Sending away for lab prints... RAW, JPEG, PSD?

[jbernthold]

Hello everyone,

I guess I could have just asked this question to a lab but since I was on here I figured I would and see what everyone says from actual experience and not by what they lab procedures may be.

So post processing... say im done editing and I am going to send the files to an online lab to have prints made, bay, adorama, etc.

What file type should I be sending for the best quality prints for anything.... regular prints, canvas, acrylic etc.

Is exporting your edited image JPEG and sending that fine?

Keep the raw image from Lightroom or send a PSD photoshop file?

Just was curious if sending the edited JPEG looked worse from the lab or what the best practice for this was.


Thanks

 

[korreman]

I don't know much, but sending raws isn't an option. Some raws don't even have the post-processing settings embedded, and even those that do are specific to your setup. I don't know about adobe, but TIFF and JPEG should be supported. As long as you keep the quality of your jpeg high, colours should be good as well, but don't take my word for it.

 

[gsgary]

Most printers will tell you on their website what they need

 

[tecboy]

There was a discussion about jpeg and tiff. 8 bit or 16 bit

 

[wyogirl]

Most labs will tell you what they want. All 4 of the labs I use want JPEG with sRGB color and some other things as well.

 

[gsgary]

One i use How to make a print - Metro Print

 

[KmH]

Soft-proof !

Read these tutorials:
Tutorials on Color Management & Printing

Get these books:
Real World Image Sharpening with Adobe Photoshop, Camera Raw, and Lightroom (2nd Edition)
The Digital Negative: Raw Image Processing in Lightroom, Camera Raw, and Photoshop
The Digital Print: Preparing Images in Lightroom and Photoshop for Printing
Fine Art Printing for Photographers: Exhibition Quality Prints with Inkjet Printers