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Best Canvas, Metal, and Acrylic Photo Printing Labs: A Head-to-head test!

If you’re at all like me, 99.9% of the images you’ve captured and created still sit in the abyss of your computer. But there’s that .1% – you know what I’m talking about. There’s those few images that are just SCREAMING to be printed, but you’re not sure how or on what media. Then you have to decided which of the HUNDREDS of printing companies to choose from. I took on this challenge with a few of my “screaming” images in hopes of saving you some time and giving you one less click of the mouse to have to make.

I believe most clients (and photographers) aren’t going to look at an image and tell you whether or not the dimples on a canvas are too tight, if the metal print is too metallic, or if the acrylic print looks too acrylic. Heck, most people aren’t even sure what an acrylic print actually is. (This link is for those of you that care.) So in this review, I’m going to share what I feel matters most for you and your clients.  

CANVAS Print Test

One of the most popular forms of print over the years has been on canvas. A canvas print is great because you don’t need to do too much with it. No need to worry about what color mat, what the width should be, and if it matches your walls. No need to worry about what kind of frame to use, how thick it should be and what color. A canvas simply comes stretched on a wooden frame ready to hang and enjoy. (Although you can have them framed if your heart desires.)  

They have become so popular that they are even available and more affordable to the “non-photographer” than ever before. I used to always order canvases for my clients through Canvas On Demand. Now it seems as if they have a groupon available all year round and they keep reminding me of this in all of my Facebook ads. I became a loyal fan of Canvas On Demand about 8 years ago when they sent me a 40X60 canvas for a client. The bottom corner bowed about a ½ inch from the wall so I sent them a picture of it. They told me to keep it and there was a new perfect one on my doorstep within days – great customer service! Before doing this review, I thought it wouldn’t change my mind. Has it?    

I was pleased to hear positive responses from some of the top printing companies. Canvases were sent to me from Canvas HQ, Canvas On Demand, Miller’s, and Pro DPI. I submitted an image from my trip to Iceland, when I first met Jim Harmer and was invited along this ImprovePhotography.com podcasting journey. Unfortunately, I submitted the wrong edited image, as this one I submitted still shows some haloing. I look at it as just another opportunity to critique the print job! (And maybe the photographer.) 

The dimensions of the canvases I received are 20X30 and 1.5” thick (for the most part). During the review process, there was slight confusion that caused one canvas to be a bit smaller. Nonetheless, this is about the quality.

 

First Glance Test on Canvas Prints

For the most part, the quality of the canvases are the same. The texture of the canvases appears to be identical. All four of the canvases are tightly wrapped around a stable wooden frame. Tight folds on the corners keep the canvases from feeling loose. Canvas On Demand had the tightest fold, whereas the others had a slight bump in the material – none being a concern though. There are many different options for backing and how to hang them. Each company seems to have their own method for what they feel is best. I prefer backs that are closed instead of exposed, but that may be an additional expense. My point is… they are all about the same until you look at the image quality.  Pro DPI performed the best in this test. 

COLOR: Canvas prints

When it comes to comparing them, the biggest difference was in the coloring. Pro DPI had the strongest contrast with the most vivid coloring and most accurately matched the image I edited and saw on my monitor. Canvas HQ was next closest in color, but it appears as if the clarity and shadows were bumped up on the print making it brighter than what I ordered. Canvas On Demand seemed slightly faded and I started to notice a hint of pink showing up in the sky. Millers seemed to be even more faded with even more pink in the sky.

Overal Winner for Canvas Prints: Pro DPI

The price on these depend on whatever additional features you add such as the backing, hanging options, or finishes added to the canvas. At the time of this review, a 20X30 from these companies ranged between $135 – $150. In my opinion, the difference of $15 shouldn’t determine the decision. After having a chance to compare the four of these companies, here are my final thoughts…

PRO DPI – I’ll be ordering from you again! I know what I’m going to be getting when my image on my computer matches your print job!

Canvas HQ – “A” for effort, but for the same price I want my image to look the way it does on my screen.

Canvas On Demand – Your Groupons make it hard for me to leave you. I’ll continue to recommend you to friends because of how affordable you can be at times. For now, it’s goodbye, but you’ll always have a place in my heart.

Millers – You’ll always have my business, but not because of your canvases. Keep up the AMAZING work you do with your quick turnaround time on your albums. I’m placing another order this week!

 

Metal Print Test

Every now and then you have an image that needs a little pop. If you feel you can’t get it on a normal print or canvas, try it on metal! An HDR on canvas isn’t going to do the same as an HDR on metal. Personally, I wouldn’t print a family photo on metal. I love the way metal looks with my shots from the INDY 500, NFL, and landscapes – images with bold colors and high dynamic range.

Similar to hanging a canvas, there’s not a lot you need to do with a metal print. Most of them come ready to hang with different options based off of the company you order from.

For this review, I chose an image from one of my favorite cities – sweet home CHICAGO! I picked this image because of the lights on the marquee and cars driving by with the reflective buildings in the background. Here’s the original…

I received metal prints from Art Beat, Bay Photo, MPIX (sister company of Miller’s), and Zno. I was expecting to see a big difference between the four companies which you can see in the image below.

 

FIRST GLANCE: Metal prints

Do you see it? Do you see how vastly different each one is compared to the others? Didn’t think so! For the most part, they are fairly identical. Side by side you can tell that the image from ArtBeat is a tad darker than the original compared to the others. However, you really need to view these in person to see any difference because of how the light reflects off the metal from the angle in which you are standing. The most obvious differences that can be seen are in the red color on the sign and the detail in the sky.

COLOR: Metal Prints

The metal from Bay Photo has the richest red in the sign and the overall colors most represent the image I edited on my display. The colors from ArtBeat seem to be a little faded compared to the others. ZNO had the brightest red in the sign yet they also had the darkest sky showing more contrast between the clouds. MPIX has the second richest red with colors most like my original.

Overal Winner for Metal Prints: Bay Photo

Honestly, not knowing the difference, I’d be happy if I received any of these for my clients. I’m sure that’s not what you wanted to hear though. Bay Photo is my top choice when it comes to overall appearance because it most matched the way I edited it on my computer. ZNO and MPIX are a tie with both having rich colors and saturation. ArtBeat was more faded than the rest and didn’t have the pop that the others had.  HOWEVER, at the time of this review, ZNO was almost HALF the price of the other three. Is it worth saving a little bit of money for a little bit of quality? That’s YOUR decision.

 

 

ACRYLIC Print Test

What do you get when you put a metal print on steroids?… An acrylic! Acrylic prints are by far THE best way to display your most EPIC of EPIC photos! I knew immediately which image I wanted to test. I took a panorama shot standing on the top of a karst in China last summer on an Improve Photography travel workshop. A portion of it stood out the most, so I cropped that section for the review. The view and colors were UNBELIEVABLE! Check out the image below…

 

I received an acrylic print of this image from Bay Photo, Miller’s, and Nevada Art Printers. My heart sank with disappointment when I opened the first box. I had seen so many stunning examples of acrylics that I had my hopes up. How could I go wrong with this shot? When I opened the box and unwrapped the acrylic from Miller’s I thought to myself, “NOOO! Was I supposed to color calibrate something???” Here’s what I received…

 

You can see why I was disappointed. This isn’t the same image I spent hours editing on my computer monitor. There’s no color in the sky. Everything about it has a faded brown tint. There’s no life to the image. As I slowly opened the next box, from Bay Photo, I thought to myself, “Self, this will be the test. Either you screwed up and are going to look like a horrible photographer since you committed to this review, OR, redemption.” Here’s the result from Bay Photo…

 

Okay, so some of you are laughing right now thinking, “Horrible.”

I think, “REDEMPTION!”

I was so excited to see the image come to life. The greens were green. The sky was pink with a purple tint just like I recalled that morning as the sun rose through the fog. I was, and still am, very pleased with how this acrylic turned out from Bay Photo.

I had one box left to open. This one slightly bigger than the others. Since this image was originally shot and composed as a panorama, I ordered a large 16×48 panorama acrylic from Nevada Art Printers. It’s the exact same image that the other two 20×30’s were cropped out of

The saturation and details in this acrylic from Nevada Art Printers is breathtaking. The greens look more natural showing all the different shades from the tree tops to the fields below. The image has so much more depth to it. It almost feels as if you’re viewing it in 3D. I’ve had this image on display in a couple different places now and comment after comment is made about how “magical” it looks. Sure, the subject helps a bit, and they may say the same about the acrylic from Bay Photo, but I don’t feel I’d get the same response with the acrylic from Miller’s.

Overal Winner for Acrylic Prints: Nevada Art Printers

I can not stress to you enough how beautiful acrylics are in person! Miller’s is such a great company and their albums are amazing, but I feel they need to stick with the album process. I will not be ordering a canvas, metal, or acrylic from them anytime soon. I was happy with the acrylic from Bay Photo and may be ordering from them again. HOWEVER, if I want the best my money can get and believe it’s worth paying for a huge EPIC acrylic, I’ll be ordering it from Nevada Art Printers.  


This review was written and conducted by Brian McGuckin.

 

16 thoughts on “Best Canvas, Metal, and Acrylic Photo Printing Labs: A Head-to-head test!”

  1. I always hear that Pro DPI is the best, for mostly if not all printing….why not test an acrylic or metal print through them? I am considering ordering one from them and was anxious to see the results, just wondering if there was a particular reason or you decided to leave them out?

  2. Wish you would’ve done CGPro Prints for canvases as well. More affordable than other places, and I’ve been happy with the quality (although I have nothing to compare it to). Otherwise great article!

  3. I’m wondering if there’s any mileage in producing a similar test for your “foreign” fans “over the pond”, I’d certainly appreciate it; I know White Wall in the UK are good, but how good? It’s anecdotal without a test like this, and even this you could argue is too small a sample to get reliable data.

  4. I really appreciate this article. I’m getting ready to order some variety of canvas, acrylic and metal prints as well as an album to show samples to my clients. Do you know if these companies offer sample pricing to photographers? I know Bay Photo does but not sure about the others.

  5. I’ve had a lot of luck with McKenna Pro. These are all great places & I’ve used several of these places as well. Just another place to check out! I ordered a dozen metal prints of carrying size & styles. I feel like the price points were very affordable & quality as well as service, amazing.

  6. Brian,
    What options did you select for your Nevada Art Print acrylic? It looks like they have several levels of quality, and I’m looking to add acrylics to my offerings. I have Simply Color Lab in my back yard, and I would like to compare apples to apples when I order samples.

    Thanks.

  7. Great article! There is one site I think you need to add to your metal comparison. Maybe as a follow up. Aluminyze.com. I have completely been sold their work and customer service.

  8. Jesse are the acrylic prints mounted or did they print directly on the acrylic? I’m looking into getting some acrylic prints done and I want to know what the qualities are for both options.

    1. Allen,

      The Print from Nevada Art Printers is a face mounted acrylic print and I do not see Bay offering the UV/direct printing either. Direct to acrylic prints are a pretty low quality print compared to just about anything. The technology comes from the sign industry and is called by industry people “UV flatbed printing” The rez is not very high but it is a high gloss low cost product if that is what you are looking for. It is also a 4 color print with C,M,Y,K only and no grey or other wide gamut inks included in the process so don’t expect great tones or silky smooth gradations.

  9. You really should look at Printpictures.us, their pricing is half that of the competition and the quality is just as good. 10 to 14 days and your prints are with you.

    I used to use Canvas on Demand but, why pay twice as much for the same quality?

  10. I’ve had several metal prints done by ZNO. Their packaging is superb, I did have a issue with a dimple in the metal print. Customer service was fairly prompt and sent me another print no problem. Unfortunately the reprint wasn’t even close to the first print and the original. I also ordered another metal print which had a similar problem with a dimple in the metal. The way they attach the hanging frame to the back of the print seems to affect the face of the print. Its unfortunate as their prices were good and customer service did respond, but every print so far to date has had issues. I’ll most likely go back and stick with Nations Photo Lab, a little more money but quality is solid.

  11. Hey Jesse,

    Was not at all surprised by your Mpix acrylic. I was getting the same result from them last year with Metal Prints. Was told that they’d switched printers last year and were having some issues. Made me jump to BayPhoto for all my metal work.

  12. Thanks for your article and the info on the different companies. I am an enthusiastic hobby photographer. I have many photos “screaming to come out” and have not done anything about it because I have been struggling to determine the best medium for the enlargements my photos so deserve. Your article really helps answer my questions. Thanks.

  13. Tons of great comments here! I would suggest using Reed Art & Imaging. They are currently the only licensed provider of the Diasec acrylic process. Turns out that major art museums prefer Diasec over the two sided adhesive that everyone in the US is using. I read that places like MOMA would rather send their pieces to Europe than have them mounted with two sided adhesive. To me, that alone is very telling.
    I think their website is https://www.reedphoto.com

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