epson r3880

yooperdooper

hello: i am considering buying an Epson r3880.there are some things I am not sure about.....the priner is available from Epson but is discontinued on adorama and b&h phot0 .does this mean it may be discontinued soon? which edition would be best for me? i am a landscape and nature photographer: the standard, designer or signature worthy edition? is it worth it to buy refurbished?.............thanks

Eldon Shea

Yooper, you probably bought your new printer long ago, but if not I will say that my 3880 has been flawless for over 2 years for use as you describe. There is a new wide format Epson printer that is perhaps better but the 3880 makes gorgeous prints. I bought mine refurbished and it has been mechanically perfect. It came with a full size set of inks ($500) so I think the printer itself cost me just over $350. I'm not a pro and don't print as often as a pro. I'm just starting my 4th set of inks.

I print color primarily on Epson Premium Photo Paper Luster which yields a beautiful semi-gloss finish. I print monochrome on Epson Hot Press Natural or Hot Press Bright, which has a matte finish. Bright works best for true black and white, or images with a slightly silver or bluish cast. The Hot Press Natural is fantastic for sepia tones. Printing color on the Hot Press yields a bit softer image which works well when the image is mostly pastel colored. I print large, usually 16x20 image on 17x20 paper. All of the papers I mentioned are available in that size.

There are probably better printers available, but I really like my results from the 3880. I plan to keep using mine until it wears out.

Good luck.
Bryan

AceCo55

Eldon Shea wrote: »

Yooper, you probably bought your new printer long ago, but if not I will say that my 3880 has been flawless for over 2 years for use as you describe. There is a new wide format Epson printer that is perhaps better but the 3880 makes gorgeous prints. I bought mine refurbished and it has been mechanically perfect. It came with a full size set of inks ($500) so I think the printer itself cost me just over $350. I'm not a pro and don't print as often as a pro. I'm just starting my 4th set of inks.

I print color primarily on Epson Premium Photo Paper Luster which yields a beautiful semi-gloss finish. I print monochrome on Epson Hot Press Natural or Hot Press Bright, which has a matte finish. Bright works best for true black and white, or images with a slightly silver or bluish cast. The Hot Press Natural is fantastic for sepia tones. Printing color on the Hot Press yields a bit softer image which works well when the image is mostly pastel colored. I print large, usually 16x20 image on 17x20 paper. All of the papers I mentioned are available in that size.

There are probably better printers available, but I really like my results from the 3880. I plan to keep using mine until it wears out.

Good luck.
Bryan

+1 for this. Almost exactly the same situation for me.
Epson just announced the replacement for the 3880 which can accept roll film (if you buy the optional roll holder), it has a bigger screen to access the menus - and it is a the touch screen
One review here: http://www.photoreview.com.au/reviews/printers/epson-surecolor-sc-p800-a2-photo-printer

I won't be getting rid of my 3880 anytime soon though.

kdog

Canon just released the ProGraf 1000 which like the 3880 prints on paper up to 17x22. This is a deal breaker for me since one cannot print a standard digital aspect size of 16x24. I'll be damned if I'm going to throw 2" of my pictures away just to make a large print. It's almost as if these printer divisions don't know what digital format is. Or is there another explanation? Even as a long-time Canon user, the Epson SC-P800 with the paper roller option is looking like a better bet at this point.

Eldon Shea

kdog wrote: »

Canon just released the ProGraf 1000 which like the 3880 prints on paper up to 17x22. This is a deal breaker for me since one cannot print a standard digital aspect size of 16x24. I'll be damned if I'm going to throw 2" of my pictures away just to make a large print. It's almost as if these printer divisions don't know what digital format is. Or is there another explanation? Even as a long-time Canon user, the Epson SC-P800 with the paper roller option is looking like a better bet at this point.

Excellent point KDog. I've gotten used to, but still hate, that forced crop of my image. Other than using roll paper, is there an alternative?

kdog

Eldon Shea wrote: »

Excellent point KDog. I've gotten used to, but still hate, that forced crop of my image. Other than using roll paper, is there an alternative?

Fantastic news! Canon has a recent firmware release that allows printing up to 17x25 prints, including of course the standard 2:3 format of 16x24. This printer will be much more appealing to digital photographers now.

Oddly enough, Canon has not updated the specs for supported paper sizes on its website though which seems really, really dumb.