First, let’s start with what photo editing is and why photographers do it. Photo editing refers to the process of altering or enhancing images to improve the appearance or convey a specific message. This process can include a range of adjustments, from basic corrections such as color and contrast adjustments to more complex retouching tasks like improving skin textures, removing unwanted elements, swapping heads, or applying artistic effects. At McKenna, our photo editing is facilitated by highly trained staff using a variety of software tools, with Adobe Photoshop being among the most popular.

Whether you’re working with portraits, landscapes, animals, macro photography, or black and white images, McKenna optimizes your photos to achieve the best possible results for printing. Our retouchers utilize advanced techniques to achieve results that may be difficult for others to replicate.

Why is Photo Editing Necessary?

This might seem like a silly question to some of us; nevertheless, we must mention it. Firstly, professional retouching helps correct imperfections that may have occurred during the photo-taking process, such as unwanted moiré patterns, poor lighting, focus issues, fingerprints on the lens, or dust spots on the sensor. Secondly, it allows photographers to convey a specific mood or aesthetic that wasn’t captured in camera. These enhancements are the final touches we would’ve added in the darkroom.

Before the invention of color film, black and white photography was the only option available. Today, choosing black and white photography allows for a specific mood, conveying timelessness, simplifying compositions, or expressing artistic vision. At McKenna, we are committed to delivering exceptional quality printing from your professional images. We’ve even created our very own Black and White Image Tone for Metal Prints, which helps neutralize the magenta, cyan, and yellow used in our multi-color printing process for Metals. The end results give you a truer, more classic black and white look under natural daylight. Not only are our skilled retouchers trained in the latest software, but at McKenna, we understand the vital role photo editing plays in professional photography.

Save Time with McKenna’s Professional Retouching Services

Having us edit your photos can significantly enhance the quality of your final prints. By trusting us with your photo editing, you are more likely to achieve results that capture attention and convey the intended message. Additionally, we can maintain consistency across a series of images and products, which is especially important for your branding and marketing.

McKenna is a recognized leader in the professional photography community with a team of skilled photo retouchers who are very familiar with our products and can tailor edits to suit a specific medium. For instance, sharpness can be adjusted for Fine Art Prints since they have less texture compared to Canvas Gallery Wraps. Also, contrast and saturation can be adjusted on Metal Prints since they possess a high-contrast and highly saturated look, while Luster Prints do not.

In last month’s blog, I discussed our Color Correction Services, which involve making overall and minor adjustments to the photo. In contrast, our professional retouching services focus on localized and major adjustments. For example, an underexposed photo can be improved with overall color correction, while head/eye swaps would qualify for retouching. Whatever your needs may be, we have you covered.

How to Order Photo Retouching

Upon placing your order, you can add retouching services with or without products. Our “Retouch and Standard Color Correct Only” feature in Easy Order allows you to send us your images without ordering a product. Just tell us what you want, and we’ll send you an estimate.

Example: “Remove the lines from the girls’ legs. It’s for a large poster.” – Tina’s Photography

Type of Photo Editing Services We Offer

Standard Retouching

Examples of standard retouching include simple blemish removal, softening of lines, removal of slight glass glare, and basic stray hair removal. This is charged based on the number of heads/faces.

Extensive Retouching

This includes more extreme instances of blemish removal and glass glare, as well as more complex stray hair removal, braces removal, and head/eye swaps.

Artwork Manipulation

If your project requires advanced alterations, we can provide additional file manipulation on a per-minute basis, with estimates available upon request. Artwork examples include things like:

• Adding or removing people, pets, objects, etc.
• Replacing backgrounds
• Removing moire patterns and noise
• Banding
• Artifacting
• Overexposure
• Sharpening or over-sharpening
• Photo Restoration

Quality Service in a Timely Manner

Typically, the photo editing process takes about two business days to complete, after which we will send you the files via digital transfer. On larger prints, we request your approval before they go into production.

Professionally edited photos from McKenna can significantly improve your photography. If you haven’t yet tried our Retouching Services, I encourage you to give us a chance. I believe you will be pleasantly surprised by the results.

What Are Photographers Saying About Our Retouching Services?

Jan Griswol of Jan Murphy Griswold Photography in Burlington, NJ

“McKenna’s customer service is second to none! In the retouching department, Eric assisted me with edits on a large landscape image, providing expert skills in color adjustment and object placement to create a perfectly balanced final product. He really goes the extra mile, down to the last detail.”

Jennifer Ryan

“I really enjoyed working with you guys! My orders came securely packaged and quickly. I highly recommend McKenna. I had my photos retouched, and customer service helped me submit my photos to the talented retouching team. They were very delightful to work with; they helped me navigate the website and were very helpful and kind to the “not so tech-savvy” person like me. Overall, I’m completely satisfied and will definitely use them in the future. Thank you!”

Amy Storm of Eye Of A Storm Photography in Mount Vernon, SD

“McKenna stepped up and saved the day for me on my image for final retouches. My client wanted a very large print, and after being on the phone with McKenna, they helped me in every way of file resizing, fine detail touch-ups, and getting this large image to me so my client could display it in their home. It is stunning, and I could not have done it without McKenna’s outstanding service. This is why I have continued to use them…they make me look good!”

Fritz Brueggman of Shutterbug in Wray, CO

“We have found McKenna’s retouching to be a valuable tool. When we have complicated glass glare or retouching that is more complicated than we want to spend the time doing, using McKenna is worth the few extra dollars in the time it saves us. Recently, we had a more complicated job, which involved removing an individual from the middle of a group photographed in an outdoor scene. They did a wonderful job of removing that individual and moving another person in to fill the spot. We highly recommend McKenna for all your retouching and artwork needs!”

Brian Clark of Old Farmer Photography in Kirkwood, IL

“McKenna always goes above and beyond. Eric’s phenomenal retouching has saved many of my photos, and their expert guidance on papers, printing, and editing software ensures every image looks its best. Without a doubt, McKenna has been the best printing company I’ve worked with.”

Images by Tina’s Photography (volleyball image) and Denison Photography (large family photo).

This blog was written by Eric Garcia-March, our in-house Photography Education Specialist. Prior to McKenna, Eric was a commercial photographer for over 15 years and taught classes at the Image Processing and Multimedia Technology Center in Spain and post-production classes at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City.

The post Expert Photo Editing Services appeared first on McKenna.

Our shared mission is to help you build smarter systems, achieve higher revenue, and experience significantly less stress by streamlining every step from picture day to fulfillment. This partnership means fast turnaround and quick delivery of your prints and products, empowering your studio to take on more jobs and elevate your customer experience.

GotPhoto: Your All-in-One Platform for Peak Performance

GotPhoto is more than just software; it’s a comprehensive ecosystem built for the demands of modern volume photography. It empowers you to capture, organize, edit, market, sell, and fulfill orders with unmatched efficiency, ensuring your team can focus on what they do best – creating stunning images.

Here’s a sample of what GotPhoto can offer your studio:

Revolutionize Picture Day with Smart Automation

The path to a successful picture day starts long before the first click. For scale-up businesses, eliminating manual processes and ensuring accuracy is crucial. GotPhoto’s innovative tools are designed to save you hours on every job:

• • • Entagged & Name List: Say goodbye to paper lists, manual sorting, and costly mistakes. Our Entagged app, combined with the Name List feature, offers the fastest, easiest way to match names to images. This intelligent automation slashes labor costs and ensures precision, giving you back valuable time. Curious how Entagged works? Check out this recent webinar.
    • Streamlined Workflows: From improved makeup day processes to managing student data exports, GotPhoto simplifies complex logistical challenges, ensuring smooth operations for even your largest shoots.

Drive Sales with a High-Converting Online Shop

Your online presence is your most powerful sales tool. GotPhoto’s reimagined online shop is designed to maximize conversions and increase your average order value (AOV), making selling effortless.

• • • Tailored Product Suggestions: The shop intelligently suggests additional products, encouraging larger orders and boosting your bottom line.
    • Mobile First & Intuitive Checkout: With the majority of purchases happening on mobile, our fast-loading, mobile-optimized design and intuitive checkout process ensure a frictionless buying experience, keeping your conversion rates high.
    • Next-Level Sports Features: From seamless QR‑tagged capture and secure galleries to AI‑powered editing, memory mates, and professional-quality graphics via Next Gen, this all-in-one platform transforms busy sports shoots into high‑value, automated revenue engines.

Did you know: GotPhoto’s new shop drives 10% more sales on average compared to its legacy shop.

Optimize Post-Production & Fulfill Orders Seamlessly with McKenna

Once the shoot is done, the real work for scale begins: managing large volumes of orders and ensuring flawless fulfillment. GotPhoto provides the tools to streamline this critical phase, sending orders directly to McKenna for rapid processing.

• • • Automated Order Processing: Our system handles order processing automatically, freeing your team from tedious manual tasks.
    • Flexible Fulfillment Options: Choose between convenient drop shipping or efficient bulk shipping, with all your orders sent to McKenna for fulfillment.
    • Integrated Solutions: Take advantage of GotPhoto’s options for editing and extraction, ensuring consistency and quality control across all your images.

 Ted Sandeen Utilizes GotPhoto and McKenna in His Workflow

“Moving to online sales through GotPhoto is why we’ve doubled our revenue in 2 years, and cut operating costs by 30%. Our average order value went from $39 to $69.

“Having shopped on other platforms and labs, I am confident McKenna Pro, in combination with GotPhoto is the perfect recipe.

I encourage you to conduct a 3-step process:

1. Get samples from McKenna Pro and hold them up to your current offerings. You’ll thank me later!
2. Compare your COG on those prints vs your current lab.
3. Stop wasting your time on brand X; partner with GotPhoto for your online sales.”

Ted Sandeen, owner of Sandeen Photography

Discover GotPhoto’s Features

Your Favorite Products, Delivered by McKenna

Through GotPhoto, you can easily order McKenna’s most popular volume products, ensuring your customers receive the highest quality prints and specialty items, delivered efficiently. This includes a wide range of offerings like Photo Prints, Bag Tags, Buttons, Magnets, Ornaments, Metal Prints, Mouse Pads, Coffee Mugs, Memory Mates, and Trader Cards.

Get Started: Unlock Efficiency and Growth Today

Ready to experience the power of a truly integrated solution that puts you in control and gives you the confidence to scale your business?

1. Ensure you have accounts with both McKenna and GotPhoto.
2. Log in to your GotPhoto account and select McKenna as your preferred lab.

It’s that simple. All your orders will then seamlessly flow to McKenna for fulfillment, allowing you to benefit from the speed and accuracy of this powerful partnership.

Exclusive Offer for McKenna Clients:

Try GotPhoto for 3 months FREE when you sign up through our partner vendor link. It’s time to transform your studio’s potential.

Sign Up With GotPhoto Today!

The post Scale Smart, Shoot More: How GotPhoto & McKenna Empower Your Volume Studio for Unprecedented Growth appeared first on McKenna.

In 2024, Leverage joined our McKenna Family of Brands expanding our printing capabilities and services. For over two decades, Leverage has focused on quality print services and client support making them a leading provider of commercial printing services in the United States. With state-of-the-art printing technology and a dedication to high-touch service, Leverage provides business solutions for custom printing campaigns, direct mail, variable data, bulk mailing, specialty printing, and much more from their Cedar Falls, IA location. Leverage can offer photographers quality products with cost-effective solutions.

When Should I Use McKenna? When is Leverage the right fit?

Let’s break it down in a simple Q&A.

“I need a high-end look and feel for my grad or holiday cards. Which company should I choose?”

McKenna is your best option for high-quality press card runs. McKenna’s press cards are printed on premium, imported Italian-mill press papers, ensuring a top-of-the-line finish and textile feel. Leverage specializes in cost-effective bulk printing on American-made, commercial-grade papers, still giving you a quality product.

“Does Leverage handle large print runs?”

Yes! If you need high-quantity runs of marketing pieces like business cards, brochures, or magazines, Leverage can offer better pricing due to efficient setup and printing processes that comes from the longer print run time.

“What if I need Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) or bulk mail campaigns?”

Leverage is the right choice for your mailing campaigns. They handle EDDM and bulk mailing services, making it easy for you to reach potential clients with your business mailers.

“What about shipping costs?”

McKenna offers a flat $2 shipping fee, while Leverage charges shipping at cost which is standard for commercial printers.

“I need brochures or magazines—where should I order?”

For a polished, high-end square fold and small runs, McKenna is your best choice. However, for standard folded brochures and magazines and large quantities, Leverage provides a budget-friendly solution.

“Can I place Leverage orders in Easy Order or use my McKenna account number?”

No, you cannot order Leverage products in McKenna’s ordering software or use your McKenna account number. Leverage remains running as an individual company under the McKenna Family of Brands with its own web-based ordering system at LeveragePrinting.com. You will create a Leverage account during checkout of your first order.

Whether You Order At McKenna Or Leverage, You’ll Receive The Best Customer Service.

If you have questions about Leverage’s wide variety of products or want to talk specifics about your commercial print project, call or email Leverage today!

The post Commercial Printing? Leverage Has You Covered! appeared first on McKenna.

Plus, We Make Ordering Easy!

McKenna Sports 2.0 is the ordering solution that allows photographers to easily build packages to drag and drop their images into. Upload your own designs or use the exclusive Josh Hanna Photo Design sports templates featuring multiple sports, colors, and textures. Templates can be found for our most popular products including wallet prints, small prints, memory mates, calendars, buttons, trader cards, posters, and bag tags.

For photographers looking for data-driven ordering solutions, we’ve partnered with GotPhoto and Photolynx‘s FLOW Software for fulfillment.

Our Fan Favorite Sports and Events Products

• 12×18 Posters are a perfect memorabilia piece for players and teams. In addition to that, posters are a useful marketing tool for you! Add the game schedule to your design and hang them around the community to promote the team and feature your logo predominantly in the design. Choose from gloss or pearl card stock.
• Vinyl Banners are a hit for every sport, especially for teams highlighting their senior all-stars. Choose between the sports banner for indoor use or the vinyl banner for indoor/outdoor use.
• Bag Tags make a great add-on to any sports package. Personalize each bag tag with player information and the game schedule to commemorate the season.

ORDER NOW

The post Partnering With Sports and Events Photographers appeared first on McKenna.

Starting Tuesday, August 1, 2023 customers will need to login to place an order using any of our ordering platforms. We added this extra safety feature giving you peace of mind that only your orders are being placed on your account. For this update to take place in your ordering software, close and re-launch the program. Once you re-open you will see an account number and password sign-in area. 

What is My Login Information?

Current customers will use their 6-digit numeric account number and the password they use to login to the My Account section of the website. If you are unable to remember your login, please use the “Forgot Password” feature to reset your password.

New customers as of August 1st will use their 6-digit numeric account number and the password they create at sign-up.

Getting Started with McKenna Just Got Easier Too!

Photographers looking to create an account will be able to sign-up using the New Account Form on our website effective August 1, 2023. To create an account, follow the prompts by entering your information, create a password, and your account number will immediately be emailed to you. 

If you have any questions about this update or getting started at McKenna, please give us a call! Our knowledgeable customer service team is ready to help you. They are available Monday–Friday from 8 a.m.–5 p.m. CST

The post Important Ordering Announcement At McKenna appeared first on McKenna.

Us too!

Our team at McKenna and the developers of ROES are continuously working to provide you with the best ordering experience. Since McKenna Easy Order and Sports 2.0 ordering software only update when they are shut down and re-opened, it is important to do this on a regular basis. This will ensure your ordering software is up-to-date with current products, catalog updates, templates, and monthly specials! Then the software is always ready to go when you need to place an order.

Keeping Java up-to-date from the Java website is also important. It will help troubleshoot any launch issues you may be experiencing. When the Java update is done, rebooting your hard drive is necessary to be sure your system is running the newest version.

If it has been a while since you closed Easy Order or Sports 2.0 and re-launching the software doesn’t take care of operating issues, your software may be too far behind the current updates and an uninstall and reinstall from our website may be necessary.

On the rare occasion that a re-launch, Java update, or re-install doesn’t resolve the issues, reach out to our Customer Service team. We are available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to help get your software up and running again.

The post Keep Easy Order and Sports 2.0 Running Smoothly appeared first on McKenna.

Do you want to spend more time behind the camera and less time designing templates? We’ve got you covered! Streamline your workflow and utilize our simple drag-and-drop template designs by award-winning photographer and designer, Josh Hanna! There are several color and design combinations to choose from.

Enjoy designing your own templates or don’t see the design style you’re looking for? No worries! We have blank templates too. Create your design in Photoshop and upload your files to McKenna Sports & Events 2.0. If you’re looking for other design options, check out Josh Hanna’s website too. He has several digital templates in his store to choose from.

Start your order by downloading McKenna Sports & Events 2.0 today!

The post Spring Into This Sports Season With McKenna Sports & Events 2.0 appeared first on McKenna.

We’re proud to announce that McKenna has teamed up with GotPhoto to offer you a flexible new software solution! Designed to meet the needs of professional volume photographers, GotPhoto is a capture, sales, and print platform all in one. Become a client with GotPhoto and work with us to fulfill your orders.

The first step is to create an account with McKenna if you have not already placed orders with us. Just reach out to us and we can step you through that process.

Then here is how GotPhoto works:

Step One: Capture
Using QR codes or barcode scanning, attach unique access cards to each photo series. When you upload them, all photos are sorted automatically into secure, password-protected galleries. They are made easily accessible to the holder of the access card.

Step Two: Market and Sell
Streamline your marketing process, sending fully customizable email or SMS reminders to your clients. When they visit the gallery, they’ll be able to purchase the images via proofing, prepay, or a combination of the two. Incentivize spending by offering tiered discounts, or choose from a variety of upsell models.

Step Three: Fulfillment
Easily produce the photos through McKenna, ordering them online and delivering them either to your studio or directly to your customers. Convenient fulfillment not only saves time, but positively impacts each client’s user experience.

Get More for Less

Designed primarily with school photographers and sport photographers in mind, GotPhoto streamlines your entire workflow as outlined above. But that’s not all – here’s just a couple of additional features on offer:

• Tiered discounts dependent on order size
• Name list upload after the fact – no upfront data needed
• PSPA database packages
• Integrated green screen extraction
• … and much more

Product Offerings

Below are some of the products available to order through your GotPhoto portal once you’re set up.

• Photo prints up to 16×20 (select sizes)
• Wallets
• Magnets
• Buttons
• Bag Tags
• Keychains
• Dog Tags
• Mugs
• Mouse Pads
• Small Metal Prints
• Metal Ornaments
• Ability to order your pre-designed trader cards, magazine covers, memory mates and more

Need something not on the list, reach out and we will see if we can add it!

In short, GotPhoto increases efficiency and profitability, cutting down on working hours while boosting your sales. Check out their brochure for more details, or sign up for a 3 month free trial to try out this new software solution for yourself.

The post Streamlining Volume Photography With GotPhoto appeared first on McKenna.

When using McKenna Sports & Events 2.0 to order your print packages, you’ll be able to access these artistic and dynamic drag-and-drop sports templates designed by Josh himself. With numerous designs, background textures, and color options available, you are sure to be able to offer great options to your customer. These are available for a wide variety of products including wallets, small prints, memory mates, calendars, buttons, trader cards, posters, and bag tags.

With Josh Hanna’s designer templates you can move from shooting to ordering without all the hours of designing a modern sport look on your own. You’ll be able to streamline your workflow, processing your subjects quickly and efficiently while generating quality photography at volume!

To try out the new templates, download McKenna Sports & Events 2.0 today. For more information on Josh Hanna and his stunning work, we invite you to visit his website.

The post McKenna Sports & Events 2.0 Featuring Josh Hanna appeared first on McKenna.

I first want to thank you for your business. I appreciate you placing your trust in us.

Over the last couple of years, we have received significant price increases from almost every vendor we purchase raw goods from. We feel we have been successful at improving efficiencies so we could absorb as much of these costs instead of our customers having to. However, we currently find ourselves in the position where price increases are necessary. This appears to be consistent with other labs in this industry as many have already begun to do this.

We will be going through each product category and raising the prices the smallest amount necessary. Because of this, you will see these changes implemented over the next month or two. Although this is more work for us than an overall price increase, this will allow us to make only the necessary increases.

We understand that this affects your bottom line as well, and that is why I personally wanted to inform you of these upcoming changes. I thank you for your business and please know that we are here to help. If you have questions regarding this email or anything else, please reach out to our customer service staff and we will be sure to assist in any way we can.

Sincerely,
Jared Mason, President and CEO

The post Important Pricing Update appeared first on McKenna.