Apple knew it had something special to share with the world when it released iPhoto in 2002: in addition to printing 20″ by 30″ poster-sized photos, the original iPhoto’s “most stunning feature” (according to Apple) was a page layout tool that quickly turned digital photo collections into printed hardcover books. These were Apple’s acknowledgements that tangible photos still had value in a digital era, and it subsequently added calendars, greeting cards, softcover books, and letterpress cards to iPhoto. Apple’s newer app Photos for Mac hides these options under the File menu at the top of the screen, and hasn’t expanded on them, a shame considering how nice the results look.
But apart from including the poster options in 2002, Apple never added “large-format art” to the list of things its photo apps could produce. Back in 2002, digital cameras were so low-resolution that they struggled to produce pixel-free 4″ by 6″ photos, so it’s no surprise that Apple wasn’t trying to build a market for large prints. Thankfully, a lot has changed since then. Canon currently sells two 50-Megapixel cameras, Sony has one 42-Megapixel camera, and Nikon offers four 36-Megapixel cameras. iPhones and iPads can create up to 43-Megapixel ultra-wide panoramas. A large, properly-composed print from any of these cameras (or even the more common 20- to 25-Megapixel cameras people are using today) will look amazing hanging on the wall of your home or office… if you know how to do it.
I wanted to see what the best options were for large-format photography, so I reached out to a collection of excellent art print services to see how digital photos would look on metal, glass, and canvas — materials Photos doesn’t offer. In Part 1 of this How-To guide, I’m looking at large-format metal prints that apply dyes and gloss directly onto aluminum surfaces, with results as saturated as Apple’s famous “nanochromatic” iPod nanos. A new Part 2 looks at large-format canvas and glass prints. Read on for all the details…
When you research the world of metal photo printing, two names come up repeatedly. First is Image Wizards in North Carolina, which lays claim to having invented metal photo prints, as well as ubiquitous earlier ideas such as printing photos on coffee mugs and mouse pads. Image Wizards’ AluminArte is considered the gold standard for metal photo printing, and can be produced in sizes ranging from 12″ by 20″ to 48″ by 96″ ($130 to $1,030) — that’s four by eight feet, a surface large enough to make a life-sized print of a basketball player (with room on the edges to spare). You get the choice of four different finishes – white aluminum or brushed in your choice of satin or gloss – plus three different types of frames in your choice of three colors.
Image Wizards offers a lot of different customization options, but its web site is very basic. You specify your choice of sizes, finishes, frames, and shipping packaging, then provide your shipping and billing information. Next, you just upload your file to the company without any additional site-based adjustment or previewing of the image. Consequently, you’ll need to do your cropping in Photos, iPhoto or Aperture, and make sure that your image looks right before uploading it. My finished Image Wizards print was very slightly cropped on the left side relative to the original image.
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- The original image
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- Image Wizards’ 24″ by 18″ version is slightly cropped, but richly colored (glare is from the glossy finish)
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- Frame-to-edge framing stiffens the thin aluminum print
I was pleased by the quality of the Image Wizards print, and super impressed by the company’s frame. The AluminArte process preserved all of the original image’s rich saturation, which pops nearly as much on the 24″ by 18″ frame as on the internally illuminated, comparably-sized screen of a 27″ iMac. An anti-scratch coating provides HDTV-like gloss, and is capable of resisting finger gouges; Image Wizards includes a large cleaning cloth to preserve the shine. Additionally, although I’d selected a floating frame, Image Wizards recommended a frame to edge version that considerably stiffened the edges of the thin aluminum print, providing black boxy edges and a measure of reinforcement against accidental damage. It was a great recommendation, though it added $78 to what would otherwise be a $145.65 price.
As shown above, the detail level in the AluminArte print is pretty impressive for a large piece of wall art, preserving even the individual textures of strings in the original 24-megapixel photo. There were small color differences — smaller than the comparison here suggests — which aren’t noticeable unless you hold the image directly up next to a monitor. While the AluminArte print wasn’t as large as the others I tested, and I didn’t have a 50-Megapixel Canon to push the outer limits of the company’s process, most DSLR users (and many point-and-shoot photographers) can expect similarly detailed, beautiful results even at slightly larger sizes.
Another widely recommended metal print resource is Mpix, a division of Miller’s Professional Imaging in Kansas. Mpix does a lot of different types of photo printing, including canvas gallery wraps and boxy “standout” photos. But it also offers Modern Metals, aluminum prints that range from 8″ by 10″ to 20″ by 30″ ($34-$155). The prices are aggressive, though as a trade-off, you’ll have no physical options beyond choosing the size. You can use the Mpix web site to adjust the zoom, cropping, and rotation of your image, optionally adding various facial retouching services for $8 per retouching service per person; that’s it.
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- The original image
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- I manually cropped the image on Mpix’s web site for the 30″ x 20″ print
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- The frameless mount design isn’t deluxe, but works well
Mpix’s prints arrived amazingly quickly after my order was placed, and I was thrilled with their value for the dollar. Once again, the saturation and detail on the prints were spot-on with the original images, making colorful images really pop. I was astonished that buildings in the distance were as clear in the Mpix prints as in the Canon 5D Mark III images I shot, and that I needed to magnify the originals to absurd levels to find pixel-level distinctions. The only comparative issue I ultimately noted was a slight blow out of bright spots, which in all honesty affected such tiny parts of the huge images that they were hard to spot.
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- The second original image
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- The second 20″x30″ print, slightly cropped
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- Fine details remain obvious in the print, though bright spots sometimes get a little blown out
Mpix notably offers 30″ by 20″ metal prints for $155, a roughly 36″ diagonal that’s larger than the display of any current or past Mac. While that’s not as large as the biggest Image Wizards print, Mpix’s options tend to be somewhat less expensive at given sizes. Part of that price difference is because there are fewer frills here than with Image Wizards, as Mpix doesn’t include a cleaning cloth or offer multiple frame or finish options. However, the frameless mount is sturdy and works exactly as expected, providing three mounting points in a line. Moreover, just like with the Image Wizards prints, Mpix’s prints were finished with a glossy surface treatment that made them look like UHDTV screens – really beautiful.
If you’re looking to make giant, wall-worthy metal art prints from your digital photographs, Image Wizards and Mpix both have advantages worth considering. The multiple finish and framing options offered by Image Wizards are good premium touches, while its ability to produce human-sized aluminum canvases for your photos could completely wow viewers with scale alone. By contrast, Mpix’s simpler options and pricing still deliver surprisingly strong image quality, and make an impact with the option of larger-than-Mac-sized prints. You won’t be disappointed with either company’s products.
More From This Author
Part 2 of this article is now available with glass and canvas options, and you can check out more of my How-To guides and reviews for 9to5Mac here! I’ve covered a lot of different topics of interest to Mac, iPad, iPhone, iPod, Apple TV, and Apple Watch users. Don’t forget to click on Older Posts at the bottom of the page to see everything!
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Jeremy, these “How To” articles are fantastic. I have personally benefitted from each and every one. Keep up the great work.
I really appreciate that, thank you! And so glad they’re helpful!
Great write up. I look forward to trying one of these services now!
Posterburner (https://www.posterburner.com) will create poster size prints of ordinary jpgs or pngs for very reasonable prices. $19.99 for movie size posters. I have one I created hanging on my wall.
Was thinking the same thing — am really glad 9to5Mac got a very technical guy who can also write very well like Jeremy
bayphoto.com is the service i use for metal prints and offers cropping, framing, sizing plus color correction is needed. prices are good too.
Those are some great pictures! Did you make those yourself?
Thank you! Yes, they’re all my photos.
I would also like to thank you for these type of articles you are writing. I just bookmarked that one because I would try in (I hope) near future when I get the upcoming 6S (switching from my brave 4…). The camera would be stunning so I would definitely try to print it onto something… So yeah, thanks and keep up with the good work. P.S. Few months back I helped a friend with his HDD/SSD challenge thanks to your article. Big thanks again!
Glad to help! I think the move to 6S from 4 will be a gigantic jump for you. When thinking of the older iPhone cameras, it’s not just a question of megapixel counts, but also the quality of those pixels. Color accuracy, contrast, and noise levels all have improved a lot even from 4 to 6. I stopped carrying around a separate point and shoot a generation before the 6, and with the 6, it’s basically pointless to have another pocket camera (except for zoom). The 6S should be another nice jump… and highly worthy of printing larger, on metal, etc.
My point exactly! I am not an avid fan of photography, my gf has DSLR etc (even if she’s not using it in the last couple of… um, quarters heh). But with 6S I would definitely start to experiment every now and then. Also, do you have any impression from the olloclip hardware? Is their equipment worth its price? I am just curious. I’ll probably skip these another $~80 on top of the hefty 6S (besides, the 6S’ camera should be… well, brutal!). At some point in the future if I try to shoot/print something, I’ll send you a PM with the result! :) All the best and keep up with the good articles, I love them! :)
Thank you! Yes, I’m a fan of the more recent Olloclip camera accessories, although it does vary a bit from attachment to attachment. The 2X telephoto is optically solid, and certain of their wide-angle lenses are good, too. They are roughly worth the asking prices, albeit in the context of much more expensive lens attachments for higher-end cameras. I have found little practical value (personally) in the macro lenses.
Kind of off-topic, but I had a Samsung Symbian phone a long time ago (i8910-HD), and it had a “macro-mode” where you could take insanely amazing close up shots. Say what you want about Samsung and Symbian, but this phone’s camera was off the chain…it was crazy/scary good for the time it came out (this was ~6 years ago IIRC) compared to everyone else’s offerings.
I wish the iPhone had such a macro mode — I can not see any settings in the camera app itself or any other apps that would make a macro mode possible on iOS.
Macro is one of two areas (zoom being the other) where even accessory-assisted iPhones still fall short of good standalone pocket cameras. My gut feeling is that Apple has neglected it because it’s comparatively low on the list of user demands, and a little challenging to implement in ever-thinning devices.
Taking great macro photos is a function of several separate but interrelated camera capabilities:
(a) Ability to focus on objects at relatively short distances.
(b) Ability to refocus quickly on objects within those relatively short distances, correctly judging which is the intended “subject,” preferably with some depth of field control.
(c) Stabilization (either in the camera or in the user’s hands, if not both).
Most iPhones don’t have either (a) or (c), which makes macro photography really challenging even if you’re using a newer model with (b). You can use an Olloclip or other macro lens attachment, which effectively adds (a), but you’re still left with (c)-related problems and some (b) problems as well.
Even with an Olloclip macro lens, trying to take an outdoor iPhone macro photo of a flower becomes seriously challenging. You’ll need to take 10 shots to get 1-3 good ones, because the focus/depth of field will be off on others, and accidental lens blur will probably be in several more. A tripod can help if you want to go through the trouble, but that’s a lot of extra investment and gear to get equivalent results to hand-holding a good standalone pocket camera.
The problem with using online services for any kind of art printing that’s going on a wall is that there is no room for trial and error (well, less room depending on the company’s policies).
Color management (less for accuracy, more for predictability) is important and experimenting with a large scale print is risky if you have particular expectations of how the print will look. Yes, I agree, most folks will be thrilled to see an image they took printed at a large scale, no matter how well or not so well it matches what they see on their screen, but that thrill can wear off if the color is too out of whack with expectations.
I’m not advocating that everyone get into fine art printing at home, although it’s a great thing to do and gives you quite a bit more control, but I think it’s important to build trial and error into this process, even with an online service. Experiment at smaller scale and make sure the prints look the way you want.
The other thing to consider is that not every image you love looking at on your computer screen will be equally loved on a large scale on your living room wall. It’s one thing to open a file and look at it from time to time on a computer, quite another to live with it daily in your living room. Because I print and frame at home I can more easily rotate what’s on our walls and besides making new images to hang, I also have plenty of older images I rotate through, just to keep things a bit more interesting. Not that you can’t do this with an online service, you certainly can.
Thanks Jeremy, very useful post and I’ll be interested to see how readers here experiment with these services over time.
Image Wizards is actually willing to provide reduced-size proofs (on metal, no less) prior to making your final print, so you’d be able to get a really good sense of whether the color was accurate enough for your needs.
On the subject of selecting content that works when hung large on a wall, it goes without saying that anyone willing to make an investment in a large piece like one of these prints will have a sense of what they’d want to live with daily. This isn’t like printing a 4″ by 6″ photo at Walgreens (in price or uploading process), and thus not the sort of thing someone would do with just any old image. Wedding photos, family photos, landscapes, other panoramas… all sorts of things that people would naturally want to keep up for a while and be willing to spend a bit of extra cash to see in large format.
“it goes without saying that anyone willing to make an investment in a large piece like one of these prints will have a sense of what they’d want to live with daily”
I’m not so sure about that, but hey, the best feedback is to see one of your images on the wall and wonder why you’re sick of it after a week. For example, wedding and family photos, while great to look at in an album might not be the best thing for a wall at large scale. But, in the end its a matter of taste, which is personal.
Yeah, it is personal. But a lot of people have family and wedding photos on their walls. They’re some of the most common images people choose to turn into wall art (part of the reason you’ll see them along with landscapes/nature images as prime examples on Mpix’s and Image Wizards’ metal print pages).
Very useful article! Thank you.
I tired fracture as John Gruber and Marco Arment are always promoting them: they are expensive, but, they are always rubbish. The colour representation and imagine quality were abysmal. You could see the lines made during the printing process and my very pale pinkish sky arrived white. Couldn’t believe how bad the quality was for something that was getting support from guys who usually appear to know which is end is up.
I have a Fracture incoming for Part 2. Different from what’s being done with the metal prints, and I’m anxious to see how it looks by comparison.
I would love to see a comparison of these two with Adoramapix.com. I purchased an 11×14 metal print earlier this year for $44.95, and was very impressed. Tempted to order another, larger one, but they can add up to a lot of money, so if one is superior I’d love to order from them.
I’ve reached out to Adorama and hopefully will be able to provide you with an answer to this!
There is a better quality and more economical way to do this. Print on a clear gloss vinyl, attach it to a metallic substrate, then add a gloss vinyl laminate and float the entire piece. I had this done for me at a local printer and the results are phenomenal.
I really like the how-to articles here – but I was expecting a little more “how-to” shoot/expose/post-process an image to make sure it’ll be an outstanding large sized print. This article was useful as a review of the two Labs chosen to make metal prints, but not a lot on creating the best image file to send to those two places so as to have the best chance of great results.