ATLANTA and LOUISVILLE, Ky., Dec. 6, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- The digital camera, high-speed Internet access and a new online photo processing site combined to illustrate the rapid changes afoot in the photo industry. How about a digital photo sent over the Internet and converted into a photo print that's eight-feet wide? Impossible, you say? Not at all, say the executives at Myphotopipe.com.
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Myphotopipe.com (http://www.Myphotopipe.com) today announced the web's largest, standard photo print -- a print that is an incredible 4-foot by 8-foot in size. Each print takes 27 minutes to process yet is printed on standard Fuji Crystal Archive photographic paper. Each print is 4,608-square-inches, 190-times larger than a standard snapshot. The first of the company's jumbo prints are already on the walls at the headquarters of the Atlanta Falcons football team. "The media talks a lot about a 10c snapshot at a big box retailer but the high-end of the market is the other half of the digital photography story," said company Chairman David Ragland. "These photographs are powerful moments in sports and they need to be big to have the full impact.
According to industry analysts there are 2.5 million serious amateur and professional photographers, and an equal number of serious hobbyists, that together account for as much as half of the $7 billion print processing business nationwide. To service their needs, online print processing services had to evolve into something more than a place to order a 12-cent snapshot and coffee mugs. "The professionals and the serious amateurs don't fit into neat little boxes," said Pete Casabonne, President and Operations manager. "They need flexibility. That's why we're the only online in service in America that offers 94 Print Options. That's flexibility. You don't need that to print a snapshot but it's vital when you're pushing the envelope for something eight feet long."
Myphotopipe.com was launched in April of 2005 when the founder and the former CEO of US Wireless Online, Inc. partnered to acquire a controlling interest in Color Genesis, a 26-year-old photo print lab in Atlanta serving professional photographers. "The growth of broadband stimulated digital photography and the growth of digital photography stimulated broadband" said L. Douglas Keeney, company CEO, speaking of two industries that have grown in parallel. "We felt as if we could have a positive impact on this industry by offering quality prints, tremendous choice and great customer service. So far our customers seemed pleased. Our online revenues have more than tripled and we have customers using us nationwide."
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