Good Color Print labs in Minneapolis/St. Paul

[kent_lee1]

Does anybody have suggestions for good labs in the minneapolis, st.

paul area, particularly in the northern suburbs? I'm also looking for

a lab that prints on either Fuji Frontier or Kodak's Noritsu minilab

process.

 

Procolor is way too expensive, they're the only place I know that

uses Kodak paper.

 

I've tried ProEx, they use a Fuji Frontier system, and it's hit or

miss. Biggest problem I've had with ProEx is a dirty system, I had my

negatives scanned and the scans come back full of dust and dirt.

 

National Camera is somewhat decent, but they use Agfa paper, and some

of my pictures have come out with really wierd colors and exposure.

 

Any alternatives? Has anybody used White House Custom Color in St.

Paul? They supposedly have a Fuji Frontier system..

 

Ironically, I can get better quality processing, with clean scans and

nicely exposed pictures, with a lot less cost from the corner lab in

Taiwan than I can find here!

 

Thanks, I'd appreciate any suggestions.

[j_a]

White house is the only place I will go to have prints from electronic files made. I used to use Lindhoff off of France, but thier too damn expensive. White house is very reasonable priced and they do a great job. They're staff is knows what thier talking about, damn rate nowadays. They ain't open weekends and yes they do have a Fuji Frontier system.

[sjmurray]

I second the vote for White House Custom Color. Good prices and they make great prints on Fuji Archive.

[j_a]

Sorry about the grammer in the above answer of mine. Some days I wonder, "just what is my native tongue."

[NullMcNullkins]

Kent,

 

Which ProEx did you try?

[kent_lee1]

I tried the ProEx in Columbia Heights (694 and Central), and they had a terrible time with the dust and dirt. The ProEx on Lexington in Shoreview was OK, but there's still some degree of dirt in their scans.

 

The prints, however, come out OK..

[michael_gilday]

On the occasions when I'm in a hurry and can't wait to mail film off, I've used Shutterbug on Grand in Saint Paul. They do very good color work on Kodak paper. I'm not sure what machine they use. They also do very good, very affordable B&W printing... but their B&W development is awful, dust and scratches galore.

 

I used to use National Camera, and was pleased with the results I got, but they're inconveniently far from me. On the rare occasions I shoot color print film, it's usually Agfa, so their being an Agfa lab wasn't an issue.

 

Generally I have everything processed through the mail. It's just easier for me.

[NullMcNullkins]

OK...Actually to the best of my knowledge the Ridgehaven ProEx is the only one with a Frontier...They maybe an alternative.

[kent_lee1]

Are Fuji Frontier systems dip and dunk?

[jkaufman]

Kent,

 

Although I have only tried a few sites locally, my experience with the ProEx in Highland Park has been quite good. All negatives are enlarged onto Fuji Crystal Archive paper. According to the store, the company has a deal with Fuji, hence the ability to offer such good paper. Color balance has never seemed off.