Smugmug questions!

[ahaze]

Greetings! My name is Andi Hazelwood, I'm an amateur photographer considering taking the leap into trying to seriously sell my stuff online. I've got a website at www.titoi.com and I'm a member at DPChallenge.com. I have a few items on DPCPrints and have made a few sales, but I ordered an 8x10 of one of my photos from them and was shocked at how saturated it was. I'm considering removing them completely.

I've read the info about the Smugmug Pro account- I really like the way it's set up, with watermarking and integrated selling on my own site, etc. I'd like to hear from some pro users with some history here, if possible.

I read a few concerns (at DPC) that the printer Smugmug uses is somewhat average, and someone else said prints were inconsistent. I was quite impressed with the level of testing SM did before going with a printer, so I'd like to hear from some actual users on this issue. Is it possible to have some test prints of my own work done before paying for an account?

Also, is anyone making more than a few dollars with the service? $100 plus hosting seems like a lot, but I know that the amount of services offered make it a good deal. Though if I end up losing money that defeats the purpose!

Thanks in advance for your honest answers and advice. I look forward to talking with you all more!

[ahaze]

Nobody?

[tmlphoto]

Nobody?
I'm not a pro, but since no one else has chimed in I'll give it a go.
I do have a pro account & I easily payed for the service by selling prints off of my web site. The quality of the prints is excellent and I have found the consistency to be very good as well. I think you can upload digital files directly to EZprints at their website and order some prints prior to signing up for a smugmug account. Prints sales will be determined by how you market yourself. All of my prints sales are from commissioned works or event photos. Overall, I have been very pleased with my pro account. It is a lot of value for the money. Hope this helps.

[ahaze]

Thanks very much, I appreciate the reply! Based on the number of client galleries you have, it looks like you're keeping quite busy! Congrats.

I will definitely have EZPrints do some prints for me. Thanks for the insight.

Andi