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Best Photography Printer?

S

sirkification

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Apr 15, 2011
16
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Ok well I want to upgrade my printer and I am not sure which one to choose.

I'm planning to use it for photography as well as printing normal word documents etc at home. I've been looking at the canon pixma range and just dont know which one to choose. Price is not something I am looking at particular, but if it's cheap then its a bonus. I also hear epson isn't bad when it comes to photography, but canon has a higher resolution. Wireless is preferable, because we have wireless internet already so there is no need to get the AirPort Extreme, although our modem tends to crash sometimes.

Could you guys recommend some printers I should consider buying?
 
sirkification said:
Ok well I want to upgrade my printer and I am not sure which one to choose.

I'm planning to use it for photography as well as printing normal word documents etc at home. I've been looking at the canon pixma range and just dont know which one to choose. Price is not something I am looking at particular, but if it's cheap then its a bonus. I also hear epson isn't bad when it comes to photography, but canon has a higher resolution. Wireless is preferable, because we have wireless internet already so there is no need to get the AirPort Extreme, although our modem tends to crash sometimes.

Could you guys recommend some printers I should consider buying?
Click to expand...

I Print photos on my canon Pixma. I forget the model i'm afraid. It produces perfect results but the amount of time the ink lasts is a joke.

if you run out of "magenta" for example you cannot use the printer untill you change the ink. Very frustrating.
 
I always like the look of this but not sure on what its like..

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it depends on what size of paper you want to use. I am sure any Cheap Canon Pixma photo printer will do a good job. I am happy with my old Pixma 4000 printer to print regular glossy photo paper. I would recommand any cheap pixma printer that comes with 4 or more ink cartridges instead of two.
 
Badrottie said:
it depends on what size of paper you want to use. I am sure any Cheap Canon Pixma photo printer will do a good job. I am happy with my old Pixma 4000 printer to print regular glossy photo paper. I would recommand any cheap pixma printer that comes with 4 or more ink cartridges instead of two.
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I wouldn't.
 
I was planning from the beginning to get a printer with 4 cartridges or more to begin with. Reason because you can replace the colour that runs out rather than getting rid of all three of the colours that may still be full. Plus if there are more than 4 cartridges it just makes the image come out much more clearer and sharper but adding the different tones etc. How often would you say that you change cartridges anyway?

I was thinking maybe this printer http://www.canon.com.au/en-au/For-You/Printers/PIXMA-InkJet-Printers/MG6150 but I am just trying to find out if there is any other printers that maybe better value and all that.
 
sirkification said:
I was planning from the beginning to get a printer with 4 cartridges or more to begin with. Reason because you can replace the colour that runs out rather than getting rid of all three of the colours that may still be full. Plus if there are more than 4 cartridges it just makes the image come out much more clearer and sharper but adding the different tones etc. How often would you say that you change cartridges anyway?

I was thinking maybe this printer http://www.canon.com.au/en-au/For-You/Printers/PIXMA-InkJet-Printers/MG6150 but I am just trying to find out if there is any other printers that maybe better value and all that.
Click to expand...

I haven't really timed it to be fair and i try not to print photos anymore unless i have to. It all depends on how many photos you want to print.

All I can say is that i found myself saying "Jesus, I've only just changed that cartridge" and £15 a cartridge in most shops too. Just talking about it makes me sad as i know one of my cartridges is on its way out now.

Also like i say, the printer will shut down if you run out of a colour. If you want to print a word doc but one of the colour carts is ou,t forget it. It won't print. :mad:
 
I have been very pleased with the Epson Stylus Photo PX700W, a wireless multifunction, probably now superseded by the PX720W. Excellent photo printing, and the 6 ink cartridges are about £8 each.
 
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Printer choice is a very personal one, everyone has their preferences.

In my experience, it's best to visit a store that stocks a decent range and compare actual results.

I use my printer mainly for reproducing photographs and believe there's nothing much to beat the Epson Stylus Photo range. Choice of paper is vital too if you are after better than photo lab quality.
 
Epson R2880, not cheap but worth every penny!

Very well built and extremely high print quality, plus you have a choice to print on a wide variety of media...
 
Epson is really the leader in terms of photo quality. I have the R1800, which is an 8 ink printer, and prints gorgeous photos up to 13x19". These higher end printers also take full advantage of color profiles and color management (the best way to make sure you're getting accurate color.)

If you don't think you're looking for this high-end of a printer (the R1800 and its next gen model, the R1900, as well as Nstocks' suggestion of the R2880 start at around $600+), I think Epson is still selling some of their 6 ink models for a more reasonable $150-200. I believe these are the Artisan series.

The reason most of these printers require you to change the ink if just one cartridge is empty, is because if the printheads have to move without all the inks installed, it can damage them, and then you have to buy a new printer. One nice side effect for the companies (and the one thing most customers *assume* is the reason), is that they're just forcing you to buy ink.

Don't get that Envy 100 printer if you can help it. It's made to look nice, not to be efficient with ink. It uses the old style 2 cartridge system (where if one color runs out, you really HAVE to change the ink, and you throw away whatever color ink is left...that's a LOT of waste.)

One final tip for inkjet printers in general - Try to use the same paper as the ink, as you'll tend to get better quality. For documents, buy *Inkjet* paper (22-24 pound), instead of the cheap copy paper (20 pound). It costs a few bucks more, but it doesn't soak in as much ink as the higher grade paper, and as we all know...paper is cheaper than ink :)

Hope this helps!
 
I have some store credit from HP.com, and I am looking also for a printer.
My requirements are:
- HP
- Wireless N
- AirPrint compatible
- All in One Scanner - Copier
- Independent Ink Cartridges
- Not so expensive Ink cartridges
- Nice to have, but not deal breaker: document feeder for the scanner/copier
There are so many models that I'm a little overwhelm with the choices, any suggestions are welcome, as we would like to print decent photos with it also.
 
I currently have a Canon Pixma mp620 which produces pretty amazing prints. I print all my images at 1200 dpi and have had great results. Likewise my Epson Stylus R280 and R300 are likewise very good printers. For the money stick with Canon or Epson and steer clear of HP
 
McGiord said:
I have some store credit from HP.com, and I am looking also for a printer.
My requirements are:
- HP
- Wireless N
- AirPrint compatible
- All in One Scanner - Copier
- Independent Ink Cartridges
- Not so expensive Ink cartridges
- Nice to have, but not deal breaker: document feeder for the scanner/copier
There are so many models that I'm a little overwhelm with the choices, any suggestions are welcome, as we would like to print decent photos with it also.
Click to expand...

All of the recent Officejet (with the exception of the 4500 series), and most of the recent mid-high end Photosmarts are AirPrint capable (if the printer says it uses ePrint, then it's also AirPrint as well.)

Good models to check out:

6500A series - uses 920 series inks, and can take 920XL (extra large) cartridges. 920XL black costs around $31 and gives you 1200 pages.

8500A series - uses 940 and 940XL series ink. 940XL black costs about $35, but gives you a whopping 2200 pages of ink. Plus and Premium models have a legal size scanning bed, and Premium gives you a 2nd paper tray and 2 full sets of the *color* ink (one set of standard size black.)
 
Printer Ink Cartridges for Photography

When it comes to photography printer you can choose the best one with this printer ink cartridges because whether you're a budding photography enthusiast or a seasoned shooter, you need an inkjet printer that's geared primarily for producing high-quality prints. These printers offer tons of features and image quality that will appeal to a broad range of photographers. I can has line drawings, renderings, presentation panel, and project schedule.

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Printing accurately at home is fraught with complications that you should consider before buying a home printer thinking it will work well. The main thing is color reproducibility. To make a very complicated topic brief, what your camera image records, what your computer monitor displays, and what your printer prints are all different. The only way to have these colors "sync" is to use calibrated monitors, printers, and software - which are expensive.

Just want to give you a heads up before you buy anything and then print it out thinking that it is the "printer" that is messing up the colors as almost all the printers >$300 can produce very nice images if calibrated correctly.
 
I use Epson Artisan 810 and it prints great photos every time.
 
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