Alternative to Shutterfly

[gradyfamily]

Hi everyone. I've been reading about the problems with Shutterfly's format and just saw what I think is a really good alternative and cheaper option with FULL BLEED cover and pages. It's at Costco. Their books are much cheaper so I think I am going to try one and see what I think. There are coupons out this month too for 5-10 off.

Anyone ever used their services?


Thanks,
Lisa

[gradyfamily]

Hey I thought I would just add that I see their video to DVD transfers are a VERY good price, 17.99 per DVD. Ive been using Video Capture and doing it myself on my Mac BUT IT TAKES SOOOOO LONG. I think I may try this service as well.

Will keep you posted!

[janedee]

I'll be very interested to hear how these options work for you, especially the video to DVD as I've been trying this too but its such a slow process I procrastinate all the time.

[Jen D]

I have used Costco for various printing but not a book yet. I have never been disappointed. They caught my eye last week. I now have seen one of them in their store and it looked awesome. Much studier than Shutterfly.

My friend is also getting one printed with the coupon you mentioned. I will try to remember to come back and post how it went for her

[HeatherPrins]

please let us know!

[tylertooo]

I'm wondering what their covers look like. I will have to venture over to our costco to check it out.

[blkcow]

This could be exciting....Shutterfly will be sorry....very very sorry! Are the coupons at the store, or did they come in the mail???

[Jen D]

Originally Posted by blkcow

This could be exciting....Shutterfly will be sorry....very very sorry! Are the coupons at the store, or did they come in the mail???

Mine came in the mail... but you can also pick them up at customer service

[echogirl]

correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't costco use mypublisher?

[Jen D]

They do... but they also offer their own.

It is a brand new option.

Custom Photo Cover Photobook

? Now - 2 Sizes
? 12x12
? 11¼ x 8¾
? Your photo wraps directly on the cover
? Durable laminated cover
? Multiple designs and layouts
? Printed on thick, bright white archival paper
? 30 page base book (15 double sided)
? Up to maximum of 100 pages
? Available for warehouse pick-up in 5-7 business days
? Available for mail back (delivered in 5-10 business days)
12x12
starting at $39.99
each additional two pages $1.38
11¼ x 8¾
starting at $24.99
each additional two pages 78¢

[ValerieP]

I looked at the store and it seemed as though the photos on the pages didnt appear as crisp as the Shutterfly books I have ordered. It will be interesting to see what someone else thinks after they have a book made.

[sal4gal]

I have been using Costco books for a couple of years. I LOVE THEM.

[Staci B]

We don't have any Costcos any our area and I see that you can order the photobooks by mail, but do you need to be a member to use this service?

[Jen D]

Originally Posted by Staci B

We don't have any Costcos any our area and I see that you can order the photobooks by mail, but do you need to be a member to use this service?

Yes you have to be a member

[gradyfamily]

Thanks everyone. I was just looking to see where I was going to upload a book for printing and remembered asking about Costco. I think I am going to actually go in and look at their books. I also remembered I printed a while back at Scrapbooks to Share. Those pages are GORGEOUS! But I am looking for a book printer this time AND an alternative to Shutterfly since we are apparently being phased out.

If anyone has updated experiences, please post. Thanks

[tylertooo]

I saw the sample books at Costco yesterday. I didn't have any other books to compare so it was hard to tell if they are comparable to shutterfly - plus this sample book had been poorly treated, and the pages were no longer perfect. I wondered if that was an indication that the paper was not as thick. The book had a hard photo cover, but it was not shiney - however, they had a smaller one there as well, and it was shiney. It was too busy for me to ask about them. I did notice that the book was $39.99 for 30 pages, and ea. additional page was only 69 cents. I am anxious to hear a review.

[ejanie]

I've been reading all the posts about the Shutterfly and Costco books and thought I'd share my experience. I happened to get the exact same book printed at both places the same week. Although the new Shutterfly system frustrated me to no end, it did get better as I became used to it. Anyhow, the Shutterfly book was so much better than the Costco book. The colours were brighter, the photos crisper and the paper just a bit heavier. All of the images, the scrapping papers were just fuzzy(ed to add - On the Costco book) . If I hadn't had the two to compare, the Costco book would have been adequate.

And having said all that, I'll probably use both again.

[carollee]

I have just got the Blurb book I made, With Love from Kay's Kitchen. OMG, I am so sooooooo happy with it and I love the cover so much better than Shutterfly. Wish you could upload a spine, but because I had a black cover I just used the black spine. But apart from that, couldn't be more happier and the quality of the paper is fantastic.

[blkcow]

Carollee....so I went ot the Blurb website....did you use?

1. Bookify Online
2.Blurb BookSmart
3. PDF to Book

I suspect that you used the PDF to book...I bet your Kay's Kitchen is fantastic!!

[carollee]

I used Booksmart.

You download Booksmart and just place your photos in there, offline. When you're finally finished and ready to buy you upload it all at the same time to Blurb.

Now I was worried about the time factor in uploading. Lets face it, one shutterfly page can take anywhere up to 10 mins to upload. And I was uploading a nearly 80 page book. But the whole thing took at the most 45 mins to upload and you can see the progress as you are doing it.

[blkcow]

Thanks for the advice.....it's nice to have an alternative!

[BarbieMB]

This is all very interesting. I am new to all this and I am familiar with Shutterfly, but I have never used the service. Why are some of you becoming frustrated with Shutterfly? Lisa, what do you mean when you say that we are being phased out? Are we (digiscrappers) requiring some type of service that they don't want to provide? I had some pages printed at Staples and they just couldn't get it right. They couldn't get their computer to get my whole page to print. My layouts are on 8 1/2 x 11 paper.

[maureenreynolds]

This is the long thread that goes into the issues with Shutterfly and full-bleed images.

http://www.designerdigitals.com/digi...d-options.html

You may have to reduce the size of your pages to be sure the whole image is printed. I've had good success with both Costco and Walmart with that size when I didn't want to use up my own printer ink. hth!

[Rachel B]

Hi everyone,

Rachel B from Shutterfly here. So sorry about the frustrations you're experiencing.

If you're having issues sizing/aligning digiscrap pages in Shutterfly's All New Custom Path photo books, check out these guidelines. They should help.

Best,

Rachel B