend Lumaprints to colleagues and friends.

The challenge now is where to hang them. The foam-mounted prints are practically weightless and can be hanged easily using a single 3M Command hanger. The framed print, as mentioned above, came with a sawtooth hanger installed. The collection is professional but relaxed, and looks great just propped up around the office.

More Things You Should Know About Lumaprints

Pros and Amateurs
To be sure, Lumaprints is optimized for professional users. But hobbyists, including our Shutterbug writer and other serious amateur photographers are welcome.  They receive the same high-end treatment. Most hobby photographers don’t know where to turn to for top quality, professional-grade prints at wholesale prices. Lumaprints is like having your own personal production lab, whether you require one print or thousands.

Commercial Image Makers
Enterprises that sell their work online, including photographers as well as other artists, galleries, content creators/influencers, museums, designers and interior decorators, can benefit from partnering with Lumaprints because Lumaprints can handle the order processing, production and delivery. Orders that customers place a user’s website can be  automatically forwarded to Lumaprints for production and shipping.

The takeaway? Commercial users avoid the expense and time otherwise wasted on manual order entry, data import and product fulfillment. Since it’s not necessary to carry inventory, overall overhead is lower.

New Revenue Stream
Content creators, influencers and other entrepreneurs can sell printed merch online with virtually zero additional investment. All of the back office processes are handled by Lumaprints. There’s no need to add order entry, administrative or warehouse staff. No new expenses are incurred, but a new revenue stream is.

Additionally, Lumaprints works with all major shopping carts, so users can integrate their e-commerce platforms and tools like Shopify, Etsy, Amazon, Woo Commerce, eBay, BigCommerce, Wix, bigcartel, Squarespace, Weebly, Ecwid and others. Or they can use Lumaprints’ API for custom integration. After an account has been linked to Lumaprints, orders can be automatically fulfilled effortlessly as soon as they reach the user’s online store.

Branding, Branding, Branding
For that thoroughly professional, high class touch, commercial users can add their logo to the back of every canvas print and include up to three 8.5 x 11 pages of content to communicate with their customers with every order to say thank you, offer specials, and build their brand.

Benefits Recap
Here’s a summary of how commercial users benefit from partnering with Lumaprints.

1. Offer customers high-quality canvas, paper, metal, peel & stick and framed prints, all produced using archival inks and top-of-the-line printers that are regularly calibrated to ensure color accuracy and consistency.

2. Enjoy transparent, automated order processing for faster fulfillment. Once an image is uploaded to a Lumaprints’ library, they take over fulfillment from start to finish. Your customers order online from your website, Lumaprints handles everything from there.

3. Lumaprints gives you the best deals for higher profit margins. They can keep your costs down without ever sacrificing quality or service. You’ll agree, pricing is amazing. Check Lumaprints’ website for complete production and shipping prices.

4. With West Coast and Midwestern manufacturing sites, you and your customers can enjoy faster shipping times at lower costs.

5. Lumaprints takes pride in providing world-class customer service. Their top priority is to go above and beyond to ensure that all customers have an exceptional experience—and keep coming back for more.

Save Even More – Bulk Discounts
This is a huge boost to the bottom line for businesses that sell artwork in-store, at art fairs, street galleries, and so forth. Save time and even more money when you order in bulk. The more you buy, the more you save. Even without the volume discounts, Lumaprints products are competitively priced. When you purchase in bulk, you’re getting a great deal on top of an already affordable pricing structure.

Above & Beyond Ordinary Support
Lumaprints backs you up with webinars every other week that feature open Q&A sessions to help you get the most out of their products and services. They also host a highly informative blog, provide tutorials, offer Live Chat, publish FAQs and offer valuable marketing assets—like professionally produced display templates for your website.

To help you get up and running smoothly, you can schedule a complimentary 30-minute consultation with onboarding specialists to answer any questions and facilitate your store setup.

Overall Conclusion
Most hobbyists don’t know they can get top quality, professional-grade prints at wholesale prices. Lumaprints is practically like having your own personal production lab in your basement, whether you require one print or thousands.

Hobbyists can enjoy every advantage enjoyed by Lumaprints’ professional, commercial customers. Proudly display your best work throughout your home or office, printed at the highest quality level, in your choice of sizes, surfaces and stock material.

Commercial users can streamline their business’s workflow and costly overhead expenses without giving up quality or expediency.

If you’ve ever considered growing your passion for photography into a profitable side gig, partner with Lumaprints and become an online seller by leveraging your website and you’re your collection of fabulous images.

∞ Shutterbug Staff