Many people have their home printer doing double duty for printing pictures. That’s fine in most cases, even inexpensive printers have come a long way in quality and with a high grade of glossy paper, most produce fairly respectable results.

For serious photographers your home printer isn’t going to cut it. In those cases you might look at a better photo printer like an HP Photosmart 8750 or one of the pro models.

For prints that are going to be on public display, or the shots you’re going to hang in your portrait studio waiting room, you’ll want something really special. If you really want prints that pop, the kind that, under the right lighting, appear to be back lit, then you might consider enlisting the help of a lab.

What you’re looking for is generally referred to as a “metallic print” on one of several metallic papers, which include Kodak Endura Metallic, Inkpress metallic, Fuji Metallic, Fuji Pearl and Pictorico Pro Opalescent paper.

Select photos of exceptional color depth and detail for this lab treatment, it’s a good choice for HDR and exceptional panoramic pictures. A bonus to metallic prints is they not only practically jump off the paper, they last a lifetime.

There are several shops online that offer metallic print services, including custom sizes, like Nations and Bay Photo, shop around for the best prices.

If you’re going to spend the money on a metallic print, get a big one. Make it six feet long if you have the space. Go big.

Don’t get a metallic print confused with pictures printed on actual metal panels, because those do exist and are fabulously expensive.