Inconsistant color in prints.

jeffreaux2

I tried emailing help@smugmug.com yesterday with this issue, but have not gotten any kind of response.

This is in regards to my recent order. There is one particular file in that order of which I ordered 2- 8x10s and 1- 11x14 lustre print. I selected "true" as the color option. Upon recieving the prints, I was surprised to find that although the 8x10s were identical, they were of a completely different color than the 11x14. I ordered wallets of the same file on a previous order, and it appears that the wallet size falls somewhere in between these two print colors. I have not been able to find the order# for the wallets, but am nearly positive that it was ordered with "auto" color selected. As it happens, this is a senior portrait of my very own daughter, so I do not have an unhappy customer.....it is only me involved. I would be much more dissappointed had this been an order for one of my clients.

I have two questions.

Is there anything on my end that needs to be done to get more consistancy between prints?

What can be done about these prints to get the "true" color ones delivered to me?

This first link is to the original file from which the prints in question were ordered.
http://jkmann.smugmug.com/gallery/2796069/1/181827936/Large

This next link is to a file showing the two 8x10s lying on either side of the 11x14 print. The quality of this photo isn't very impressive, but the color difference can clearly be seen.
http://jkmann.smugmug.com/gallery/2796346/1/233722155/Large

Your help is greatly appreciated in this matter. I can provide the order # if you need it.

Andy

Hey, pm me your email address you sent from, and your order# please?

It's not like us to miss an email so in addition to helping you (right now) I want to find out if your mail came through.

Thanks!

Andy

jeffreaux2 wrote:

I tried emailing help@smugmug.com yesterday with this issue, but have not gotten any kind of response.

Ack! I've scoured our help system and can't find any emails from you yesterday - I'm so sorry We really do answer each and every one. I'm glad you posted!

This is in regards to my recent order. There is one particular file in that order of which I ordered 2- 8x10s and 1- 11x14 lustre print. I selected "true" as the color option. Upon recieving the prints, I was surprised to find that although the 8x10s were identical, they were of a completely different color than the 11x14. I ordered wallets of the same file on a previous order, and it appears that the wallet size falls somewhere in between these two print colors. I have not been able to find the order# for the wallets, but am nearly positive that it was ordered with "auto" color selected. As it happens, this is a senior portrait of my very own daughter, so I do not have an unhappy customer.....it is only me involved.

That doesn't matter - we want to figure this out no matter what. The results should be identical, and clearly aren't. We'll get you new prints, once I find out how/why this happened, since the order was TRUE color, they should be identical.

I would be much more dissappointed had this been an order for one of my clients.

I have two questions.

Is there anything on my end that needs to be done to get more consistancy between prints?

What can be done about these prints to get the "true" color ones delivered to me?

This first link is to the original file from which the prints in question were ordered.
http://jkmann.smugmug.com/gallery/2796069/1/181827936/Large

This next link is to a file showing the two 8x10s lying on either side of the 11x14 print. The quality of this photo isn't very impressive, but the color difference can clearly be seen.
http://jkmann.smugmug.com/gallery/2796346/1/233722155/Large

Your help is greatly appreciated in this matter. I can provide the order # if you need it.

I'll be back to you as soon as I know more, thanks. And, sorry for the hassle.

jeffreaux2

I don't feel hassled just yet, but......

I really have put time into my BW conversions, calibration of my monitor, and aligning my color space with the one (SRGB) that is suggested. All I really want is to recieve my prints looking the way I envisioned them.

Thank you for your speedy reply. I appreciate your time and effort.

Andy

jeffreaux2 wrote:

I don't feel hassled just yet, but......

I really have put time into my BW conversions, calibration of my monitor, and aligning my color space with the one (SRGB) that is suggested. All I really want is to recieve my prints looking the way I envisioned them.

Thank you for your speedy reply. I appreciate your time and effort.

Yup and they look good. I'm all over the folks at the lab. We'll get to the bottom of why it happened and I will be back to you.

Dr. Know

Andy wrote:

Yup and they look good. I'm all over the folks at the lab. We'll get to the bottom of why it happened and I will be back to you.

Good morning all,

I want to let everyone know that we take this type of issue very seriously and that we have our color scientists working diligently to find out the root cause of this report. Andy and the EZ Prints QA group are working right now to ensure that we solve the problem and that this does not happen again.

We will continue to update all involved with our findings and let you know when the issue is resolved.

All the best,

Dr. Know

jeffreaux2

We wait patiently.......

jeffreaux2

Update
I recieved the re-prints today and they look great. Thanks.

Dr. Know

Resolution

jeffreaux2 wrote:

I recieved the re-prints today and they look great. Thanks.

Good morning all,

I have great news. As you can see from the thread, we found what the issue was and resolved it. What we found was that there was a laser that slowly drifted away from our target. Once we localized the problem we took that particular printer off line and performed the necessary maintenance to bring the output back within calibration. We also performed some additional training with our operater and reinfornced the importance of consistency throughout our lab.

We thank you for your patience, and appreciate your business.

Happy Holidays!