Can anyone recommend a Photo Printer?

[Tao]

I've got a Canon MP500 All in One printer which i use mainly for printing photographs. The problem is that the colours come out rather dull on the prints and to be honest, i'm not happy with it.

I'm looking for another printer. Probably, a dedicated photo printer, as the MP500 is still useful for regular printing and scanning.

Does anyone have any recommendations?

[Marmite the Dog]

I've got a Canon MP500 All in One printer which i use mainly for printing photographs. The problem is that the colours come out rather dull on the prints and to be honest, i'm not happy with it.

Do you use the proper settings when you print photos? It makes an awful lot of difference.

[El Gibbon]

I've got a Canon MP500 All in One printer which i use mainly for printing photographs. The problem is that the colours come out rather dull on the prints and to be honest, i'm not happy with it.

Do you use the proper settings when you print photos? It makes an awful lot of difference.

We have a Canon Pixima and an HP 5360 in the office. Both sucked at printing photos until they were set up with the monitors. Monitors, especially the newer LCD types, often give bad 'views' of the actual pix. (too bright) Set up is easy and can be done by most photo processing software. Takes a little trial and error but worth it if you don't have to buy an new printer.

[Tao]

I've tried all the settings i can find, pictures are still dull and dark looking.

[Norton]

Don't do a lot of photo printing myself but find I have similar problems as you when I do. I have found PC Mag does a pretty good job in comparisons of printers. Here's a link for your consideration.

Photo - Reviews and Price Comparisons – from PC Magazine

[gdk]

I've got a Canon MP500 All in One printer which i use mainly for printing photographs. The problem is that the colours come out rather dull on the prints and to be honest, i'm not happy with it.

I'm looking for another printer. Probably, a dedicated photo printer, as the MP500 is still useful for regular printing and scanning.

Does anyone have any recommendations?

I have a CANON PIXMA IP1700 excellent printer up till now had many problems with HP printer

[Bobcock]

I use a monitor calibrator.

When my machine boots the original settings are shown, then the calibration files are loaded and the screen looks totally different.

Without a calibrated monitor you have no chance.

[El Gibbon]

Before you lay out to buy another printer you'll be dissatisfied with try this link.

It lays out the problem for you in detail and includes some tests.

Monitor Calibration and Profiling

You just may be surprised at how well your printers do the job.

E. G.

[Tao]

Good info from Bobcock and El Gibbon regarding monitor calibration. I thought i'd kinda done that stuff already but after looking at the link I don't think i completed the whole process.

[Tao]

I forgot to mention that i use an iMac... that must be why my prints are shite

[El Gibbon]

^ Actually using a Mac should be of help. Apple has made their money on making graphics generation a piece of piss.

Hope it works out for you.

E. G.

[Marmite the Dog]

I forgot to mention that i use an iMac... that must be why my prints are shite

Aye - that'll be it. You're buggered then.

[tcp]

^That was annoyingly predictable.

[Tao]

^That was annoyingly predictable

Yup, i was being sarcastic and getting in before them. Love my 24" iMac actually, but colours on screen don't match the print colours (or even come close) so something is wrong. Either printer or monitor settings, probably both.

[BigRed]

If you want to go the whole hog you need to get ICC profiles for the printer and the monitor. You will probably need to buy the printer manufacturers inks to get consistency and certainly need to use the same paper all the time, you are using photo glossy aren't you? note that you will never get the same range of colour and brilliance from a print because you are viewing reflected light instead of an transmitted light.

I gave up on printing my own and use a decent lab who understands my requirements for the occasional important prints. I was fed up of running cleaning cycles on the odd occasion I wanted a print and couldn't be bothered with setting up those printing ink bottles that you can buy. It's a bit ironic because before I went digital I always did my own printing, black & white and colour.

I find most quick print shops do a good job for the batches of 6x4s that the wife insists on getting printed. I had a book printed after my last holiday in Thailand from free photo album software - Fotobook which cost £42 for a bound book with 30 pages and everyone who has seen it has been amazed at the quality.