Portrait Artist Forum - Printing 8x10's, brochures, etc.

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- - Printing 8x10's, brochures, etc. (http://portraitartistforum.com/showthread.php?t=192)

I am in the process of revamping and found a deal of the century at OfficeMax. It is my personal opinion that they perpetually mislabel and I only can get the deal once, but THIS was a real wow-er.

HP makes a two score, tri-fold gloss brochure photo paper in a 100 pack. It is excellent for photo reproduction. I don't worry about the folds going out of alignment. It was literally twice the price of the unfolded 50 pack. I had to look twice and figure the math, which makes it an excellent deal.

Now that I am posting, I can't find the price, but I am sure it was UNDER $30.

Just passing on the good stuff.

I am very happy with my Epson 2000P. It prints with pigment based inks instead of dye based inks, so all prints are archival. Because of this, there are only three papers available. I use the 8 x 11 size matte paper for the best results. I usually print a 6 x 8 print on the 8 x 11 paper.

I have the Epson 3000Z camera.

Linda, I was thinking of getting the Epson 2200 so that I could make my own prints, too. I'm wondering if I have room in my computer closet for it, though. Do you use that printer for all your printing needs or do you have a smaller, nonarchival printer for text and lesser jobs?

An excellent place to get 8x10's from digitals is www.ofoto.com. Their prices are very good, and I've been much happier with the results than when I printed photos from my printer. They have free software for uploading the photo files to them.

Mary

Are you talking about prints of photos or prints from your art, Mary? I was interested in using the Epson 2200 for putting out saleable copies of my work. It doesn't look like www.ofoto.com does that.

Leslie, I originally bought this printer with the thought of selling reproductions (prints) of my paintings/drawings. At the time, it was the only printer in this price range that used pigment based inks instead of dye based inks. The largest size that it can print is 13" x 18".

I don't have a regular printer. When I print out forms, they too are archival, and take a long time to print. It takes over 30 minutes for this printer to produce a high quality 13" x 18" print on watercolor paper. This printer is definitely not for an office where many copies need to be turned out quickly.

Because of the high quality of the prints, I have incredible digital photos to work from. These photos are far better than the traditional film type photos, as long as you use a high quality digital camera.

I'm not familiar with the Epson 2200. Mine is the Epson 2000P.

Linda, that's exactly what I wanted the printer for: to produce high quality reproductions of my work for sale. The Epson 2200 is the next iteration of the 2000P and just went on the market. It sounds as though I'd need a setup that could accommodate both printers, then, huh? I have a Canon Powershot G2 that I'm learning to use; it's 4 megapixels and can produce raw-format files at high resolution although I haven't tried that setting yet.

Leslie,

I was referring back to Andrea Evans' initial inquiry about 8x10 photos of work for a portfolio.

Mary

Andrea, sorry I am jumping in late, I didn't know if you still needed help. I am quoting a response I posted under Digital Cameras below. I thought it fit your question well.

I have found the Epson papers to be great. I think they are all pretty good now, but you get what you pay for. The laser printer vs. ink jet...

I am not sure about the printer Linda was talking about. Sounds great but I thought Epson only made inkjets (could be wrong). These are fine I guess if you want to print a photo but the minute you want to print anything with graphic elements and text you need a Laser or something like the rip software I have mentioned below.

Reason being that a laser reads what is called Postscript, which is a very smooth graphic language. You'll see photographs or illustrator files titled EPS (encapsulated postscript) and you can buy tons of postscript fonts that are used in commercial print production. Inkjet printers will use a knock off version called a True Font or something that may come with Microsoft etc.

These are not as smooth as Postscript. Today's inkjets are much better with character generation - so maybe the new Epsons are fine. Color lasers are very expensive. The ripping software for inkjets can range from $100.00 to $500.00 (a pre-press house would use the expensive one).

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Regarding printers: I was going to link you to the greatest software for color inkjet printers, but just saw they no longer support it. If you have an Epson or other more commercial type printer (mine is an 1140) try to locate a copy of "StyleScript".

This is a knock-off of Postscript ripping software for printers. You cannot tell the difference between a color laser and an inkjet with this software. Images look wonderful, color is good, not print proof acceptable but comp-wise it is great. The only drawback is it really slows down the process.

Remember when printing, regarding paper choices, most people do not realize they must go in and select the paper they are using based on the print quality and color matching selected.

There are a number of choices: plain, photo, matte, glossy, card, etc. If you run a nice glossy photo paper with it set to plain, you are not going to get as good resolution.

Good luck! ;)

The Epson P2000 is really great.

I just wanted to add my vote for the Epson P2000. I have one and do prints of some of my Sci-Fi and Fantasy work on watercolor paper. They come out looking great and the ink is lightfast and fade resistant for 140 years.

I do shows all the time and I see junky ink jet prints done off any old printer - they will fade within a year - I did tests. Printers like the P2000 and the new 2200 are a great way to go if you do prints of your work. :)