Shipping and Mailing Photographic Prints

[Brian C. Miller]

I would like to know a few good ways to ship a print economically without worrying about it being damaged.

What I am looking for are supplies and pointers to supply houses, as well as good techniques. The photo mailers from the office supply stores are too flimsy, and I would like to sandwich the print between cardboard sheets.

So: what do you guys do to protect prints in the mail?

Thanks!

[Doug Dolde]

http://www.uline.com has some Stay Flat mailers I have used. They are pretty stiff.

[David Luttmann]

Brian,

Do they need to be flat? I normally mail photos in a tube. I place a large sheet of tissue over the print and roll it all up. Are your prints glossy, matte.....silver or inkjet?

[Jorge Gasteazoro]

I have sent more than 100 prints through the mail both mounted and matted as well as just the print and the best method I found was to buy 3mm tri ply, have it cut 1 cm longer and wider that the print, sandwich the print (if you want to save on weight you can place the print in a bag and use for one side cardboard instead of the tri ply) and tape all the sides with duct tape. You can send up to 5 prints mounted an matted this way. I had a customer who bought 12 prints and I sent them this way in two packages.

I dont recommend shipping tubes, I tried it 3 times and I had to replace all 3 prints as the tubes arrived bent and creased the print.

This is the cheapest way to do it safely. If you want to try the shipping stuff sold at light impressions make sure you can get a second mortgage in your house. The only time I have used their shipping boxes is when I sold 5 12x20 prints that were going to Hong Kong. I did not want to take chance. OTOH I have sent prints all the way to New Zealand with the tri ply and they arrived perfect.

[David Luttmann]

Brian, let us know the type of prints and if you wish them to be matted. I agree with Jorge....if you use cheap tubes, they get a good beating. However, the ones I use you could probably drive a car over without a problem. If they need to be matted, then Jorge's method is probably best.

[Tony Karnezis]

I have received prints from Michael Smith and Paula Chamlee that were shipped between two pieces of wood about 1/2" thick. I don't have them in front of me, but they weren't solid wood but rather multiple layers of thin wood. It seems ideal--a "container" that's inexpensive (I'm guessing), pretty light (ie. inexpensive to ship) and, most importantly, very stiff (ie. protective). They simply taped the edges all around and wrapped it in brown paper to ship it.

[Jorge Gasteazoro]

Tha is the tri ply Tony. Before I started selling by myself on E bay I belonged to a group where there was a bunch of guys together selling. One of the guys is a M&P fan and he learned the shipping method from them and passed it on to us. It is the safest way to do it IMO.

[QT Luong]

For prints up to 16x24, I put the print(s) in a plastic sleeve, and tape it to a piece of thick cardboard.
This gets sandwitched in 4 layers. I order the cardboard from a local company in precut sizes.
For larger prints (up to 40x60), I interleave with a sheet of light paper, and roll outside a circular shipping tube. The shipping tube is then wrapped in a sheet of foam and placed either into a Fedex
triangular shipping tube, or a square elongated box with foam peanuts. I learned that method from
West Coast Imaging and LaserLight. Shipping inside a tube is problematic because it's easy to damage
a print while removing it. Besides, it looks too much like a poster :-) I have shipped hundreds of prints, and since using those methods, not a single one has been damaged in transit.

[QT Luong]

Jorge, where do you get the tri ply, and how much does one piece, let say of 14x20 cost ?

[Paul Butzi]

I'll weigh in agreeing with both Dave and with Jorge.

For things that are shipped flat, I now have two pieces of hardboard cut slightly larger than the prints. The prints go in polyprop or mylar bags, the stack of bags gets taped to one sheet of hardboard, the second piece of hardboard makes the other side of the sandwich, and then I use duct tape to seal the edge.

Cheap, indestructible, not too heavy, and you can ship large matted prints this way without going oversize with UPS or Fedex.

For prints that are not mounted and are large enough to roll, I ship them rolled in heavy duty cardboard tubes. Cheap tubes will get beat all to hell, and will get kinked and dented (and thus allow the print to be damage). I buy heavy duty tubes from U-line.

Lately I've taken to rolling the prints and interleaving tissue, and then rolling that roll with another sheet of paper that has tape 'tabs' on the end. I slide this into the tube, and cap the tube. When the prints arrive at their destination, they can be removed from the tube by pulling on the tabs, so that the whole bolus of prints/tissue comes out without stressing it.

It's also important to have no room for movement in the tube. If the print can slide back and forth in the tube, print damage at one end or the other is almost certain.

[domenico Foschi]

I wrap the print (flat) in tracing paper, then i cut two sheets of foam core board one inch bigger in the dimension of the image on both sides, sandwich with the print taped lightly to one of the boards, tape, wrap evrything in kraft paper and off to the post office I go.

[David Luttmann]

Paul,

I use both heavy duty cardboard and PVC Armour type tubes of my own design.....not because they're better than the armour tubes, but because I make them for about 1/8 the cost. I don't mail many photos and have never tried sending flat via any of the methods above. Something to consider if it's working well for others though.

Cheers,

[Brian C. Miller]

I am planning to send a mixture of prints, both fiber matte and gloss, and Epson inkjet. The Epson produces some 4-ft panoramas, and the local office supply store sells tubes which can protect against UPS, USPS, and small elephants. But these have a 3-inch diameter, and I want something larger because they come out with a curl! I wrap the panoramas in acid free tracing paper to protect them.

Thanks for the info about U-Line! They have a really good selection there.

Jorge, when you say tri-ply, do you mean plywood with three plys, like 1/4-inch or so?

[Jorge Gasteazoro]

QT I get it a wood shop, they cut it for me 16x20 sizes and the sheet including the cutting whihc gives me 6 boards is $15. I dont know if Home Depot would work, you need a place that sells wood only.

Brian, correct I forgot in the US is called plywood. The 1/4 inch is the one I use.

[Keith Laban]

I've never been a great fan of tubes. I print on heavyweight Photo Rag which has a comparatively delicate surface, rolling them tightly and stuffing them in tubes seems all wrong. For smaller prints up to 13"x13" I use 3 or 4 layers of stiff card. Larger prints are best protected by hardboard or ply.

[John Layton]

For a stiffening and protective medium, if the prints need to be shipped flat, you might want to consider foam core instead of cardboard. I use foam core to protect flat prints up to 16X20 - and for me this seems to offer the best ratio of strength to weight.

[John Layton]

PS: plus, using foam core looks more elegant and "professional" than does cardboard - a consideration, for what its worth, if indeed your prints are being shipped to a buyer.

[paulr]

Both pieces of board don't need to be equally stiff. You could could save some money and weight by sandwiching between one heavy duty sheet (wood, masonite, etc.) and one piece of cardboard or foamcore. As long as one of those pieces is rigid, your print will be safe from the most likely kinds of abuse (getting dropped on a corner, getting folded, etc.).

Old photo paper boxes also work great. I used to work in a commercial lab, and I'd take home all the 16x12 and 20x24 cibachrome boxes. Everything arrived safely in those. I'd sandwich prints between thin cardboard on the inside to protect them from sliding around. For some reason Ilford made the nicest boxes.

[mark anderson]

the plywood mentioned above is also used for packing when shiping high dollar hardwood plywood. they will put one sheet of the cheap stuff on either side of the stack. this "dunnage" can be bought cheap at lumber yards and many will cut them to size for a nominal fee.

[David A. Goldfarb]

For 11x14" prints, there is a perfect corrugated box you can find at Staples--11x14x2". They come in 5-packs for about $9, and you can fill the empty space with corrugated cardboard sheets or bubble wrap.

For larger prints, I like the way that West Coast Imaging ships. They put the print in a sleeve and tape the sleeve with drafting tape to an oversized corrugated cardboard sheet with two more corrugated sheets on top of the print and one more behind, all wrapped in a corrugated cardboard box. If there are other materials to send like disks or original transparencies, they get taped between the two top sheets.

[Jorge Gasteazoro]

Old photo paper boxes also work great.

I think this is an iffy proposition. I sent a submission to a magazine in England and made the mistake to send the prints in a photo paper box. The sent me an e mail saying the box had arrived bent and had creased some of the prints. Fortunatelly some of the prints were fine and they published 3.

I have come to the conclusion that the mail in any country acts as collaborators so that if anything can be done to the package it will be done, either leaving or delivering.... :-)

[Jeffrey Sipress]

Tubes are certainly controversial, but using a larger diameter helps the loading and unloading. Consider using PVC or ABS pipe that can be had at a local plumbing supply. Use 3, 4, 0r even 5" diameter, depending on the size of the print. Pretty indestructable and cheap.

[Paul Butzi]

I've used 3" tubes and 4" tubes. 4" tubes are way better, and I'll never order another batch of 3" tubes. I'll probably try 5" tubes next time.

[Keith S. Walklet]

For rolled prints, I package them the way prints were delivered to me from Calypso Imaging, often reusing the packaging. They typically send the prints rolled onto the paper core tubes from their Lightjet. I've adapted the process slightly, using the tubes and 36" craft paper. Craft paper is taped to the tube, rolled one complete time, print is placed face up on the craft paper and then rolled up inside the craft paper. Multiple prints can be rolled end to end in sequence (you just need more craft paper). Once rolled up, the craft paper is taped in three places along the length of the tube. (I put a piece of tape on the receiving portion of the craft paper as well to accept the tape so that it can be attached and removed without losing its tackiness) with the leading edge of the tape folded under for easy grasping. The entire tube is then rolled in bubble wrap or closed cell foam sheets (again reusing packing materials from Calypso or my Epson printer), the square core plugs put into the ends of the tube and back it goes into the paper box the tube arrived in.

I also use this method for delivering shipments of posters. I've wrapped stacks of as many as 75 posters on a tube. With prints, though, one needs to be careful that there is no bump in the rolling (hence the rolling prints sequentially rather than stacked if possible), as this will transfer to the print surface.

Most folks I know ship their flat prints in wood containers. Wooden frame, plywood or masonite sides, deck screws. Secure, but very heavy.

For shipping flat prints (framed or unframed), I've crafted my own lightweight, reusable shipping crates out of Coroplast (plastic cardboard). The design is similar on the outside to the ABS ones made by Light Impressions, but inside, I have a wood frame made of 1-by firring strips with Simpson corners. The coroplast is screwed onto the wood frame with sheet metal screws. Corners are riveted and reinforced with ABS. The prints are placed in Clearbags and taped to sheets of coroplast that match the interior dimensions of the container. I alternate the Coroplast sheets with 3/4 inch foam sheets to insulate the prints from shock and perforations.

If I am shipping framed prints, I cut strips of 3/4 foam to "frame" the print within the container.

The crates are secured with nylon webbing and Fastex clips and taped at the corners for extra insurance. Takes me no more than ten minutes to package a shipment of prints safely. A prepaid return shipping label is included inside the package to get them back to me. The Coroplast runs $13 for a 4x8 sheet. Firring strips are $1.50 each for 10 feet. Simpson corners are less than a buck each. Foam sheets are $6 for a 4x8 sheet. It takes me two to three hours to make one, which lasts and lasts.

I've not uploaded any jpegs to this site, but happy to send snaps of the shipping cases if folks are interested.

[Alex Hawley]

Plywood and duct tape! I buy the cheapest plywood paneling I can find at the local home improvement store. The reason for using paneling vice plain plywood is the paneling has a finish on it which makes it smooth, splinter-free, and keeps things cleaner. I cut it to the appropriate size, a couple inches larger than the item being shipped. Sandwich the prints between two sheets of paneling then seal the edges with duct tape.

The prints themselves are placed inside archival poly bags before being sandwiched between the paneling.

[paulr]

What about shipping framed work to a show? This is where I've had my only disaster (on the return shipment). This situation adds the element of the work being framed, and also the element of the gallery having to re-pack everything and ship it back to you. My consignment form has a blurb saying "you have to pack it up the same way i packed it," but this doesn't always get taken seriously.

[Keith S. Walklet]

I admire the simplicity of a couple pieces of plywood and duck tape for shipping unframed prints. But for framed prints, the most common solution seems to be the wood crate made of plywood (or masonite) with sides constructed of 1 by wood strips. The plywood is attached to the 1 by frame with deck screws. The problem with this method is primarily the weight of the crate, and the screw holes get looser with use and some screws back out enroute to the destination.

For major exhibits, there are firms that construct crates with multiple slots for prints. One gallery we deal with uses a company called Freight and Crate (http://www.freightncrate.com/) which specializes in shipping artwork. If you live in a major metropolis full of museums, these types of firms are easier to locate.

We also used mirror boxes (available at places like U-Haul) and lots of bubble wrap to ship prints framed in plex in our early years. Worked like a charm, but did require care in packing.

The motivation for my recent method was that I had a few unframed prints damaged by my major courier (FEDEX). I thought they were adequately packaged, but it didn't keep them from getting bent. So, clearly they weren't adequately packaged. In response, I built the Coroplast shipping containers I mentioned above. Print packing time went from 45 minutes to 5 minutes, with the only downsides being time to construct the package the first time, and cost of shipping to get it returned to me with each order. For the time I save in packing, I am happy to do it this way.

There is a limit to the size of a crate one can construct with the Coroplast, which typically comes in a 4x8 sheet, though I did locate larger sheets, but would have had to special order a large inventory to get them at an affordable rate.

For my own framed prints, the above mentioned cases have worked wonderfully. They are very quick to pack. For a recent pair of prints destined for a travelling group exhibit, I custom crafted a case as I would normally, taking into account extra space to framed the frames in foam bricks. The bricks were all marked (A, B, C, and D) as were the spacers designed to keep the frame faces and plex from rubbing. A clear set of instructions made it easy for the next person to repack the crate, snap the fastex clips and it was on its way. I am guessing it took them no more than five minutes to read the instructions, put the prints and foam in the crate and snap the fastex clips. When the show was concluded, the prints were returned in perfect condition.

Another technique we use to prevent the plex from abrasion enroute is to wrap the entire piece in palette wrap. Amazing stuff!

[Michael Rosenberg]

Keith,

Where do you get Coroplast (and what is it). Also what are simpson corners and where do you get them?

Mike

[Keith S. Walklet]

Locally I get Coroplast from GE Polymershapes, who supplies everything from Acrylic to ABS. If you look under "plastics" in your local phone book, you may find a supplier. Coroplast is constructed much like cardboard with a honeycomb design. I find it is not quite as stiff as some cardboard, but lightweight, waterproof and generally more resistant to wear incurred in repeated use. A lot of sign shops use it to mount signs on. Because it constructed like cardboard, when fabricating the shipping crates, I treat it like I would cardboard, scoring and then folding. By making sure the grain of the honeycombs for the lid is 90 degrees off from that of the base, I obtain some extra tensile rigidity. The wood frame and the 3/4 foam panels and nylon webbing provide the additional rigidity. I reinforce the corners of my lids with strips of ABS. Everything is either screwed together, or in the case of the corners, riveted and then screwed to the wood frame.

Simpson corners are available at most hardware stores. Simpson manufactures a number of metal fasteners desiged to speed construction, such as joist supports. The pieces I use are 90 degree angles with a lip, stamped with Simpson Strong-Tie RTA 1.

If I get a chance, I'll post some jpegs.

[Keith S. Walklet]

I built a little web gallery of the crate specifications. Lets see if this link works:

[Keith S. Walklet]

OK. Still haven't figured out how to do that. Here's the link:

http://www.quietworks.com/FRAMES_FILES/Crate%20300 PIXEL%20JPEGS/index.htm

[hubmeister]

Digging up an old thread here, but for the environmentally concerned, https://erdie.com makes a reusable shipping tube that's made from recycled paper. Their locking end caps are really easy to use.

[Tin Can]

Digging up an old thread here, but for the environmentally concerned, http://erdie.com makes a reusable shipping tube that's made from recycled paper. Their locking end caps are really easy to use.

Are the tape, tubes and plugs archival?

Up to 11X14" I prefer to ship flat

[hubmeister]

Are the tape, tubes and plugs archival?

Up to 11X14" I prefer to ship flat

One of the thoughts behind the creation of these endcaps was that they could also function as storage, and tape would not be required. At 11x14", I would assume that there would be issues with the shipping companies folding the envelope. Personally, I've never shipped any size print or painting flat because of this concern, so I'm curious about your experience.

[Tin Can]

1-3 are great in a tube

More I like flat

I have done several IRL Print exchanges on this forum

Everybody shipped from Worldwide, I collated and resent

I have one 36X48" DIGI print made in USA, they shipped flat as it was mounted

Tiny dent on one corner, that is hidden in the 1/4" frame rebate

[hubmeister]

1-3 are great in a tube

More I like flat



Right, that makes sense, I was thinking about sending only one at a time.