This is a review of Bumblejax prints for digital photographs. Bumblejax is a print lab located in Seattle, Washington. They are providing great prints for me at a price that is cost-effective. I have my black and white prints done on metallic paper, usually on Dibond(R) with a matte laminate. The blacks seem to reproduce best with this paper without significant color cast. I made this decision based on some proof prints of my photos that were done by Bumblejax. Previously I was using a lab that did silver halide prints and I could not justify the cost. The cost of an unmounted silver halide print exceeded the cost of a laminated print on Dibond (R) from Bumblejax.
Metallic paper is also my favorite for color since the colors pop brilliantly. Moreover, the colors are stunning behind acrylic. Using the same paper for everything that I print gives my work a similar appearance whether color or black and white.
All of my show and gallery prints are frameless. The Dibond(R) prints have the standard Bumblejax hanging hardware on the back. Personally, frameless prints look more contemporary and there is no frame and matte board to distract from the image. Frames are also a huge waste of money since they do not make any difference to the people viewing my work in the gallery. Practically speaking, I can get more prints and larger prints on the wall at the gallery without a two to three inch border around each one.
It takes some preparation on my end to get the results that I want. I have a 24″ ASUS LED monitor that I calibrate using Spyder 5 Pro. For preview and export to TIFF, I use Lightroom Classic CC. The exports to TIFF use Adobe RGB for the color space. I use TIFF because I believe that JPEG can introduce artifacts and that JPEG reduces the gamut since it is not lossless compression. The colors and color values that I get in my prints from Bumblejax always match what I see on my monitor.
Bumblejax is on the west coast and I am on the east coast, but that has not been a problem. When I have needed customer service, they have been very responsive. Ground shipping takes some time, but I try to plan ahead and I find that it is worth the delay to get prints that satisfy my desire for perfection. Bumblejax packages the prints well for shipping and I have never had an issue with damage.
All of the prints for my solo show, scheduled for April 28 through May 23, 2021, were done by Bumblejax. I have over thirty prints for the show. Most of the pieces are 12″ x 16″. I would love to show them to you, but a photo of a photo print just does not work.
Getting prints back from Bumblejax has been a confidence builder to me because the quality of their work compliments my own. I am looking forward to my show and displaying all of the prints on the wall at the same time. I am confident they are going to have an impact on my audience.