Let's Talk About Printers

[Zeke Menuar]

Not cheap home printers. I'm looking for information on the nice spendy printers that the camera store uses to make the big images like 11x14 and on up.

I looked at some in the $1000-2000 dollar range but I really have no idea what features to look for. I think 20x30 would be nice. Any larger and I'll send it out.
The big printer in the brick & mortar store is a Canon but I don't know much about it.

I'd like reasonably priced replacement cartridges for a start.

I'd like to display more of my pictures and occasionally give them as gifts.
Paying full retail price for images is a killer.

Thanks

ZM

[scootermcq]

I have printed on my friends Epson Stylus Pro 7900 and was extremely pleased with the results. I believe it is 7 colour, and prints 24" wide. Quite impressive on glossy (better than most labs around here). He is using aftermarket ink, which cuts the cost by about 2/3rds.

I have an epson 2200 which is only 13x19, but I love the results and again, I use aftermarket ink for $4 a cartridge vs $15 for Epson.

[dlambert]

If you're making that decision based on economics alone, be sure to factor in the cost of consumables (paper / canvas, ink, replacement parts, etc.) in addition to the cost of the printer itself. I've never worked out the math on this, but my guess is that you're going to have to print a pretty fair number of photos before you break even on a purchase like that, and on top of everything else, you've still got matting & framing, right?

[Matthias099]

Another factor might be the longevity of those prints. I know that modern ink can last a pretty long time without fading etc. But I don't know how those prints will hold up compared to the ones from a professional photo store like MPIX etc.

[scootermcq]

An 11x14 canvas with the frame costs me about $25 for the canvas, stretcher frame, & ink. Locally, they are about $70, so I do save about $45.00 I sell them for around $125.00

You will really not save much money on small stuff.... 4x6 you loose money printing at home. An 8x10 costs about $2.00 for paper & ink. Walmart only charges about $3 but it is garbage in comparison. You can get pretty good prints for around $5 for an 8x10 in this neck of the woods, so yeah at $1-3 savings a print it will take quite a few to make back your captial expenditure.

[ravncat]

The other difference I find is in the ability to do better color management and tweak the print for viewing under whatever kind of light you'd like. Granted - if you don't already have one, the additional cost of a profiling device for your paper and monitor - adds to your cost.

The results i'm getting on my prints is better than anything I got on Mpix - and on average equal to what I got from a great pro lab where I used to live (Lumiere). (Using aftermarket inks does limit lifespan and color gamut) So in that sense, even though my 4x6 sized stuff is more expensive than wal-mart, it looks alot better.

The real price test if you're interested in high quality is vs your local pro labs - which may do 4x6 cheaper than you can still, but the cost difference isn't that much if you print alot - unless you're buddy buddy with the lab

[Zeke Menuar]

Frankly, I'm tired of the local place. There work is good, but I'd rather do the work at home.
Right now I'm looking at what's out there and gauging initial costs.
I have no idea if HP, Canon or Epson would give me the best bang for the buck.

[Matthias099]

Originally Posted by Zeke Menuar

Frankly, I'm tired of the local place. There work is good, but I'd rather do the work at home.
Right now I'm looking at what's out there and gauging initial costs.
I have no idea if HP, Canon or Epson would give me the best bang for the buck.

I don't do much photo printing at home, even though I have an EPSON photo printer. However I do know that you can find inks for EPSON on the web for real cheap, and they are in no way inferior to the original inks. HP or Lexmark for example are not that cheap even from those ink stores on the web. Since the initial cost of the printers are probably about the same for comparable printers, the ink refills should be considered. You also can find some 'endless' ink for your EPSON, which is a kit with large containers of ink, that are stored outside the printer and are connected by long tubes to the print cartridge..... Does that make sense?

Also, I think, having had both HP and EPSON in the past, that EPSON is better for photo printing, whereas HP has an edge in general printing of documents - IMHO.