flōtblog: News

We completed a number of exciting projects during this past year, developing custom products to create stunning viewing experiences for customers all over the world. For one of these projects, we were asked to provide 15,000 photo gifts in custom gift boxes. The products we designed for that project were based on our classic fotoflōt desk displays. The response to these jewel-like miniatures was so enthusiastic that we decided to make them a regular offering.

The newest member of the fotoflōt family

We’re delighted to announce the immediate availability of “fotoflōt mini”, an extension to our classic fotoflōt line of products. Geared towards smaller and personal products, the first mini-flōt is a jewel-like 6″ x 4″ desk unit and is available just in time for the holiday season.

mini-flōts are perfect for recognition, wedding party favors, and many other gifting situations. They come packaged in a high-quality gift box. A thin, gracefully curved black steel wire support magnetically snaps into a clear acrylic ring on the back.

The gift box is a deep crimson red and contains a soft black foam cushion that beautifully presents the panel and curved support to the recipient.

Pricing

Pricing of the mini flōt is based on quantity purchased. All prices include the gift box and free shipping (see additional shipping details below). In multiple-product orders, the images can be different on every product at no additional charge.

The shopping cart will automatically adjust the unit price depending on the number of products in your cart. Pricing details are as follows:

Shipping

A single mini flōt ships free of charge via First Class Mail. Delivery is usually 1 to 3 business days after shipping, but delivery times can stretch out close to Christmas. Two or more fotoflōts going to the same address ship free via Priority Mail.

While we have found USPS Mail to be fast and reliable services, time-definite delivery or accelerated services are available for an additional charge; contact us via email for details.

Ordering

The first mini-flōt can be found in the “desk stand, landscape” section of the fotoflōt checkout process. Depending on the aspect ratio of your image, it will be one of the first entries in the list. It is the 6″x4″ entry in the “3:2 Aspect Ratio” section.

In order for a volume discount to be applied, please add all mini-flōt products to a single order. If you want to ship mini-flōts to multiple locations, please tell us in the order instructions. We will contact you to get specific information.

Tags: Application, fotoflōt classic, fotoflōt mini, Gift, Product, Recognition

A picture is worth a thousand words – in any language. So it is no surprise that fotoflōts are popular throughout the world. We regularly ship them to locations outside of the US, pretty much every production run. But when someone recently asked us how many countries we had shipped to, we realized we didn’t know off the top of our heads. After a quick look in the shipping database, we had our answer.

To our surprise, we have shipped to 50 countries around the world. fotoflōts assembled and packaged near Chicago, Illinois, and launched out of the O’Hare International Airport have made long journeys to India, Australia and Zimbabwe, and ended up on islands like Iceland, Japan and New Zealand. We often have what we like to call “triangle” orders. For example, a customer in Brazil sends a fotoflōt gift from Chicago to a loved one in France.

Compared to these world travelers, many fotoflōts don’t have to travel very far at all to get to their destination. We have shipped to all 50 states in the US, the District of Columbia and the territories. fotoflōts are in the White House and in US embassies and installations worldwide. Some of our products won’t be tied down – fotoflōts have been delivered to a US Navy destroyer and are cruising the South Pacific.

Now we are just wondering, which country is next.

Tags: countries, fotoflot, International

Update: A video of the exhibition and the amazing images can be found here. And here a time lapse “the making of” video how the fotoflōts were installed for this temporary exhibition.

On Thursday May 9, 2013, Jo Chopra and Ken Carl will open the “Latika Roy Story: Photographic Exhibit by Ken Carl” in the gallery room at the Calumet Chicago store on Goose Island.

Jo Chopra is a co-founder of the Latika Roy Foundation. Ken Carl shot an extensive editorial at the foundation’s center in Dehardun, India and will be telling the Latika Roy story through his photography. Images will be displayed on fotoflōt and will be available for purchase as a fundraiser for the foundation.

Ken says:

This show is a sharing of a hope in humanity which overwhelmed me while documenting the Latika Roy Foundation in India. Latika Roy is not a quiet, or a calm place. It is frantic with creating joy: Joy of life through compassion, action, teaching, sharing and bonding. These children are handicapped, yet that fact is not a barrier to being a positive light in the family of man. The human spirit can never be handicapped.

Located in Dehardun, India, the Latika Roy Foundation provides therapy, education and vocational training for children and young adults with multiple disabilities. The creators and supporters of Latika Roy are heart-and-soul advocates for a just and inclusive world.

The Exhibition will run from Thursday May 9, 2013 until the end of May.

Event:
Latika Roy Story: Photographic Exhibit by Ken Carl

Opening reception:
Thursday May 9, 2013 at 5:30pm

Exhibition:
May 9, 2013 to May 31, 2013
Admission is free

Venue:
Gallery room at the Calumet Chicago store on Goose Island

Address:
1111 N. Cherry Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60642
312.440.4920

Sponsors:

Tags: handicapped children, India, Latika Roy Foundation

We’ve been experimenting for some time with ways to attach brackets to the wall without requiring customers to drill holes.

We have experimented with a lot of alternatives, but in our experience, 3M Command Strips are the best solution for avoiding holes. They hold the fotoflōt mounting bracket safely in place indefinitely, and leave no mark on the wall when removed properly.

We’re thinking about offering them as an alternative to the screws and anchors we ship with every bracket, but would like more feedback before proceeding. If you’d like to try them out just let us know next time you order a fotoflōt, and we’ll include a set of Command Strips in the shipment box at no charge.

Tags: 3M command strip, drill no holes, wall mount

We’re getting more and more business from organizations using photos and other images mounted on fotoflōts to tell their stories to team members, customers, clients and partners. We call them “photo savvy organizations” because in every case the project is initiated or championed by a photo enthusiast who understands the power of using the organization’s own images.

They tell us that fotoflōts helped them make a much more impactful statement, they appreciate how easy it is to order a complete installation, and they love that everything required for installation comes with the shipment. And some of them utilize the magnetic mounting a lot and rearrange their display frequently.

Orders come from a wide range of organizations. They include engineering consulting companies, real estate developers, manufacturing companies, medical centers, retirement communities, Federal Government agencies and many others.

Send us a note if you have a project in mind that we could help you with.

Tags: engineering consulting methodology, engineering consulting project, federal agancy, fotoflot, photo savvy organization, product display, story telling

We have added two more ways to access your images via photo sharing services. As you probably know, we have been a print fulfillment option for Google’s Picasa software for over a year, and Google’s Picasa Web photo sharing users could access their online images from fotoflot.com.

A few months ago we also became a print fulfillment option for Picasa Web users. This means that Picasa Web users can select a “basket” of images from their gallery, then click on a link that will transfer them and their basket of images to fotoflot.com, ready to place an order.

We recently launched a similar relationship with ACD Systems. They provide ACDSee software – photo editing, photo management and illustration applications for amateurs, professional photographers and businesses. There are over 25 million users of ACDSee software worldwide. They have just launched ACDSee Online, a photo sharing service for use by their software customers. fotoflōt is live as their first print fulfillment partner and similar to Picasa Web, a customer selects a basket of images, then transfers to fotoflot.com via a link.

If you use a photo sharing service that we don’t support and would like to see a simplified fotoflōt interface to that service, let us know. We can’t promise that we can add it, but we’ll certainly take a look.

Tags: ACDSeeOnline.com, image access, Kodak gallery, photo sharing site, Picasa, Picasa Web Albums, SmugMug, Zenfolio

The joshspear.com blog is

a daily source of inspiration for marketers, brand managers, advertising executives, and a wide range of everyday people from around the world who love to stay ahead of the curve.

They featured fotoflot.com in a recent post.

Their take:

Displaying your favorite pics on your wall is an undertaking that requires great care. fotoflōt aims to keep your images in immaculate condition by removing the element of glass from the equation. Instead it utilizes a magnetic mounting system that allows for easy access should you want ever switch photos, and eliminates glare and reflection as your photos subtly float off the platform.

Read more at joshspear.com .

Tags: fotoflot.com, Josh Spear

beyondmegapixels.com is “A digital photography guide for the rest of us.” It covers a variety of photo-related topics and recently posted a fotoflōt review written by Cass. She had ordered a fotoflōt sample (pictured below) and loved the result, and everything else about her experience.

Some of her comments:

The tool for uploading and selecting the size and mount was very easy to use..
…the turn around time was incredibly fast…
The packaging is done very well…
The photo coloring was vibrant…
The photo itself is very durable…

You can read her complete review here.

Tags: Beyond Megapixels, fotoflot.com

GREAT OUTPUT, published by Lexjet Corporation, is a bi-monthly magazine for photographers who want to know more about how to print, finish, display and sell digital images.

The article describes the fotoflōt system and provides background on the company and its founders. You can download the magazine here, or read the article on a companion blog, greatoutput.blogspot.com.

Tags: fotoflot.com, great output, lexjet