Quality of prints from a lab, vs. say, an Epson Stylus

[Bokeh]

What are some opinions of the quality of prints from a lab, vs. say, a high-end Epson Stylus in the $700 range? I've been having mine developed at labs like Costco and Walgreen's, and it costs about 2-3x what it would cost on a printer like that, but 2-3x "thirty cents" still ain't much. Thanks

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[ksmattfish]

I think it has a lot to do with your Photoshop skills.

My buddy has one of the high end Epsons. He shoots 4x5 color transparencies, and used to exclusively print them or get them printed using the Cibachrome method. He is able to produce prints from his Epson that I can't tell the difference between them and the Cibachromes, at least just by looking at them.

On the other hand, there are other pro photogs around here that I have no problem spotting the inkjet prints, and they have the same printer as my buddy. Once again, like a lot of photography gear, the magic is with the photographer and not the equipment.

Overall, I would have to imagine that you'd do a better job on your own stuff than the econo-labs, once you get it figured out.

[Bokeh]

I think it has a lot to do with your Photoshop skills.
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Ksmatt, maybe I didn't phrase the question correctly... sorry. What I mean is, given a photo, that is "ready to print" and all that is left is to judge the final print... thoughts on printing on a high-end stylus vs. printing at say a Wolf, costco lab, or Walgreens. Thanks

[DocFrankenstein]

Are you referring to the larger print sizes?

The ink would cost you around 1.5 bucks for 8.5*10...

Generally it's cheaper to print at a lab. General consensus is that you only get a printer because you can't wait day/week to get the prints back.

I don't print a lot, so lab is ok for me.