Since launching the new Queensberry Print website, we’ve had quite a few compliments on the illustrations in the homepage slideshow. So we thought we’d share a bit about Toril Bækmark, the illustrator we worked with to create these beautiful images. Craft, artisanship and attention to detail are close to our hearts, and we believe our lab team are true artisans in an industry where those qualities are fast disappearing. We wanted to express this on the new site, and finding an illustrator aligned with those values was very important. Toril's portfolio shows her high level of sophistication To View More >>

In many labs these days the only people who look at your prints are the Dispatch team. Strange as it seems, that makes sense – it's your files they’re printing, and something has to give if you want low prices. But it doesn’t make sense at Queensberry. We critique everything we print, including Print-Ready. The difference is we see the image files with Full Colour Service (because it’s our job to colour correct them) whereas we don’t see Print-Ready work until it’s printed . But why review Print-Ready work at all? Print-Ready means you edit your images yourself, and we don’t modify To View More >>

LOST MEMORIES (French, English Subtitles) from Francois Ferracci on Vimeo. We saw this clip recently and it really resonated with us. Not only do we work in an industry that values the physical, but it's an important reminder of how easily our memories can be lost if we're not careful with them. I shared the video with Heather, which opened up an interesting discussion. "The printed image and the written word are the only way to directly access the past," she says. "We have family images captured on slides, but now it's hard to find a projector for them. Same for 8mm movie projectors. Tape VCRs To View More >>

Doing their Chicken Little impression, the media say the sky is falling. Some of our clients are worried, but personally I wonder. Here's why. First, Heather and I have been through it before (no, not the great depression! that was our parents and grandparents)... 1. The 1984 New Zealand currency crisis (that might mean nothing to you, but our country almost went broke). 2. The 1987 share market crash. 3. The 1997 Asian financial crisis. 4. The 2001 Tech meltdown. Sure, they probably weren't as bad, but we survived them all. In fact in each of those years except 1984 our sales increased. And we To View More >>

Three things I try not to do: write about our competitors, jump to their defence, and risk offending people who could be our customers; but today I’m going to do all three. I want to write about the huge outpouring against Smugmug over their price increase – and suggest a few things you should think about before you jump ship, if you’re with them. I must admit I find these outbursts upsetting, no matter the justification. When I started to use the Net back in the 90s, it was all about support, helping each other and respect. In the world I want to live in, you respect the businesses that To View More >>

Many photographers are lone wolves. Not in the hunter gatherer kind of way but in the sense that they work alone and contact with the outside "photographic" world can be limited. However we are in a creative industry and so to keep the creative juices flowing you need to go beyond your doorstep to appreciate and develop as an Artist/Photographer. The great thing about the internet is you can share information, ideas and opinions with fellow photographers easily. Joining the DWF gives you a forum where fellow professionals can be open and frank about the issues that they have been having. Sometimes To View More >>

For Jo and Simon of Shoot Lifestyle Photography, several Annabel Williams' photographic training books provided the eye opener they needed to see the wedding industry wasn't quite as 'naff' as they thought... Seven years on, they've just been awarded the Annabel Williams CPT Award, for the Queensberry sponsored Wedding Album Category. Jo says, "This was a real life wedding album we'd designed for clients Andy and Lisa." Their wedding took place in a quirky little tavern which Jo says exposed some beautiful natural light. The light doesn't last long on a UK winters day though, so they had to To View More >>

Over the last few days I've had the pleasure of hosting Denis Reggie on a whirlwind visit to New Zealand. A lucky few had the chance to attend Denis's workshop. We got an insight into how he operates, and some valuable tips on how to get that killer shot. From the moment we arrived Denis's passion was evident. He loves photography, and weddings, and has some strong opinions on the modern day approach to shooting them. After shocking everybody with a challenge to "shoot a wedding without speaking", he opened our minds to the true meaning of wedding photojournalism and how it can be a part of every To View More >>

Click here to watch the video on Vimeo. I remember someone in the graphic design industry (quite well known actually) posting a tweet saying, "Colour management is bullshit!" The picture that flashed through my mind was of graphic designers and brand managers hanging out at the printers, tweaking colours on the machine before they sign off on a job… And yet here we are at Queensberry, printing for very fussy photographers (often on the far side of the world), putting the prints into really pricey albums (sight unseen) and flying them at great expense to Europe, or North America, or Hong Kong. To View More >>

Catherine Connor of Aspire Photographic Training in the UK Lakes District has been a good friend of Queensberry for over a decade. Catherine is a highly experienced marketer and business development manager, and since 1998 thousands of photographers have benefited from both her own coaching and the experience of her impressive team of trainers. I talked to Catherine about what it takes to succeed in this industry. Is there a future for professional photography? Is it really harder today? How has digital changed things? Should photographers depend less on weddings? You can follow Catherine and To View More >>