Please Help me find a Printer......

JWWPHOTO

I am trying to find a good InkJet that can print at least 11x14. I would like a HP or Canon.

Please offer some suggestions. I do not want to sell these prints. I just want to use this printer to print some good quality prints for myself. I have about $700 set aside. I went to Best Buy and just about everthing they have is a Scanner / Fax / Printer combo. I don't want a all in one. I want just a printer......


What is good out there?


Jeff W. Waldrop :wink

photographer@jeffwaldrop.com

DavidTO

[devil's advocate] Don't waste your money on an inkjet. It's expensive, a PITA and generally just not worth it. Get your prints done through a service like SmugMug, or even locally if you need it faster. But put down the inkjet! The ink runs at $10k per gallon. Ridiculous. [/devil's advocate]

jdryan3

I agree with David, sortof. I have been going back and forth on a pigment printer, but still use an outside service for my large prints. I don't print that many large ones, so I have not been able to cost justify buying a $800+ printer, not counting ink & paper.

That said, I do use a Canon PIXMA 5000 for 8x11 images (actually 6.5 x 9.75). Why? I'm impulsive. I do a lot of my post processing Friday and Saturday evenings, and well, sometimes I just like to see them printed out. I like the Ilford fine art paper and there is something satisfying about holding it in my hands after a few hours work. Cost is not an issue at that point. It is also part of my proofing process, more than an end in of itself(yes, I do soft proofing wiht paper profiles, but mainly for color).

Poseidon

I like my Epson R1800, which does 13x19's, but the ink is EXPENSIVE! I'll bet the cost will be similar with HP, or Canon. Canon makes the Pixma Pro 9000 that will fit in your budget, and you are nearly to the price of the 9500, which I think will be $850 or so.

I bought mine for the convenience, I printed most of the 10x10's in my sample album, and you can't tell which ones are lab printed vs the ones I did at home. However it did cost me more I am sure.

Anyway, look at the R1800, and the Canon 9000, those were the 2 I narrowed the search too, and the Epson won out because it can use roll paper. (That will help reduce costs.)

kini62

Hmmm, inkjets expensive?

Well not counting the initial cost of the printer I can print 8x10s cheaper than the cheapest place I know of (Costco) and they are much better quality as well. (Canon IP5000).

I get what I see on my monitor (or at least close to it) I get it in about 2mins not 2 weeks (as was my only experience with Costco mail order).

I don't have a problem with fading (at least that I know of) if I use the right paper.

Sure for big prints like 16x20s it's much cheaper to order them because of the initial cost of the printer.

But if you buy a printer like the Pro9000 and use it for other things as well (like I do with my printer) and depending how many prints you do and at what sizes (based on my limited research the larger you print up to 13x19 the cheaper it becomes to do at home from a materials cost standpoint)

Plus, for me everything has to be done mail order, so if it's wrong, there's the hassel of having it redone and the wait.

As for Costco's online print service it was dreadful- the colors were WAY off, it was undersized by .25" all around cutting off part of the photo, it took nearly 2 weeks to get it, and when I told them it was wrong they wanted me to send it back to get credited for it. What a pain in the a$$!

So, I think for many printing at home makes good sense and can sometimes be cheaper than ordering.

Gene

DavidTO

Gene,

I get that printers work well for some people. But why wouldn't you count the initial cost of the printer in your calculations?

kini62

Well, because it (the cost per print) decreases with each print you make, so counting the initial cost of the printer makes calculating the cost per print impossible.

But, if you do consider the cost of the printer then of course it will be much cheaper in the short run to order them.

The long run depends on how long you own the printer and how many prints you make.

Then factor in the cost of convience, for some (like me) it's higher than for others. So this adds more to the "price" of the mail order print.

I see your point though, home printing is not for everyone.

Gene

DavidTO wrote:

Gene,

I get that printers work well for some people. But why wouldn't you count the initial cost of the printer in your calculations?