Has anyone tried BayPhoto.com?

I found an ad for their metal prints in Outdoor Photographer and they looked interesting. Does anyone have experience with this company and with their metal prints in particular?

I have used Bay via smugmug.. Not the aluminium prints yet, but I am think of trying it for a 9/11 print I have and a few wave panos.

I did see another company, fotoflot, metal prints at PhotoExpo last year, I am hoping they are there this year so I can take a closer look.

I think bay may outsource to them but not really sure.

Lou

Mpix also offers a metallic paper that has a nice glow to it. It works especially well in Alpenglow scenes because the Alpenglow when the print is hit with light, seems to really glow and radiate.

EJ these are prints on actual pieces of metal

Yup, completely different from the "metallic" paper. See here http://www.bayphoto.com/bayweb/pro_metalprints.htm

Ah OK, thanks!

You absolutely can not go wrong working Bay Photo. I can not speak more highly of them. Their products and service are fantastic. Although I have not ordered the prints on metal, I have seen them prior to the launch and they are beautiful. I will be ordering this product soon...

Scott Kelby had a blog post about metal prints from Image Wizards that was incredibly positive. But it looks like they are quite a bit more expensive than Bay Photo. Still looks like a very interesting print medium...

I was talking to Neil Losin last night and he ordered one of the metal prints from Bay Photo and promised to let me know how it looks. I'll make sure to update when I hear from him.

I just put an order in for a pano.. I was waiting for the Smugmug to carry them via the Bay partnership but couldn't wait any longer so put in a ROES order to Bay.. FYI if you are a first time Bay user you get 50% off your first ROES order which can be metalprints along with tradition prints.

Just got a 12x36 metal pano delivered.. and boy is it sweet, high gloss, color is dead on. Going to put in tin a show we are having on Nov, interested to see what people think. Makes me wish I would have ordered a few at the 50% off !

Lou

Thanks for the feedback Lou! Did they give you downloadable printer profiles that you color matched on to get the color so good? Did you order any of their other products?

I got their ICC from the website for softproofing... I tend to print most of my own stuff so only the metal print.

I've been using Bay for two years now and really like them. I've used a lot of other labs over the years but Bay is by far the best I've used. They have a great product range, wonderful prices, amazing quality, fast and inexpensive shipping and fast turn around times. In addition they're the lab that developed the ROES ordering system that virtually every lab now uses.

I have a a metal print from Bay Photo hanging on the wall. It looks nice and the price was good. I think I still prefer a regular framed print for hanging, but it's a neat product, ready-to-hang. Recently a photographer put on a show locally with around 15 or more huge metal prints, photojournalism on substance living in an Alaskan village. They must have been at least 3 feet across, super detailed, and looked lit from within.

Kari - Coincidentally, I have just ordered a sample pack of the metal prints (5x7) costing me $39. I thought that was a bit much for four 5x7 samples. I also found that just placing the order was exasperating, and seemed a lot more complex than it needed to. Perhaps that becomes easier with time/experience.
There is another lab in California called Magna Chrome, which sells the exact same metal prints & hangers. They're a much smaller, and more personal firm, and only do metal prints as far as I can tell by their website. They have FREE samples unlike Bay, and are sending them to me.
Here are my initial comparisons of the two labs on metal prints -
1. Bay Photo's prices are higher on larger prints, but cheaper on the metal hangers.
2. Magna Chrome's customer service (Tim) was friendlier and more personal. I contacted Bay Photo's customer service several times in 2-3 days, and each time I got a different rep. All helpful, but not as personable as Tim.
3. Bay Photo only accepts jpegs. Magna Chrome will also accept tiffs and psd's.
4. Bay Photo offers a 25% discount on your first order. Magna Chrome offers a 20% discount on ALL orders from "professional" photographers.

I will initially place an order with each lab, and henceforth use the one I feel delivered the better quality metal print. But if quality is no issue, I will go with Magna Chrome. However, for a full service lab (which I don't need), Bay is hard to beat.
Michael H. Cothran

Sorry, I just now noticed how far back this post was. My post is of no use now, I presume.

On the contrary, Michael. I just came across a Bay Photo metal print ad and was intrigued so I went to this forum to see if it had already been discussed. I found lots of great info here and, thanks to you, am going to check out Magna Chrome for comparison.

Cheers,
Greg Basco

Bay is wonderful! I've been using them for the last few years for both my fine art prints and my commercial work and I can't say enough good things. They have a great selection of products, fast turn around time, inexpensive shipping, very high quality, wonderful pricing, great customer service and they ship flat.

The metal prints look great, they're durable and Bay has been rolling out more and more ways to display them.

I've used a number of nationally known labs over the years and Bay Photo is by far the best in every aspect. I'd highly recommend them.

Another one is Image Wizards. I got their free sample pack and am placing an order. New customers get (2) 16x24 in float mount for $199. A little pricier than MagnaChrome but they provide a proof as part of the price.

http://imagewizards.net/