Can't get decent prints

Question

Hello,
I print out many of my photos in 4x6 to give to relatives, or larger sizes to frame.  I'm usually not happy with the way they print.  I've tried printing at Walmart, Walgreens, RiteAid, and a local photo shop (these are about my only options where I live).  I have found that Walmart is by far the best, even much better than the local photo shop at about a third of the cost.  I ran one test last year where I had the same prints done at all four places, and Walmart was the only one that had rich colors as in the digital photos.  However, they often come out too dark to the point that they are unacceptable to me for framing purposes.
So how do these print shops do their printing?  Is there some algorithm they run through to adjust colors, brightness, etc?  Is there anything that can be done in PSE (I use version 10) to lighten up photos in a separate copy that would be used for printing only - i.e. I am happy with the digital copy, but would like to make a copy used for printing only that might offset some of the darkening done by the print shops.  Any other advice on how to get decent prints?
Below is one such photo that I like, but is too dark and not of the same quality when printed.  I usually apply several adjustments in PSE including shadows, highlights, midtones, levels, contrast, sharpening, and resizing to boost resolution to 300 without resampling,  The photo in the link is 800x600 pixels, although the ones I print are 4000x3000.
Thanks.
http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag49/dave0001/Wildlife/Fawn1IMG_1578resized_zps8ad3bbd 4.jpg

Answer 1

It’s a common problem. Usually because of PC monitors being back lit and often set very bright. So the representation on the PC will be different compared with on photo paper. Nice image by the way.
Most labs use the sRGB color space; so make sure you are saving your print copy with that profile. If you view your image on screen by getting down on your knees, and looking up at your monitor rather than from eye level, you will get an indication of how dark the image really is.
I always make separate copies for print with an overall levels adjustment and with sharpening as the final edit, based on each different print size. I would suggest for this image moving the middle pointer to 1.75 but you may need to experiment with different settings. Make a test batch and compare them when you get them back from Walmart to see which works best and use that in future.