Printer & Paper Advice needed

Jase

Jase

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I haven't done any printing of photos for years and as a result I have little idea what I'm looking for.

I have narrowed the choice down to an Epson SureColor SC-P600 or a Canon 10S.

Which is considered to be the best out of these 2 please as ideally I'd like to order tomorrow.

next question is what paper to order.

I will be printing a variety of stuff but mainly Landscape, Wildlife and some portraits in both colour and B&W. I guess the easiest is to stick to the brand of printer I get but is that really the best?

Thanks!
 
Either printer is going to give you good results as long as you follow a managed workflow. The final choice really is a personal thing, I prefer Canon printers others will prefer Epson.

A downside (if you can call it that) is that Canon does restrict the size you can print on certain media which could affect your choice if wanting to print panoramas etc. For my work it is not a problem and there are ways to circumvent the border restrictions on certain fine art papers.

As for paper there are quite a few suppliers and makes, I have settled on Pinnacle papers from Paper Spectrum, it is probably a good idea to order a few sample packs and download the associated profiles, that way you can see which papers/ surfaces you prefer... a Luster surface is a good general purpose paper.
 
I’ve got the epson scp800 and think it’s brilliant for both colour and B&W. I must admit to having used Epson for about 20 years and this is far and away the best yet. Paper is such a personal choice but you won’t go far wrong with their own papers. I’ve just printed out some B&W on Epson premium semigloss and once matted and framed they looked great. Also a lot of people go on about the cost of inks and using cheaper inks but once you get into using it the ink cost is very reasonable. The last time I costed it, it averaged out at about £1:50 for an A2.
 
Thanks, hows about easiness of printing. I watched one review that said the canon had a lightroom plugin or something that made printing much easier?
 
Still really undecided and need to order today, I'm leaning towards the Canon now just because the last 2 canons have been problem free.
 
Mine are problem free... I used to use the Canon Print Studio Pro plug in with LR and PS but find the print module in LR better (and still easy to use once you get used to it)

Ink costs are always going to be a factor, I buy Genuine Canon cartridges from Am@zon, an overall saving in cost and never had a problem.

Like I said I prefer Canon and run a couple quite happily...
 
Used and owned both over the years. The paper handling restrictions on Canon printers is the biggest draw back for them, for Epson it is the ink usage if you swap between a glossy finish or a matt finish (called photo black PK or matt black MK). I need the extended paper handling so Epson it is for me, my current one is old (and discontinued) but still works reliably.

Both are capable of producing outstanding results.
 
I have the Epson SC-P600 and very happy with it. I also use the Marrutt refillable ink set and I get superb results.

Some with say that Epson are prone to ink blockage but I've not had any problems. I don't print very often but every now and then I'll do a nozzel check just to make sure and to get a tiny pit of ink through the heads. We've just moved house at the beginning of October and since then my printer has been sat in top of my wardrobe until I get around to converting my garage into my home office space. I took it down this weekend just to do a nozzle check and it was perfect after 2.5 months with no use.
 
Decided to go with the Canon, simply because I've been happy with the last 2 and I don't think I'll ever need to do anything paper handling wise that it can't do.

If I don't like it then it will be in the members marker in a few months lol

So ordered the printer but still undecided about the paper, think I'd like to try some luster and semi-gloss.
 
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Paper is such a personal choice. Often best to try a few sample packs, but the problem then can be spoilt for choice syndrome (or too many to choose from!) ... Fotospeed are a good company to deal with as are Paper Spectrum (Pinnacle papers - only just started to use these but so far they are very nice) ...
 
I have the Canon 10s and use a few papers. Epson gloss for my 5x7 and 6x4 as I had a load and it works with them using the gloss profile on the printer. Canon Gloss 2 is also excellent which I use in A3 and A4 for exhibitions and competitions. I just started using Permajet Oyster 271 as it was recommended by the printers first owner. Good value 50 sheets of A3 for £37 on Amazon. I have done 20 odd prints B&W and colour to frames for my office and presents and all but one were perfect, and when I did the dodgey one again it was fine so I guess it was me, not putting in the right paper profile If you go to their website you can order a sample pack of their range.

I get Canon inks either from Amazon or The Cartridge people they vary in price so keep an eye out for when they are lower. Not cheap and I recon it uses more than specs and reviews say. But It does print lovely photos.
 
I get my Canon inks (always genuines!) from 7dayshop (most of the time). If I need one in a hurry, I sometimes use premier ink as a supplier since they deliver faster than 7day. Paper tends to be either Canon or Ilford, again from 7day, although I keep an eye open for special offers when my stock runs down.
 
Thanks for the replies all, on average how many prints (A3) will you get before needing ink.

I haven't ordered any spares yet (need to check what inks I need first) but have a feeling I'll do a fair few prints durning the 'new toy' stage.
 
Just ordered a complete set of 10 original cartridges from the Cartridge People for £91.72 inc.

Not sure if its the best price but seems OK and don't have time to shop around at the moment.
 
I think the Calumet museum papers are stunning . My pick being the satin matte white . I've tried alot of papers with my pro 10 and it really is a stand out paper
 
Jase said:
Thanks for the replies all, on average how many prints (A3) will you get before needing ink.
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Some!

Can't be more specific really since it depends on how dense the prints are and how much (for example) sky is in the picture. Doing a big batch once a week/month will use less ink than doing one print per day since the printer won't run through the start up cleaning procedure for each print.
 
I have the SC P-600. I use the Fotospeed ink system because it reduces ink costs by about 80%.

Stock paper is PF Lustre and PSP, but use Metallic Gloss, Platinum Baryta, etc. and just got some NST Bright White matt cotton paper. I get them all bespoke profiled,
 
stumac said:
I think the Calumet museum papers are stunning . My pick being the satin matte white . I've tried alot of papers with my pro 10 and it really is a stand out paper
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What profile do you use with this please? I've got some of it to try but looked on their website and there are no ICC Profiles for the Pro10

Cheers
 
Jase said:
What profile do you use with this please? I've got some of it to try but looked on their website and there are no ICC Profiles for the Pro10

Cheers
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I use a very simple setup that works flawlessly for me although lots of people will disagree with this method but I've used for my l panel and print competitions with good success . I use the standard Matt photopaper profile along with printer manages colours .
 
stumac said:
I use a very simple setup that works flawlessly for me although lots of people will disagree with this method but I've used for my l panel and print competitions with good success . I use the standard Matt photopaper profile along with printer manages colours .
Click to expand...

Cheers I'll give it a go
 
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