Photoshop Elements 3: The Missing Manual

Using a Photo Processing Service

You don't even need to own a printer to print your photos. There's no shortage of companies hoping you'll choose them for the privilege of printing out your photos. You can order prints online or use a print kiosk at a local store. Elements makes it very easy to prepare your photos for printing either way. Just save your photos in a compatible file format (see page 75 for more about picking different file formats). The JPEG format is usually your best bet, but always check with the service you plan to use to see if they have any special requirements.

If you plan to physically take your photos in for printing (as opposed to ordering them online), burn the photos to a CD and take that in. You'll have fewer problems than you would if you try to copy your edited photos back on to your camera's memory card.

Note

If you have a Mac, don't burn your CD in iPhoto. iPhoto makes CDs using a proprietary format that photo-printing kiosks can't read. Instead, export your photos from iPhoto to the desktop and burn from the Finder to create a disc that anyone can read.

Ordering Prints from Within Elements (Windows Only)

Adobe has partnered with Kodak's online photo-printing service, Ofoto.com, which makes it easy to upload photos directly from the Organizer. You can share photos with other Ofoto.com account holders (creating an account is free), or order prints or books. (There are many other online printing services that you can also use, but the process isn't integrated ...