enJOY it

It has to be said that the products I am reviewing here were sent to me for free. But it also has to be said that I would never agree to review something that I wasn't interested in buying myself. That would be awkward and unfair to everyone involved.

Color Inc Pro Lab asked my to order three of their 12×12 photo products. I was thrilled to and used my engagement photos (taken by Lisa Welge) for each. Right now we are making space for the images to hang in our house and eventually they will sit on a guest book table or something at the wedding. As you've probably guessed, I love the engagement photos we had taken taken and love them even more in these large and stunning print processes.

Click images to enlarge.

The first photo went on to a gallery wrapped canvas. Canvases are available in all different sizes and this one, of course, is 12×12 inches. The image is printed on a canvas with subtle texture and stretched around the sides of the wooden frame. Your image can be seen along the edges which is a pretty cool effect. I don't know the technicalities, but it looks like the canvas is treated with a glossy coating. The gloss and the texture work great together. There is a wire on the back for hanging and the entire piece is very light. More details here (click gallery wrapped canvas).

The next photo was produced as a standout mount. I had never heard of this before and was excited to see what it would look like. The result is the photo printed glossy (with almost a metallic sheen – it's beautiful) and then mounted a light black plastic. It has two holes on the back to hang on the wall. I love the effect of a photo that goes right to the edge without a frame. I would love to do some sort of wall collage with these – two rows of three would be really cool. You can read more about the mounting options and see pricing here (click finishing services).

Sorry about the glare and the awkward close up – just trying to show the shiny clarity of the image!

The last product I tried out was a photo frame for a 12×12 image. There are a variety of frame styles to choose from (click here and select photo frames) and they can be cut to many different sizes. The image comes already in the frame. It is printed on what seems to be a thick board and is treated with the glossy sheen again (not very technical, I know). There is no glass covering the frame so again, the product is really light. I keep talking about the weight of all these products because that's a big deal to me. I hate having to find a stud to hang a frame. I love that these are easy to just get on the wall where ever you please. The print quality of this image as well as the other two is just perfect. Read more here under "photo frames".

My one last point (before we get to the huge giveaway) is I recommend creating an account with Color Inc and downloading their photo uploading software "ROES". For someone like me who is used to uploading photos to walgreens.com, it was a big change to switch to ROES. I understand why though – Color Inc is the big leagues of photo printing (and I mean that in the best way). It's fun to play with all of their options for cropping and see what products they offer. And their customer service is great if the program starts out a little confusing. Try it out. And last I checked, there was free shipping with orders over $15.

ALSO : You can get 25 4×6 prints from Color Inc for free by entering" eb09" at checkout.

And NOW – on to the giveaways! Color Inc has generously offered to giveaway one of each of the products I tested (the 12×12 wrapped canvas, the 12×12 standout mount, and a framed 12×12) to three lucky readers. Take some time to browse the Color Inc website and then leave a comment with what you would do with your winning photo product.

I'll draw three random winners on Monday. Have a great weekend!