Would you complain?

Sometimes I'm not happy with the colours of the photos I've had printed and was wondering if anyne has asked them to be reprinted.

Do you expect that if you are getting cheap prints that you get what you pay for?

I would say something. Even if you get them done cheaply, you are still entitled to have a good looking photo that you are happy with.

It wouldn't hurt to ask Sammi :) Especially if you have used the service before... you could say "I was wondering if something went wrong with my prints? They didn't come out as good as last time..."

I find that if you act confused rather than annoyed you are more likely to receive assistance with this kind of thing (where it is up to the shop's discretion).

I've had bad coloured ones printed & got them reprinted only to be just as bad. I took them to another place had them printed correctly then took those & the second dodgy lot to the original place to ask for a refund. They apologised profusely & gave me my money back plus the dodgy photos.

I agree Sammi, definitely say something. And I hate to admit it, but Bath is right - the dumb blonde thing does seem to work wonders.

...and also for dumb brunettes like moi ;) LOL It really is the best strategy. I'm trying to explain this to my DD ATM: be nice to people especially if you need them to do something for you when they don't have to. When she rants and raves at me I just tell her "no, why would I want to help somebody who speaks to me like that?"

I also once heard a room-mate of mine have the (what I thought was) the funniest conversation with an airline ticket salesperson over the 'phone. She started the conversation by telling off the person for an error that had been made (partly her fault BTW) she ranted and raved and then she went quiet... the saleperson was obviously giving her some options... then she said "oh, ok well could you do that for me then?" silence then "oh, it might not be possible?" the saleperson was obviously making her suffer for the earlier tirade. Anyhow after eating a large portion of humble pie my room mate got off the phone and told me that the problem might be able to be fixed... she had to wait for another call. I think it was sorted but I will never forget that chain of events. Totally unrelated to your post Sammi but I just thought I would put it out there as it's something that seems to escape most people: be nice if you want something done THEN express your dissatisfaction if you are still p*ssed off yet don't need anything from them.

Love the way you think Bath ;)
Where I work we actually thank people for pointing out their dissatisfaction, it gives us a chance to fix it.

I thought I replied to this :confused:

Anyhoo...ROFL Bath I'm all for being sweet to get what I want after too many years working in retail ;)

Defnitely. I used to work in a photo lab. We would check prints for colour/density etc, and redo any that were'nt OK. And if someone wasn't happy it would be redone.

The only thing that could be different is digital prints that you are to colour correct yourself. I know some labs charge differenltly for images you have adjusted to ones you want them to adjust IYKWIM.

Definately! I used to work in a photo lab as well :D

Strangely enough, check the colour of your "blacks" in the photos, that will tell you if the colour is printed correctly.

Now that's a handy hint! Thanks Kazbah :)

I got a heap of re-prints from my wedding day.... I had the negatives from the professional photographer. But I just took them up to Kmart or Big W for the reprints. I got a heap done, and all different sizes. I had to print sets for different family members.

But when I got them back - the colours were horrid! I had a beachside wedding and the blues & greens were so dark/bright... just totally unnatural. And our skin tone looked really dark. (like too much tan).

I took them back - with the photos that the photographer had developed to show them the difference, and what they should have looked like. They agreed to reprint them all.
I think they may have tried to guage the colours from my wedding dress, thinking it was white... when in actual fact, the dress was pale pink.

Jodie -that's quite a common problem, gauging colour off whites.

Some of the cheaper services, as well as the self service machines are just dodgy. They use poor software, poor ink and poor hardware. You never know what you'll get. Photos aint photos! It pays to spend a bit extra and get the specialists to do it (ie. not Kmart, Hardly Normal, etc). That's my 2 cents.

I agree with slyder as to a bit of "you get what you pay for" but having said that, if your photos are clearly coming out substandard you have the right to have them fixed.

Like a couple of other ladies I too used to work in a mini lab & would check the quality of every film we proccessed - I think if you go to a a mini lab this is the norm, but with busier, cheaper places, some of the quality control may be lacking. Having said that my former lab manager has just finished up working at Kmart & I know that her prints there would have been just as good as ever due to the pride she takes in her work, it depends alot on the printer you happen to get & if they make corrections willy-nilly or only if there is an exposure/fim quality issue.

I used to print 'warmer' with a bit more contrast as I found this made the prints more vibrant, while some customers would preffer 'cooler' colours or no corrections. If you know what you like your prints to come out like you could always request that from the start, which is easier for everyone than having to do reprints, especially from cut negatives - mind you, if you are printing from digital media the only experience I have had is with self serve kiosks where you can adjust everything yourself - they've always come out fine. :)

Well, that's my 2cents worth, whether you like it or not lol!