About a month ago I answered a call on Twitter from Zaza Gallery who was looking for photographers to submit a photo to them to be printed on an 8X10 canvas in exchange for a blog review of their product. The photo that I submitted to them was a photo of my husband and me standing in the sunset on top of a sand dune at White Sands National Monument in New Mexico that was taken by my friend Meagan. I absolutely adore this photo of us, and for the most part I am very pleased with the canvas print.
I have never had much experience printing a photo like this on canvas before, so I really wasn’t sure what to expect. So I will just give my review based on what is in front of me.
The canvas used to print the photo on is top quality canvas material! I am very impressed with it. I will have to say that a little bit of the detail in the photograph is not visible, which is part of what I think makes the photo so powerful. In the original photo, you can see the detail of our footprints in the sand that is left by us after climbing to the top of the sand dune. On the canvas print, that detail is barely visible, but a little bit of that is to be expected when printing on canvas as opposed to paper.
Another impressive feature about the canvas is how tightly stretched and wrapped it is across the frame. A lot of times a canvas will start looking saggy over time because it isn’t stretched tightly enough. I am sure that the life of this canvas will last a lot longer than most as a result of how tightly stretched it is. However I am not impressed with how the canvas is folded in the corners. The way that it is folded is similar to how you would wrap a gift, which leaves a lump in each corner. For most people this would not be something that bothers them, but I am very particular about the quality of product that I offer to my clients, so this may be a deal breaker for me. While this may not seem like a big deal to most, I think that it makes the photo look lumpy on all four corners when it is hung on the wall. The photo below shows the corner in detail, but you can see in the photo above that the lump in the corners leave the sides of the canvas a little less than flush.
Another feature to mention about the canvas prints from Zaza Gallery is the back side of the canvas itself. You can see in the photo above and below that the canvas is secured with heavy duty staples. This is common for all canvas prints. I am certain that these staples will hold the canvas in place for a very long time.
Overall the canvas from Zaza is descent. I really can’t complain about a canvas that they sell for $20 for an 8×10. For most people, the cost alone would be reason enough to overlook the minor imperfections that I pointed out above. Most canvas prints will cost you at least $75 at cost. So for the price… Zaza is great! I will point out that they charge a really high shipping rate of $15.00 flat. So if you are only ordering one canvas, this may not be your best deal. However if you are ordering several canvas prints at once, then this shipping rate really isn’t that bad.
I’ve tried to be very honest in this review. I’ve pointed out minor flaws as well as strengths. It was very difficult to give a review. I don’t know how Scott Bourne and the others do it! I hate having to point out flaws that are not my own. In the long run, it really boils down to what your customers want. For most studio owners, Zaza Gallery is probably great. However I am not a studio photographer. I am a Nashville based wedding photographer who also shoots custom portraits and in order for me to be successful, I have to offer something different. I pride my work and services on the fact that I only offer the best quality at the best price.
For more information on printing your canvas prints with Zaza Gallery, go here. And thank you Zaza for allowing me to review your product honestly. For the most part, your canvas prints are nice. I am just really, really picky! But I will say that your customer service is AAAA++++++!
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