What's Happening in July at The Lab Apollo?

July Featured Photographer - Pat Hitt

Pat Hitt of YouNique Photography in Mukwonago, Wis. is named the featured photographer for July 2010. Please continue to read more on Pat, his photographic experience and view some sample images.

July Special - Free Wallet Prints

Use coupon code JULY10 to receive 8 free wallet photo prints when you order $40 or more. Now is the perfect time for wallet-sized prints because of the busy senior portrait season! *When ordering through ROES please include the coupon code in the instructions area. Photographers can create their own wallet signatures using ROES or LabPrints. If you prefer to create your own signatures in Adobe Photoshop, crop your image to 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" and be sure to keep your text 1/4" from all edges. Save at 250 ppi. Download our wallet signature template.

New Changes!

Be sure to check out The Lab Apollo site in the upcoming weeks as we will be implementing some new changes and offering new products! Don't worry all the ordering systems and previous products will still be the same. However, you will see a facelift to the site giving it a fresher look.

Also in the works is you will soon have the ability to order picture frames for photo prints and other mounted photo products! We will be including a HUGE selection of frames so please stay tuned to learn more!

Winners of Fort Dearborn-Chicago Photo Forum IPC 2010

BEST OF SHOW

1st Place

Category: Nature

Title: Complimentary Colors

Photographer of the Year

Donald Bolak

Wheeling, IL - USA

1st Place

Category: People

Title:  Aged Man

Marti Belcher

Vienna, VA - USA

1st Place

Category: Places

Title: Sears Power

Darris Harris

Chicago, IL - USA

1st Place

Category: Still-Life

Title: Imperfect Beauty

Corsie Teresa

Port Coquitlam, British Columbia - Canada

1st Place

Category: Alteration of Reality

Title: Trumpet Lily

Karen Hirsch

Chicago, IL - USA

Photos courtesy of Fort Dearborn-Chicago Photo Forum International Photogrraphy Competition 2010

 

March Madness Has Arrived

The Lab Apollo has brought back the MADness. Check out our deals on photo products and our online storefront service - Photo Boutique. To learn more about Photo Boutique please visit http://thephotoboutique.com.

The Lab by Apollo - Photo Prints

Photo Printing 

Apollo can produce everything from wallets to continuous-tone, laser-output prints

stretching 30 inches wide and 50 feet long — on time and with the highest quality level possible. Choose from our standard Kodak E-surface, metallic or glossy photo paper printed in color or black and white. Sepia, blue and pink tones are also available for clients who want a different look. 

February Photo Prints Special

Don't forget that February is 30% OFF 16"x20" photo prints and larger. Use just the coupon code PRINT1620. If ordering through ROES, use the coupon code in the comments section just before checkout. 

Marketing Suggestions

Give your studio a facelift. Showcase your photographic work that will awe your customers as they walk into your studio. By putting up work, your customers can get more ideas about how they want their shoot to go by looking at how other photo shoots went. Looking for a different look? Try prints on our different paper types or color options. 

New Prize to be Added to Top Winner at the IPC

Fort Dearborn-Chicago Photo Forum - International Photography Competition

We just recently found out that the top winner at the IPC will be awarded the GOLD PASSPORT to FOTOfusion 2011. FOTOfusion is a five day photographic festival and educational event hosted by the Palm Beach Photographic Center in Flordia.

A Gold Passport includes: 

• Unlimited 100, 400 and 600-series Events
• (1) 200-series FOTOshoot
• (1) 300-series Computer Lab
• (6) Portfolio Reviews (minimum)
• All Courtyard Photo Ops
• All Fusion-Schmooze Parties
• Free Admission to the PHOTOgraphic Technology Centre
• Free Admission to Gallery Exhibitions
• Free Admission to What’s It Worth? Photography Appraisals

The top winner will also be invited to the opening reception and farewell bash of FOTOfusion 2011.

Along with the FOTOfusion Gold Passport the top winner will be crowned "Photographer of the Year," a photo carbon fiber Manfrotto (Bogen) tripod with ball head and Tamrac camera bag, and their winning images will be exhibited at the Morpho Gallery in Chicago.

If you would sill like to register for the IPC and get the early bird special you must do so by February 15.  

The Fort Dearborn-Chicago Photo Forum is celebrating its 115th Anniversary this year with the International Photography Competition. To be eligble to enter into the event you must be U.S., International, Professional and Amateur photographers eighteen and older working in black and white or color, using traditional or digital methods or elements of both processes.

Related Articles

The Lab by Apollo to Print Winning Images for IPC

Photo Boutique Overview - Online Fully Branded Storefront

Check out the overview of Photo Boutique. Photo Boutique will be available to photographers who are looking to create their own online, fully branded, storefront to host images. Photo Boutique sites will help optimize online photo sales for photographers. With Photo Boutique, photographers will be able to set up custom price groups for any photo occasion and manage which products to offer within those custom price groups. Customers will also have the ability to share their photos and created products with their friends and family via email and their social networking sites.

3 Reasons The Lab by Apollo is NOT Your Typical Photo Lab

1. The Lab by Apollo is a full-service photo lab. When we say "full-service photo lab" we mean everything we do is in-house. Most photo labs only do photographic prints in house while outsourcing the rest of their products. Here at The Lab, we have our own KODAK NEXPRESS S3000 that allows us to do a wide range of press printed photo products.

The ProPrints products and services from The Lab include our digital prints, digital proofs, photographic cards, retouching and artwork, finishing and mounting services. If you look at some recent blog posts you will find more information regarding The Lab's retouching and artwork services as well as our finishing and mounting services.

On top of the ProPrints and press printed products Apollo offers its own line of ProPhoto Creations -- specialty photographic products. Everything from mini photo albums to photo dry erase boards are available. 

2. As a full service photo lab, The Lab is in beta testing for Photo Boutique which is our SaaS (software as a service) for photographers. Photo Boutique is still undergoing some revisions and updates, but you should not be discourage and still check out what it has to offer. 

Photo Boutique will allow photographers to create their own customizable online photo storefront. The Lab recognizes that still a good number of photographers have not merged into the online environment. This service will allow photographers to take advantage of an opportunity to produce more sales online. 

To start building an online photo storefront, you will go through a build process that we have designed to be as user-friendly as possible. Keeping the thought in our minds that most photographers do not have a clue about building a website, Photo Boutique will take you through step-by-step on building out your site first by uploading a logo. You will then be able to choose your color scheme that will give your site personality. If you already have a website, Photo Boutique is structured to seamlessly integrate in to retain your brand identity. After you choose your color scheme, you will be able to choose which photo products you would like to offer and manage the pricing on those products. 

Once your site is built you can upload images to an online photo gallery where you can manage photo albums. As you go through photo shoots you can upload each shoot to its own photo album and direct customers to your Photo Boutique site, where they have the ability to choose which images they would like to purchase. 

As always, we take the manufacturing and shipping responsibilities on our shoulders and The Lab by Apollo will remain virtually invincible to your customers.

Check out our overview and tutorials of Photo Boutique. 

3. Our Photo Book selection is one of the largest of any photo labs. We start out with the everyday photo memory book, and sizes going up to 10"x15". A variety of cover options are also available with soft, hard, and photo cover selections. Photo books include a 100 lb. stock with 4 paper options available: standard glossy, high-gloss, ink-absorbent or protective-coated pages.

Lay-flat books come with hinged pages making it perfect for panoramic images that can span across 2 pages. These books include the same cover options as the memory books, however the paper options include a ticker, 110 lb. cover stock matte paper. 

Proof books are great for showing your customers photos taken from the shoot. These books are easy to create with our auto-fill option where a 16-page book can fit 64 images. Same cover options apply and the paper option includes a 100 lb. glossy paper type. 

Guest books are perfect for weddings where the couple can show off their engagement photo. The same cover options apply and the pages include a 100 lb. matte paper perfect for writing on. Guest books comes with 3 different lined formats for registry pages. 

Saving the best for last, the Artisan Collection Book is the Grand-daddy of them all. Cover options are still the same as the ladder, however the premium leather bound cover is what makes this book stand out from the rest. The pages are composed of a premium deckle-edge paper type that resembles that of watercoloring paper. The smooth finish and sturdy weight of the paper stock give it excellent ink absorbing qualities. 

The Lab by Apollo to Print Winning Images For IPC

Fort Dearborn-Chicago Photo Forum

The first photography competition was held in 1900 in conjunction with the Art Institute of Chicago. 115 years later marks an honorary occasion for the photo forum as they host their first ever competition that is conducted online. 

Photo categories will be split up into 5 different categories:

• People
• Places
• Still-life
• Nature
• Alteration of Reality

January 15, 2010 highlights the beginning of submissions for the competition and will extend until April 15. The early bird entry fee ($28/first 3 images, $8 for each additional image) deadline comes to a close on February 15. After that date the price jumps to $35 for the first 3 images and $10 for each additional image.

Membership application fee waived

All photographers who enter the competition may also join the Fort Dearborn-Chicago Photo Forum. If you submit your application to join before the competition closes, the one-time $35 membership application fee will be waived. Click here for details on joining the Forum.

The Lab has the honor to print and mount the 30 winning images that will be displayed in the Morpho Gallery in Chicago.

Winners will submit their high res images (16"x20" @250ppi) to The Lab by May 17, 2010.  The winning images will be displayed in June 2010 (date TBD). 

To learn more about the International Photography Competition click here. 

FREE PDN Photographers' Virutal Trade Show

Join The Lab by Apollo on December 2 & 3 

What: PDN Free Photographers' Virtual Trade Show

When: All Day - December 2^nd & 3^rd

Where: Online - www.vshow.com/apollophoto

Who:

Check out these live webcasts on December 2nd:

11 AM - Keynote: Dan Havlik - Sponsored by The LAB by Apollo
1 PM - High Glamour, High Fashion Weddings with a Flow - Sponsored by Doug Gordon Workshops
3 PM - The Perfect Print
5 PM - How to Master Lighting Location

Join us again on December 3rd for these live webcasts:

11 AM - Keynote
1 PM - The Power of Branding - Sponsored by Lost Luggage
3 PM - PhotoShop and Lightroom: The Dynamic Duo - Sponsored by Asuka Books and Kubota
5 PM - ASMP Session

*Please note all times are Eastern Standard Time (EST)

Why: The Lab by Apollo will be introducing Photo Boutique. The software is a custom, full-service online sales resource that can be fully branded to any photographer or studio. The Lab will be presenting video tutorials about setting up a Photo Boutique, customizing and branding, featuring products, and product creation walk-throughs.

Also, during the 2-day event, visitors to the trade show will be able to network with other photographers, engage in online chat and groups, and attend other virtual presentations.

For more information about the PDN Photographers' Virtual Trade Show please visit the site.

 

Apollo Photo Imagizing: New Holiday Hours

Apollo Photo Imagizing will be extending its hours for the upcoming holiday season. Starting November 23, our customer service staff will be available:

Monday through Thursday

8:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. CST

Friday

8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. CST.

 

The holiday season is one of the most stressful times of the year and Apollo recognizes that. For call-in support please have your order number ready as it will help tremendously in solving any order issues. Order numbers can be found in your email confirmation upon completing checkout.