Re: [Leica] Epson 700 photo

[Dan Cardish <dcardish@microtec.net>]

Congratulations!  It is a great printer!

The normal rule of thumb for Epson printers is to scale the photo to 1/3
the printers max resolution.  For my Epson Photo (720 dpi), I resize the
image so that the image dpi is at least 240 dpi.  In practice, I print fine
image when the dpi is as low as 200.

The inks and papers are definitely not archival.  Do not expose them to
direct sunlight for any length of time (but who does that to ANY print?).
On the other hand, prints in my portfolio show no signs of deterioration
after 3/4 year.  I am currently testing a print I made on Photo Glossy
Paper.  I have half of it covered up by aluminum foil, the other half in a
room exposed to indirect daylight, all the time.  After about 6 months,
there is a noticeable difference between the two sides, but the fading
isn't so much that it would have been noticed on its own.  Doesn't sound
very promising, I guess, but it is a simple matter to whip off another
print, should something happen to an old one, and efforts are under way to
produce archival inks.

The ink is expensive.  I can get about 23 8x10 photographic images from one
cart of colour ink, which sells for about $30 here in Canada.  The black
cart lasts for about 3 colour carts, and costs about the same.  When the
light comes on forcing you to replace a cart, you can trick the printer
into thinking that you have put a new one in, by simply taking out the
"empty" cart, and re-inserting it.  You can get maybe 6 more prints this
way, but watch out for you WILL run out of ink eventually!

I typically print a 2x3 inch image on cheap paper, prior to committing a
full page print, in order to judge colour and contrast.

Hope this helps

The normal rule of thumb for Epson printers is to scale the photo to 1/3
the printers max resolution.  For my Epson Photo (720 dpi), I 

Dan C.

At 03:56 PM 18-09-98 -0700, you wrote:
>G'day Lugnuts,
>
>I've finally replaced my computer's printer with an Epson Photo700. Initial
>colour prints from it are really quite amazing, but I have some questions
>for you.
>
>1. Resolution; what resolution is needed to print at the 1440 dpi setting?
>I've trialled images at 200 dpi in photoshop and the images print quite
>well, but are there any rules for this digital darkroom?
>
>2. Longevity; how long do the prints last, and are there any tricks to
>resist fading?
>
>Finally, do you have any other tricks to minimize wastage of ink paper etc.
>For example, do you do test prints prior to a full A4 sheet?
>
>cheers
>
>Alastair Firkin,
>
>http://users.netconnect.com.au/~firkin/AGFhmpg.html
>
>
>
>