Dodd Camera
Camera store 4.6 ★★★★★ 435
Rents gearUsed gear
Store carrying brand-name cameras & lenses, plus a large selection of gear for photography.
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Photo printing in Chicago, IL
4 businesss in Chicago print photos, out of 15 camera businesss listed here. Printing is confirmed from each shop's own service list or from customer reviews — never assumed from a Google category.
Before you drive over
For a stack of 4x6s, the drugstore is cheaper — Walmart is around $0.09 a print and CVS around $0.39, against $0.29–$0.59 here. Use a Chicago camera store when the size or the surface matters: 16x20 and up, giclée on fine-art paper, stretched canvas, mounting, and colour that holds.
LATITUDE Chicago
Film lab 4.7 ★★★★★ 89
Develops film
Community digital lab with scanning and printing services, plus an artist in residence program and classes.
Tamarkin Camera
Camera store 4.6 ★★★★★ 60
Rents gearUsed gear
Showroom & gallery devoted solely to the Leica camera, with photography exhibits, sales & service.
What printing costs in Chicago
| Product | Size | Typical price |
|---|---|---|
| Reprint | 4x6 | $0.29 – $0.59 |
| Reprint | 5x7 | $0.99 – $2.99 |
| Reprint | 8x10 | $3.99 – $6.99 |
| Reprint | 11x14 | $9.99 – $14.99 |
| Giclée, print only | 8x10 | $10 – $20 |
| Giclée, print only | 16x20 | $25 – $50 |
| Giclée, print only | 24x36 | $60 – $120 |
| Stretched canvas | 16x20 | about $100 |
| Stretched canvas | 24x36 | about $240 |
| Mounting | 16x20 | about $25 |
| Oversize | per square foot | $10 – $40 |
One trip, two errands
Getting the print you expected
Prints coming back darker or flatter than the screen is the most common complaint, and it is nearly always fixable before you send the file:
- Embed an ICC profile. An untagged file makes the printer guess. sRGB is the safe default unless the lab asks for something else.
- Turn your monitor down. Factory brightness is roughly double what it should be for print work. Calibrate to about 80–120 cd/m², D65 white point, gamma 2.2.
- Soft-proof. Preview the file through the lab paper profile to see which colours the paper cannot reach — usually deep blues and vivid reds.
- Judge the print in daylight. A warm indoor bulb will make any neutral print look yellow.
Questions
- How much do photo prints cost in Chicago?
- Camera-store reprints run about $0.29–$0.59 for a 4x6, $0.99–$2.99 for a 5x7, $3.99–$6.99 for an 8x10 and $9.99–$14.99 for an 11x14. Fine-art giclée is priced separately — roughly $10–$20 for an 8x10, $25–$50 for a 16x20 and $60–$120 for a 24x36. Stretched canvas is about $100 at 16x20 and $240 at 24x36.
- Is a Chicago camera store cheaper than Walmart for prints?
- No. Walmart is about $0.09 for a 4x6 and CVS about $0.39, well under camera-store pricing. The reason to use a camera store is everything above 11x14 — giclée, canvas, mounting and color accuracy — not the cost of a snapshot.
- Can I get same-day photo printing in Chicago?
- None of the shops listed here publish a same-day turnaround, which usually means prints are sent to a lab and quoted in days. Call before you drive if you are on a deadline.
- Why do my prints look darker than they did on my screen?
- A monitor emits light in RGB; paper reflects it in CMYK, so a print can never match a backlit white. The usual fixes: embed an ICC profile instead of sending an untagged file, calibrate your screen down to roughly 80–120 cd/m² at D65 and gamma 2.2, and soft-proof through the lab paper profile before you send the file.