Tech Tuesdays - ProDPI

It was a cold, rainy night. I was going to an event down in Englewood. My brother was in town from Boston and was borrowing my truck, so he dropped me off at the event. Unfortunately, due to our schedules not quite meshing, I was about 45 minutes early to the event. Since the weather was kind of miserable, I didn't really feel like hanging around outside, so I asked if I could come inside and wait. The answer was a friendly "Yes", and that was my first contact with ProDPI.

I was shown back to the area where the party was going to take place. One of the customer service reps was just leaving and she told me that I could sit at her desk if I wanted. How nice of her! After sitting for a while, a woman came into the room with her young boy. It turns out she was Caitlin, the CEO of ProDPI. We chatted while she fed her son and I couldn't have asked for a nicer person to talk to while I waited. I learned that the guy who I met when I walked in was Jeffrey, her husband and COO of ProDPI.

When Caitlin had to run off to take care of something, I took the opportunity to look around at the samples or their work that they had on display for the party. I should mention that ProDPI is a full service, pro lab. They offer everything from prints to albums, business cards to stickers. Every sample that I looked at, including albums, accordion books and mounted prints all looked amazing!

Once the party was underway and more people showed up, Jeffrey took us on a tour of the ProDPI facilities. He explained their print process, their philosophy and why they relocated from California to Colorado. He showed us their lab, their prep area and their packing facilities. Their commitment to being a green company shows in their use of shipping materials (cardboard made with post consumer waste), recycling of all recyclable materials, eco-friendly print packaging options and electronic invoicing. By the end of the tour I was thoroughly impressed.

The next day I decided to create an account with ProDPI and order some test prints. No matter how impressive a lab is in person, it doesn't mean much if their actual prints aren't any good. I downloaded their ROES software and, after a few minutes, had ordered my prints. I really wanted to get the prints ordered before noon, as I had another test for ProDPI. I wanted to see if I ordered my prints before noon if they'd be at my house the next day. I'm happy to say that they were waiting for me when I came home the next evening! I know this might not happen every time, but just knowing that it can happen is awesome.

So, let's do a quick recap. Friendly staff, family-owned, great quality press products, good selection, eco-friendly and fast! Sounds good so far, but what about those prints? I'm happy to say that they are better than I had expected! The actual quality of the print is outstanding. I have a standard test image that I print with every lab I've ever tried and ProDPI is at the top of the list. Their print showed more detail than most and the colors were excellent! What really makes their prints stand out, though, is their paper. Jeffrey mentioned that they are one of the few labs in the country who use Fuji paper and I must admit, I like it a lot better than the Kodak paper that I'm used to. It's a little heavier, so it feels more substantial, and it has a more appealing texture as well.

In case you didn't figure it out by now, I now have a new lab. ProDPI does amazing work and I'd suggest checking them out if you're a photographer. Not only are they awesome for all of the reasons I mentioned above, but their prices are very competitive with other national pro labs. If you're in Denver, they are a local business and I'll take almost any opportunity to support local businesses. Welcome to Colorado, ProDPI. I'm glad we met!