The Modern Film Lab

You've probably noticed that - unlike most photo labs in the world - we don't offer a 'Scans + Prints' option on our lab development pages. And there is a very good reason for that! We would much rather you had the opportunity to choose your Photo Prints and Poster Prints after you've seen your images 😊

The minilab process most in-use today was created at the back end of last century, when scanning computers and software made it very cheap for businesses to print images at the same time as they scanned the negatives. This was a really exciting innovation at the time, as it meant you could get cheap - and fast - prints of your film photography from the local high street store!

However it also meant that, as a customer, you had to choose whether you wanted an envelope of prints before you'd seen whether your photos had come out as desired. You also couldn't pick-and-choose which images to print, it was everything or nothing. Definitely not ideal but the best that the 90s could offer.

Over the past two decades the quality of scans and the ability for labs to deliver your scans electronically has improved dramatically - and yet the default setting was still to ask folks whether or not they wanted prints upfront?

It didn't make sense to us, so we've built something new. We won't ask you to purchase prints until after you've seen the scans, but you'll still receive the exciting packet of prints back with your negatives 🎉 (or, you don't have to print at all!)

So how does Analogue Wonderland print from my negatives?

1. Order film development and scans through Analogue Wonderland as usual: 35mm, 120, disposables or 110; colour, slide, or B&W.

2. After the lab has received and processed your images you will receive a link to view your scans inside your secure Customer Account

3. Review all your images, select which ones you’d like to be printed... and that’s it!

*If you order prints within a week of receiving the scans then they will be sent at no extra postage cost (via a unique discount code). However your scans will remain in your Customer Account for easy re-order at any time, with a flat £3 delivery fee.

This means that if you decide to get prints later - or maybe you love a print so much you want a couple of extra copies - then it's super easy to log in and order more.

The system in action!

What if I have scans from another lab or images ready for printing? No problem! Simply select your print options (size, finish, border) and upload your images. We print based on the image resolution, so if you’re ordering developing and scanning, make sure to choose the right scan quality for your needs. For example, for social media, we would recommend Low or Standard Scans; for printing, we would recommend Premium JPEG scans. You can find out more about this in the product description of your chosen processing service, e.g. 35mm Film Development.

If you try to upload your image and it is too small to print, you’ll need to request a higher-resolution scan from your lab, which will incur extra costs. See our Negative Scanning Only service for more information.

You can check the scan type / image resolution you will need in the product description for photo and poster prints - but we’ve popped our handy tables below for ease 👇

Photo Print sizes and pixels required:

Poster Print sizes and pixels required:

What are the benefits?

Most importantly: we hope that this change encourages photographers to generate more prints of the images that they’re proud of - spreading the joy of analogue images and without unnecessary waste! 

What are the costs?

It depends on the size of the prints and the volume ordered. The more you order, the lower the cost per print!

You can see full costs and volume discounts on the single prints here: Photo Prints

The discount also works if you mix-and-match across different sizes and finishes - and even across different rolls of film and albums inside your Photos section.

Please note that the cost of prints is separate from the developing and scanning fees. Prints are not included as standard with your order. If you'd like prints, this will be an additional £3 postage fee.

How does the free shipping for recent scans work?

Whenever you receive your scans you will get a unique discount code in the same email. This will give you FREE shipping on any prints ordered within the next week - dispatched in the same envelope as your negatives.

If you don’t want prints at the time then that’s obviously not a problem - the code will expire after a week and your negatives will be shipped back to you as usual.

Happy Shooting and enjoy your photography!
- the full AW team