I'm trying to get an Epson 3800 to print an acceptable color image. They all keep coming out dark and muddy, not at all like the image on my screen. I have calibrated my screen and tried all kinds of different settings, but all of my test prints look like there is too much black being laid down on the paper.
Does anyone know what the problem could be?
Thanks for your help!
Posted by Lisa Cuchara on July 19, 2008 at 9:22 AM
what paper and what printer profile are you using?
The particular icc profile make all the difference in the world!
There are quite a few things that could be a problem here Ramona....profiles, particulars of calibration, printer settings, other software settings, etc. Have you gotten good prints from this printer before and this is a new problem? Or is it a new printer to you? There are several other questions that might matter...
As Lisa said, what paper and profile?
What software are you printing from (and Windows or Mac)? Are you sure of the settings in it?
Is the image software managing colors, or the printer driver?
What luminance value did you profile to?
What rendering intent are you using?
I'm using Epson Presentation Paper-Matte. Where do I find and set the printer icc profile?
I calibrated with a SpyderPro3 colorimeter.
I'm printing from PhotoShop CS3 on Windows Vista.
It's a new printer for me. I have gotten a couple of good prints on some canvas media but I need to use a different paper for this print job and need to get it to work on various types of paper.
I'm not sure what the luminance value is, so need some help on understanding that.
I've tried each of the rendering intents both perceptual and relative. I've tried both printing with the color management setting and with the printer managing the color.
Basically, I've followed the Epson manual and tried many different combinations of settings, plus making color & levels adjustments in the actual image file. Nothing seems to work yet.
I'll be gone on a photo trip until Thursday, so won't be able to get back to this until Friday. I appreciate all of your help.
I recently bought a 4880, and am doing some printing for the first time. Your problem sounds like an initial problem that I had. I don't know how different the 3800 settings will be from the 4880. But ... In the "Print" window in Photoshop, set the "Color Handling" to "Photoshop Manages Color", and make sure you have selected the correct "Printer Profile". I'm not sure how much it matters, but I have the "Rendering Intent" set to "Relative Colorimetric". Then in the "Page Setup", make sure that you set the "Media Type" to the setting recommended for the paper you are using. Set the "Mode" to "Custom" and select "No Color Adjustment". Hope this helps.
Posted by David Bostedo on July 19, 2008 at 10:21 PM
Just some recommendations for some reading for you guys to get through all the basics of getting good prints :
This article on Naturescapes is a terrific place to begin. If/Since you already own a printer, some of it may not apply, but it steps through color management, paper/printer profiles, and Photoshop settings. I really think everyone should know all this info if they are using these expensive printers.
Another good purchase would be Luminous Landscape's From Camera to Print video series. It's a terrific walk through of setup, profiling, different printers and papers, settings, with detailed explanations of everything you need to know.
To address some of the particular things mentioned :
1) Jim was right on with the general steps to follow in CS3. Letting PS manage colors seems to be what most people do, and should work great for you.
2) The ICC profile for the paper should have come with the printer driver and installed then. If not, it's probably either on a CD that came with the printer, or they can be downloaded from te paper manufacturers website. They should be available for just about any photo paper for the high end Epsons.
And it's very important to be using the right profile to get good color and tone, since it describes how the colors in your image should be translated from your working space to ink on paper. The profile can be set in the CS3 print dialog (although I don't have CS3, so I can't be more specific - sorry),
3) The luminance value is basically just how bright your monitor is. It can be important, because it's pretty common that people calibrate their monitors to be too bright, then prints come out looking too dark compared to what they see on the monitor. I believe somewhere around 100 cd/m^2 is a good setting. I think this should be changeable with most calibration packages.
4) Rendering intents describe what to do with out of gamut colors. The working space for your image in Photoshop will be something like sRGB, Adobe RGB, Pro Photo RGB, etc. When this image is printed, some of the colors that are converted by the profile may not be printable on your printer. These colors are handled differently depending on the rendering intent.
Perceptual intent will compress all the colors of your image in order to fit everything within the printable colors. Relative colorimetric will simply clip colors to the nearest one in the printable color space. Which one is better depends on the image, but I think Relative Colorimetric (with black point compensation) is my most common choice.
This Cambridge in Colour tutorial is a great article on color conversion if you're willing to look into it a little deeper.
I hope this helps....please feel free to ask any more, or more specific, questions....
Good luck!!
Posted by Nathan Lovas on July 20, 2008 at 12:41 PM
Also make sure "Match Print Color" is NOT selected in the print dialog.
The ICC Profile for that paper is called: Pro38 PQIJP_MK
Here is a link to the list of epson profiles for that printer:
I use this printer myself and would be happy help you over the phone if you wanted. You can find my contact info through my website at: www.nathanlovas.com.
Thank you all soooo much for your help. I can see that I have some studying to do. I'll read the articles, do some adjustments and let you all know when I get my first perfect print!!
Posted by Bill Whitney on July 21, 2008 at 6:52 PM
Ramona, I have found Eric Chan's step by step procedure for printing with Epson 3800 very helpful. Here is the link. http://people.csail.mit.edu/ericchan/dp/Epson3800/printworkflow.html
Discussion
9 repliesDoes anyone know what the problem could be?
Thanks for your help!
The particular icc profile make all the difference in the world!
Are you printing via the Epson driver or an image editor?
As Lisa said, what paper and profile?
What software are you printing from (and Windows or Mac)? Are you sure of the settings in it?
Is the image software managing colors, or the printer driver?
What luminance value did you profile to?
What rendering intent are you using?
I'm using Epson Presentation Paper-Matte. Where do I find and set the printer icc profile?
I calibrated with a SpyderPro3 colorimeter.
I'm printing from PhotoShop CS3 on Windows Vista.
It's a new printer for me. I have gotten a couple of good prints on some canvas media but I need to use a different paper for this print job and need to get it to work on various types of paper.
I'm not sure what the luminance value is, so need some help on understanding that.
I've tried each of the rendering intents both perceptual and relative. I've tried both printing with the color management setting and with the printer managing the color.
Basically, I've followed the Epson manual and tried many different combinations of settings, plus making color & levels adjustments in the actual image file. Nothing seems to work yet.
I'll be gone on a photo trip until Thursday, so won't be able to get back to this until Friday. I appreciate all of your help.
thanks
This article on Naturescapes is a terrific place to begin. If/Since you already own a printer, some of it may not apply, but it steps through color management, paper/printer profiles, and Photoshop settings. I really think everyone should know all this info if they are using these expensive printers.
Another good purchase would be Luminous Landscape's From Camera to Print video series. It's a terrific walk through of setup, profiling, different printers and papers, settings, with detailed explanations of everything you need to know.
To address some of the particular things mentioned :
1) Jim was right on with the general steps to follow in CS3. Letting PS manage colors seems to be what most people do, and should work great for you.
2) The ICC profile for the paper should have come with the printer driver and installed then. If not, it's probably either on a CD that came with the printer, or they can be downloaded from te paper manufacturers website. They should be available for just about any photo paper for the high end Epsons.
And it's very important to be using the right profile to get good color and tone, since it describes how the colors in your image should be translated from your working space to ink on paper. The profile can be set in the CS3 print dialog (although I don't have CS3, so I can't be more specific - sorry),
3) The luminance value is basically just how bright your monitor is. It can be important, because it's pretty common that people calibrate their monitors to be too bright, then prints come out looking too dark compared to what they see on the monitor. I believe somewhere around 100 cd/m^2 is a good setting. I think this should be changeable with most calibration packages.
4) Rendering intents describe what to do with out of gamut colors. The working space for your image in Photoshop will be something like sRGB, Adobe RGB, Pro Photo RGB, etc. When this image is printed, some of the colors that are converted by the profile may not be printable on your printer. These colors are handled differently depending on the rendering intent.
Perceptual intent will compress all the colors of your image in order to fit everything within the printable colors. Relative colorimetric will simply clip colors to the nearest one in the printable color space. Which one is better depends on the image, but I think Relative Colorimetric (with black point compensation) is my most common choice.
This Cambridge in Colour tutorial is a great article on color conversion if you're willing to look into it a little deeper.
I hope this helps....please feel free to ask any more, or more specific, questions....
Good luck!!
The ICC Profile for that paper is called: Pro38 PQIJP_MK
Here is a link to the list of epson profiles for that printer:
http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/support/supDetail.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=yes&infoType=FAQ&oid=79928&prodoid=63062509&foid=89511
I use this printer myself and would be happy help you over the phone if you wanted. You can find my contact info through my website at: www.nathanlovas.com.