evan_sears Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 I've recently dismissed my purism, and would like to start using a digital darkroom. I have some friends that swear by the Epson 2200, and it seems like an OK deal, but I'm concerned about the permanence of the images. I know the inks for this printer are supposed to be archival, but is this really the case? And how does the quality compare to other printers in the same price range? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackflesher Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 About three days after I got my 2200, I hung a print from it on a wall in my house that gets 2 - 4 hours of direct sunlight a day depending on the time of year. That was about three years ago and the print looks just like it did the day I hung it there... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary_ferguson1 Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 With just a modicum of common sense the archival qualities of the 2100/2200 series aren't really an issue. For me the big problem is that you're pretty much confined to matte papers with this printer. There's been some exciting news in the last few days that a new Epson A3 printer is on the way, higher print resolution plus a "gloss optimiser" for glossy prints. If gloss is something you want then you may be better waiting a few months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack paradise Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 One thing I dont like is buying something only to find out a few weeks later that the product has been replaced by a newer model. So, here's the new Epson 2100/2200 replacement. It will not be available till early 2005. Just thought you'd like to know. And the Epson 2200 is not any less printer because of it either. http://www.i-love-epson.co.jp/products/printer/inkjet/pxg5000/pxg50001.htm You can translate the whole web page at http://babelfish.altavista.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evan_sears Posted September 28, 2004 Author Share Posted September 28, 2004 So, you say that you can only use matte papers with this printer? Are there any other limitations i should know about? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlsohl Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 You can use glossy and luster papers with the 2200. The problem is bronzing with glossy papers, but you can GREATLY minimize it by extremely minor tweaks to output levels of your printed image (print with minimum value of 3 or 4 instead of 0 in levels, and with a max value of 250 or so instead of 255). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlsohl Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 More...premium luster is my favorite paper with this printer, and the results look truly great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gabriel_shaw1 Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 I find that the Fuji Premium Glossy and Satin with Printfix profiles that I created give hardly any bronzing and produce excellent results Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmi Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 You might want to wait a little longer. I heard today that Epson has announced a replacement for the 2200. Check the Epson site or the Photokina site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobmichaels Posted September 28, 2004 Share Posted September 28, 2004 My view differs from several above. Don't be in the group learning how to make good prints from a new model printer. Choose a model that has tried and true developed workflows. You want procedures to follow, not be the one developing them. Especially if you're just starting out. Leave sorting out the new model printers to the experienced guys. High quality digital printing is not a "point and click" process. There's a bit of art, a bit of science and a bit of black magic involved. It's not incredibly complex, but there is a learning curve. Sure, 99% of the digital photo printing folks do the point and click process. They are the same ones that use point & shoot cameras because they require no thought. The same ones that are pleased when a photo "comes out" and has recognizable shapes. They are not the ones who use Photo.net I shoot film and love the scanning and digital output process, so don't think I'm being negative, but........... Have you realized that a working knowledge of Photoshop or a similar image processing program is an absolute necessity for quality prints? That's a learning curve unto itself. FWIW, I've been printing digitally for several years and still believe the 1280, the predecessor to the 2200, is just as good a printer if you use pigment inks (like the 2200), is easier to use and 1/2 half the price of the 2200. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_mallison Posted September 29, 2004 Share Posted September 29, 2004 Though I agree with the previous responder re: Epson 1280, the poster mentioned archivability as an important issue. The best you can get out of the 1280 (with matte paper) is 25 years. Not bad, but far less than the 2200. And with glossy surfaced papers, more like 10 years. Something to consider. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randalldouglas Posted September 29, 2004 Share Posted September 29, 2004 I don't have an answer from personal experience (only have a lowly c84 with durabright inks), but there answers are on this site: <a href="http://www.wilhelm-research.com/> They compare permanence of various inks and papers and have specifics about the 2200 in various documents. The news for proprietary pigment-based inks and epson papers. My only nit: I would like to see more tests and specifics on 3rd party papers and inks on this site other than "stay away from them if you don't know." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randalldouglas Posted September 29, 2004 Share Posted September 29, 2004 I don't have an answer from personal experience (only have a lowly c84 with durabright inks), but there answers are on this site: <p> <a href="http://www.wilhelm-research.com/">wilhelm-research.com</a> <p> They compare permanence of various inks and papers and have specifics about the 2200 in various documents. The news for proprietary pigment-based inks and epson papers. My only nit: I would like to see more tests and specifics on 3rd party papers and inks on this site other than "stay away from them if you don't know." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lei_liu1 Posted September 29, 2004 Share Posted September 29, 2004 I love my 2200, it was miles better than the 1280 that I had before. A few issues to consider as disscussed above. 1. Archival or not it's all relative. The 2200 will be more archival than the dye-based ink such as 1280, but i don't think it is even comparable with fiber-based silver prints. For Archival color prints, send the image out to a lab have them use Fujifilm Christal-Archival paper with a lightjet. 2. Read more about digital ink-jet printing from the web, it's not exactly like traditional color prints. With glossy paper, back or dark places will seem flater. That's why most people use luster or matte, Epson Premium-Luster is a good paper with it's own profile. 3. You have to experience on your own with different kinds of paper and ink (2200 offers two different kinds of black ink, photo black and matte black, i found the later works better with none-glossy paper). The best all around paper I found is Ilford Smooth Pearl with Stylus Photo 2100/2200 ICC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobmichaels Posted September 29, 2004 Share Posted September 29, 2004 Chris & Lei: Archivalness You seemed to have missed by comment "1280 using pigment inks (like the 2200)" I only use pigment inks in my 1280, not the dye inks that Epson sells. FWIW, I use the 1280 pigment ink from MIS Associates in a CFS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evan_sears Posted October 1, 2004 Author Share Posted October 1, 2004 the last post totally lost me. What are all those abbreviations? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy a. Posted October 11, 2004 Share Posted October 11, 2004 MIS associates is a company that makes very respected third-party inks for epson printers. (see inksupply.com) CFS is "continuous flow system" or something along those lines. You connect a set of large external ink tanks to the printer which last a dozen or so times longer than the original cartridge. This also gives the option of stuff like multiple gray-toned inks for B&W printing, pigment-based inks, etc., and purportedly pays for itself pretty quickly in reduced ink costs. Systems for the 1280 are around $200 I believe and $300 for the 2200. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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