Professional Printing Recommendations

[gunslingor]

Hi all, I'm a techy photographer. I went to Alaska recently and have some excellent shots to print. I need printing advice to get the best results humanly possible... I am a perfectionist. Any PROFESSIONAL tips are appreciated, here are my direct questions:

1. When I used to print a lot, Fuji Frontier system was hands down the best printing system. Is something better out there?
2. I would like to go higher than 600 dpi, what are my affordable options? Go ahead, tell me I'm crazy and why =).
3. I can modify my prints in lightroom all I want, to get them perfect... but I suspect this may not translate into the same printed results... or does it? How can I make sure the screen version and printed versions are identical?
4. What else? I'm looking for an ideal situation, but I'm behind on the printing technology and printing appears to be an issue that isn't discussed as much as it used to be... presumably due to advances. If you know anything about this, please tell me.
5. What do you use (assuming your a professional photographer that sells art or real landscape prints).

Really looking for discussion, to get my feet wet in the printing game again (it's been years). Again, I always seek the best possible solution (I'm an engineer, it's instinct =).

 

[The_Traveler]

what is your budget?
what size do you want to print?
How many and how often?

3. I can modify my prints in lightroom all I want, to get them perfect... but I suspect this may not translate into the same printed results... or does it? How can I make sure the screen version and printed versions are identical?

4. What else? I'm looking for an ideal situation, but I'm behind on the printing technology and printing appears to be an issue that isn't discussed as much as it used to be... presumably due to advances. If you know anything about this, please tell me.

Really looking for discussion, to get my feet wet in the printing game again (it's been years). Again, I always seek the best possible solution (I'm an engineer, it's instinct =).

#3 is totally true. monitor is transmitted light and prints are reflected light so the step from screen to print depends on your patience, skill and the qualities of the image itself.

#3 & #4 require book length answers and except for this-i-what-I-do kinds of answers certainly can't be complete enough for your needs. Why not start by investigating actual reviews from sites that specialize in the size printer you want, get their reviews and printer specs for your price range and needs then perhaps individuals can tell you their experiences.

It might certainly be that buying a high end printer and spending 6 months learning to get prints that you like might not be the best alternative to actually buying 20 or 200 prints from a high end custom lab (of which there are many).

 

[Ilovemycam]

How can I make sure the screen version and printed versions are identical?

They usually don't match. Two different mediums. Once you start making prints you will learn...or fail. Some of my files have had 30 and 40 versions in LR to get it doable. Make lots of work prints!

 

[KmH]

The best you can hope for comparing your screen to what a print will look like is to 'soft-proof' before the print is made.
Ppi is digital image print resolution (input files) and dpi is inkjet printer resolution (output files) and 600 dpi is a very low quality resolution value for an inkjet printer. 600 ppi is a very high print resolution value.
Humans cannot see any improvement in a print when ppi is set to more than about 350 ppi.

Fuji Frontier printers make C-prints. The human eye cannot see any difference in prints made from digital photos assigned a print resolution greater than about 350 ppi. Ppi and image resolution (pixels x pixels) determine print size. As ppi is increased print size gets smaller as long as image resolution is kept the same.
C-prints generally don't last as long as inkjet prints do, as long as good archival inks/dyes are used to make the inkjet print.

As far as inkjet printing today -
Fine Art Printing for Photographers: Exhibition Quality Prints with Inkjet Printers

 

[spiralout462]

I am interested in hearing the responses to this thread. People have always thought my Wife and I are crazy for spending hours editing two or three pictures and printing our self. That is one of my favorite things about digital photography. It's just not as fun letting someone else do it.

I wish I had some answers to your questions but It sounds like you are looking for something more advanced than I use. I have yet to learn how to print accurately from the Lightroom Print Module. I have better success exporting after editing and printing from other software.

 

[gunslingor]

Alright thanks, this is beginning to help a little bit. I always felt 600dpi was low, but at the same time I understand it is fine if you don't intend for people to stand up face to face with your imagine in most cases. But I'm looking for 8x10s to start, got about 80 shots.

This is a bit too expensive, but would I get better results from:
Epson Stylus Photo R3000 Inkjet Printer C11CA86201 B&H Photo

Canon PRO 100 PIXMA Wireless Professional Inkjet Photo 6228B002

or

Some giant processing place... and if the giant processing place, which one and which printing system is best... heck forget best, which is the standard? Fuji Frontier was hands down the standard in my eyes some years back (maybe 5-8 years). What is it now?

Also FYI, I have this as a general use printer... bought it for the film scanning ability (but it sucks! lol).
Amazon.com : Canon Pixma MG8120B Wireless Inkjet Photo All-in-One Printer with Intelligent Touch System, 3.5in LCD, 9600 x 2400 dpi Color Print Resolution - Brown Finish : Inkjet Multifunction Office Machines : Office Products

Much appreciated so far. I want the best... as archival as possible, as clear and bright colors as possible, higher resolution than the eye can see (My images were shot with a 35mp Canon D800E, some are combined into panaramics... most of the shots I have to print now are shot in Alaska, a lot of grey dull skys but some are really colorful and bright, some glaciers... if anyone has specific printing tips)

 

[KmH]

Since LR 4 Beta was released LR has had a soft proofing feature.

 

[dennybeall]

To get something for example, try taking a 300dpi .tiff file to the local Walgreens and have them make you an 8X10 glossy on their big printer.
The local one here did a couple for me when I had a super rush job and the client was perfectly happy with them. Cheap and surprising!!!

 

[gsgary]

Most printing companies will tell you what dpi they want, with digital prints nobody knows yet how archival digital prints are, cheap ink not very long one reason I have set up a darkroom again and gone back to film digital prints just dont compare

 

[W.Y.Photo]

Hi all, I'm a techy photographer. I went to Alaska recently and have some excellent shots to print. I need printing advice to get the best results humanly possible... I am a perfectionist. Any PROFESSIONAL tips are appreciated, here are my direct questions:

1. When I used to print a lot, Fuji Frontier system was hands down the best printing system. Is something better out there?
An Epson 3880 would be my go-to for home printing. If you want to go all out an Epson 7880 is also good. Canon is another good brand of printer but I have limited experience with those.
2. I would like to go higher than 600 dpi, what are my affordable options? Go ahead, tell me I'm crazy and why =).
Fine. You're crazy, that's totally unnecessary. But if you're wondering the 3880 will print past 600 dpi... at least I'm fairly certain it will.. I've never had to check. hahah
3. I can modify my prints in lightroom all I want, to get them perfect... but I suspect this may not translate into the same printed results... or does it? How can I make sure the screen version and printed versions are identical?
Soft proofing is the only way. Look it up.
4. What else? I'm looking for an ideal situation, but I'm behind on the printing technology and printing appears to be an issue that isn't discussed as much as it used to be... presumably due to advances. If you know anything about this, please tell me.
There is a lot to cover and I'm not sure how much you know.. The best tip I can give is to never print just one, to get a lightbox or small viewing station for checking the color and tonality so you can perfect the next one more easily, and to inspect your prints meticulously not only under perfect light but also under the lighting conditions they will be viewed in.
Also, be sure to use your paper's proper printer profile!!
Feel free to PM me with any more specific questions.
5. What do you use (assuming your a professional photographer that sells art or real landscape prints).
Sadly, I don't currently print my own work, but in the past I used 3880's and Moab Lasal Luster Paper almost exclusively. When I can afford it I plan on doing the same.

Really looking for discussion, to get my feet wet in the printing game again (it's been years). Again, I always seek the best possible solution (I'm an engineer, it's instinct =).

Also, I really like your perfectionist attitude. It's a requirement for being a good printer.

 

[jsecordphoto]

Don't go to Walgreens. It sounds like you're a perfectionist, who takes a lot of pride in your work (I can relate), going to walgreens will leave you disappointed. I usually print through bayphoto, but also just picked up a Canon Pixma Pro100, and I've been very happy with the results. Having control over printing is very nice.

 

[crimbfighter]

Number one most important thing to do if you want to print at home is to calibrate your monitor. Printers work based on ICC profiles that are created from known color standards drawn from specific color spaces such as sRGB, and ink and paper combinations. As long as you have the correct ICC profile for the ink and paper combo you're using, and your monitor is calibrated, and you are working in the same color space you're printing in, your prints should be pretty close right out of the gate with most professional level printers. From there it should only take minor tweaks to know how your printer will react. For example, I know that when I print from LR, I only need to add a +23 to the contrast in the printer adjustment and it's almost spot on.

Aside from correcting color, calibration adjusts the brightness. That is huge in getting shadows and highlights in the print to match the on screen image. For example, if your monitor is too bright, when you adjust your shadows to the desired level on screen, when you print, the shadows will be too dark and have no detail. This is especially important when printing B&W images.

Also invest in a quality printer which is dedicated to printing photos. I know you mentioned having an all-in-one printer. Those will never do a very good job printing photos because they are set up to be versatile, which means they wont do one thing well, but rather many things adequately. I use the Canon Pixma Pro-100 and am very happy with the results it gives me. It prints large enough for anything I need and when compared side by side with pro print labs, it's nearly impossible to tell the difference.

One other step you can take, is creating a custom ICC profile using a printer calibrator or using a service where you send them a test print and they create an ICC profile for you. Some companies, such as Datacolor, make both monitor calibrators and printer calibrators that work well together. I use the Spyder calibrator made by Datacolor.

I could ramble on for a while, but I'll stop myself here. Long story short, calibrate your monitor and invest in a quality printer..

 

[W.Y.Photo]

Also, learn to use the eyedropper and info panel in photoshop to read pixel values and know where your paper's black point is. Especially if it is a matte paper. Always use black point compensation when printing as you don't want your shadow details to fall off into nothing.

 

[Didereaux]

Get on the phone with Mpix. They will tell you more useful stuff in five minutes than you'll glean on the net in five days.

 

[KmH]

Up until a couple years ago Mpix had a nice web page that covered alot of this stuff.
Seems there was a management shake up, some of their operations were moved, and Mpix hasn't been the same since.