I was recently contacted by PhotoBox, a company I’m sure many of you will have heard of, to see if I would review one of their products. It came at the right time, as I was thinking about getting a canvas print done of Noah and Isaac for the home, but couldn’t decide who to use and what sort of quality they would offer. Needless to say, you don’t want to spend a fortune on something that is only going to last five minutes and look rubbish.
So PhotoBox allowed me to order a canvas for free, hence this review. And I have to say, from the moment they contacted me, I was very impressed. If there’s one thing that matters to me as much as the product, it’s the customer service. It’s not hard to pull your finger out and get on with the job in hand. So when they contacted me and got the ball rolling immediately, advising me on what to do, sorting my account, taking my order, sorting (and fixing!) my blog badge, actually sending my order and the product arriving on my doorstep (the whole process took less than a week) I was already impressed.
This was the picture I chose to have:
And here it is on a 60cm x 40cm canvas
I’m really pleased! It was carefully wrapped in bubble wrap, plastic wrapping and then cardboard all of which protected it quite well (which needless to say I unwrapped very cautiously), and supplied with the usual hanging hook and nails to fix on to the wall.
I examined it a little closer and was pleased with the print quality.
Was very apprehensive about any “bleeding” but it was a really good job.
I was admittedly apprehensive about the security and covering of the brown sticky paper on the back; when it arrived some of the paper had lifted a little and had not been properly secured. It was easy enough to stick back down, however time will tell to see if it lasts well. The frame itself felt very sturdy, and appeared to very well held together; I’m curious to see what I can do in the future should the canvas begin to slacken; I’d like to know that it’s reasonably easy to tighten it should the need arise. I obviously wasn’t about to start throwing it around to test it, of course.
The canvas itself is certainly a tidy job, with no ripples or odd bulges, though I would liked to have seen the print go throughout the edges of the canvas (full bleed); this could add a little more depth to the picture. Plus I guess I like to let my picture dictate how it goes with the surroundings, not a canvas colour, if you see what I mean.
This particular canvas was listed at £49.99 (it was on offer at the time of ordering) and is now hanging on my wall very nicely, though I used my own hanging stuff. Theirs would have involved me drilling a considerable hole in my wall which I didn’t think was necessary; I have many prints and frames on my walls, MUCH bigger than this canvas which don’t need such bulky wall fittings. But I suppose if/when I find my canvas looking at me from the floor one morning, then I’ll know I was wrong…
I would not use them for my photography business, purely because I expect absolute perfection with no question whatsoever about quality, for my clients. I’m curious to see the quality in prints, and suspect I will take advantage of the 40 free prints offer you receive when you first sign up – who can complain about that? But, uploading the one image was easy, and my mind wonders how they might cope uploading multiple high quality images, as I do with any other photo site.
Great service, decent product, will be ordering again sometime soon, partly for some family prints and partly to see if the great customer service was a one-off because they knew I was reviewing (sorry! I am that cynical). Having said all that, I give them a thumbs up. I’d say if you’ve got some pennies to spare, you want to give yourself or someone you know a nice decent gift or treat, or you just want to see how awesome your photos can look on a bigger scale than your computer screen, then yes, it’s worth it.
I'll take your word about the service (though I suspect you're a pretty strict judge) but I have to say that the photos is absolutely stunning!
Technically it is great, but what makes it truly brilliant are the two young stars of the show.
Thank you! And yes I'm an INCREDIBLY strict judge; I really expect absolute top notch service ;o) And thank you! I have to say I'm pretty pleased with that picture
xx
A few months ago I got some canvasses done with Photobox, luckily there were BOGOF, so I got 6. The quality was outstanding and of course they look beautiful.
That is a stunning picture of the boys!
Thank you!! i've just had a look and seen they're doing BOGOF would LOVE to have taken advantage. Might jump on that next time….
xx
I'm glad you like your canvas! I love the photo you've used.
Thank you!! I've been waiting to use this photo for something for a while – this seemed perfect
xx
I use Photobox for my regular prints and they do a sterling job. Very quick service.
I'm about to do an order of prints to see how everything goes; hoping it all goes well!
I've used them a fair bit. It can take a while to upload photos, but I think that's fairly typical (I usually upload quite a number at a time.) Never had any problems with their service, my producta have always turned up quickly. It's an easy to use service I think. Their sheets of stickers are cute and nice quality, and I've made photobooks a couple of times for my parents, they are a lovely gift.
Interesting to read your review of their canvas prints – I've thought about ordering them, but it's a big layout. Good to hear that you have exacting standards and were pleased! Fab photo too.
I put together an album of my daughter’s first year recently. I had the photos printed in three lots of 40, all of which came really quickly and were great quality. I had no problem with uploading batches, but I was linking from my Flickr account which was straightforward and quick. Would definitely use them again.