A trip down the high street to develop rolls of camera film used to be an essential errand at the end of the summer holidays. But today, although we are taking more photos than ever thanks to digital cameras and smartphones, very few make it into print.
The vast majority of this year’s summer holiday snaps will be left languishing on smartphone memory chips or online storage clouds.
More than 40 per cent of these eventually disappear through accidental deletion or broken hardware, camera shop Jessops estimates. Others get compressed when shared on social media, which reduces their quality if later made into prints.
Treasured: A photobook can store all of your important memories in a ‘hard’ format
However, while times have changed, it is easier than ever to print copies of photos to enjoy, share and preserve.
Kate Bevan, editor of consumer magazine Which? Computing, says: ‘Photos are quickly taken – and often instantly forgotten. They can also vanish in an instant if a phone is lost, stolen or a computer hard drive fails. Yet fortunately, photos can be turned into prints with ease.’ The high street still offers some options for face-to-face support developing pictures.
Chains such as Boots will help you to insert your camera memory card, or plug in your mobile phone or laptop, to a photo machine where you can tailor prints to your liking.
You can choose between different sizes, finishes and borders. Alternatively, online providers allow you to upload photos on to a website or smartphone app to be printed and posted to your home. Photos cost from around 10p each to develop, depending on the quality and number you are printing. For example, Tesco charges up to 55p a print if you order fewer than 26 four by six-inch photos that you wish to collect within an hour. But if you are willing to wait ten days to receive the photos and order 500 prints the price falls to 7p each.
Boots charges 15p each for up to 19 standard prints – but as little as 7p each if you order 500 or more. Photobox charges 15p per photo, falling to 14p if you order 150 copies or more – and down to 10p if you print at least 500. Jessops charges 16p – or 14p if you want 200 or more. Snapfish and Bonusprint charge 10p and 15p per print respectively.
There are also postage costs to consider. While companies such as Boots and Tesco allow you to pick up photos for free, others such as Bonusprint charge around £3.99 for delivery.
Some providers also make photobooks out of your snaps. Kate Bevan believes these can be a great cost-effective option.
‘They offer a chance to keep a collection in order – perhaps of a particular holiday or time to remember,’ she says. ‘Photobooks can prevent precious memories from getting lost in a sea of digital snaps.’ Prices for albums start from about £10 for a 20- page softcover book from a provider such as Snapfish, going up to £40 or more for luxury bound options, such as a 20- page hardback ‘premium’ book from Jessops.
Favourite snaps can also be turned into picture mugs, greetings cards, canvas art to put on the wall, cushions and jigsaw puzzles.
