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Archive 2013 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets

  
 
CRFTony
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


I've been pretty pleased with my Epson 3880 except for printing wallets (8 up) for seniors. I can see a definite "stair stepping" in the images, most evident at the edge of their faces. Is there anything I can do to stop this from happening? I'm using 5, the highest print quality possible and I'm creating the wallets using the "picture package" script in Photoshop.


Nov 01, 2013 at 07:00 PM
WAYCOOL
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


what resolution are you sending to the printer, sounds like low rez thumbs?


Nov 01, 2013 at 09:00 PM
CRFTony
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


I'm sending the 8x10 sheet to the printer at 300 dpi.

I've also tried manually making the 8 up sheet by resizing the original image to 3.5x2.5 inches, then laying them out on an 8x10 page, again at 300 dpi. The results are pretty much the same as using the "picture package" script in PS.




Nov 01, 2013 at 09:39 PM
CRFTony
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


Just an update. I printed at 720 ppi via PS and still see the "lines" from the printer. I tried printing from LR instead and the problem is much, much less visible. I have excellent eyesight and I can still see the "print lines", even on 8x10s printed from Lightroom at 720ppi and the highest quality setting the 3880 allows. I have to look for them, but I can see them, especially on smooth skin tones. Is this normal with "home" printers? Is there any way I can lessen this further? I was expecting the print quality to match what I get from a pro lab but right now, I'm just not getting that with these print lines. The color, saturation, etc. is fantastic but I just feel I'm only 80% there as far as actual print quality goes.


Nov 01, 2013 at 11:41 PM
hugowolf
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


Well there are a couple of things…

Firstly you seem to be confusing dpi and ppi. The printer prints at 1440 dpi and 2880 dpi. The input resolution to the printer would be in ppi. Also there is little point in changing the resolution of an image to 300 ppi (uprezing or down rezing) since the native screening resolution of the printer is 360 or 720 ppi.

What are the pixel dimensions of the images in question?

It has been generally accepted that if your image has a resolution of less than 360 ppi, then you should set the input resolution in Lr to 360 ppi (or if you want to, up rez to 360 ppi in Ps, if that is where you are printing from). If the image resolution is greater than 360 ppi but less than 720 ppi, then go for 720 ppi, but make sure to check finest detail in the driver’s dialog. If you don’t tern on finest detail, it will revert to 360 anyhow.

What paper are you printing on? There are very few papers (mostly high gloss) that respond well to an output resolution of 2880 dpi. For most papers, 1440 dpi is not only sufficient, but also produces better results.

Brian A



Nov 02, 2013 at 01:08 AM
CRFTony
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


BrianA: I definitely am not well versed in printing. This is the first I've ever done my own printing so I'm going through some growing pains.

I'm shooting with a D800 so the full dimension of my images at a 5x7 crop ratio is approx 4912x6877. When I was using Photoshop, I was cropping the images to whatever size I needed (8x10, 5x7, 2.5x3.5) and dropping them on an 8x10 sheet with a resolution of 300.

Last night when I used Lightroom for printing, I noticed that it gave me the option to set ppi, so I set it to 720. This produced much nicer results than I was getting in PS but still not up to the print quality I'd been getting from my lab (Miller's).

I'm printing in Epson Ultra Premium Lustre Photo Paper.

Thanks again for the assistance!



Nov 02, 2013 at 08:26 AM
OntheRez
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


Tony,

I've never attempted the 8-up wallet thing you're working on, but I can say unequivocally that in prints ranging from 4x6 to 16x24, I've not seen the problem you're having. I've found the 3880 to be an excellent printer particularly given its price. Stair stepping first makes me think of over sizing a very small crop, i.e. you just don't have enough pixels in the printing frame. Still with a D800 if you aren't cropping way down, this doesn't seem likely. Are you cropping the image down to the size you've mentioned or just setting their print area to it?

Lr seems easier to print from than Ps. I go with the full SIZED image with paper size set to 4x6 and print at 1440. As Hugo notes most papers don't do as well with 2880. Epson Ultra Premium Lustre Photo Paper is a generic glossy paper and is good for most general (i.e. not ultra quality) work.

Don't know if this is helpful. Are you having this problem with other sizes of printing? If so have you run a maintenance cycle? Wastes ink, but is regularly necessary.

Robert



Nov 02, 2013 at 09:55 AM
CRFTony
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


Robert & Brian - To update, this morning I did some new prints via Lightroom. I changed the printer settings and unchecked "Speed" (it mentioned that it allows printing in both directions) and checked the "Fine Detail" setting. I'm seeing a dramatic difference for the better! I printed everything at 2880. Next time around, I might try the 1440 but I'm very, very pleased with these prints now. I haven't tried any wallets yet but I can see a difference in the larger sizes already.

So things are moving in the right direction.



Nov 02, 2013 at 12:09 PM
hugowolf
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


CRFTony wrote:
Robert & Brian - To update, this morning I did some new prints via Lightroom. I changed the printer settings and unchecked "Speed" (it mentioned that it allows printing in both directions) and checked the "Fine Detail" setting. I'm seeing a dramatic difference for the better! I printed everything at 2880. Next time around, I might try the 1440 but I'm very, very pleased with these prints now. I haven't tried any wallets yet but I can see a difference in the larger sizes already.

So things are moving in the right direction.


If the print head is aligned, bidirectional printing should produce identical results to unidirectional.

Setting ‘finest detail’, will produce no better prints than without it set, unless you are working with vector files, and it slows down printing. But has to be set if you want to input at 720 ppi. Why you would want to input at 720 ppi is another unanswered question.

And unless you are printing on a high gloss surface, 2880 will be marginally worse than 1440 dpi.

Nothing you have mentioned should have changed the print quality in any substantial way. So if “things are moving in the right direction”, it is accidental.

Brian A



Nov 02, 2013 at 07:09 PM
CRFTony
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


Brian A: I want to get the highest quality prints from my printer. If I can get that at 360 and 1440, I'll happily do that, but the prints I was getting last night were not acceptable to my eyes. I tried to take a pic of the problem from one of the prints last night (this is on an 8x10). It's hard to see in this photo, but I believe the "lines" are visible. When I changed the setting this morning and printed a new 8x10, I couldn't see these types of lines.


As always, your advice is much appreciated.



Nov 02, 2013 at 10:04 PM
hugowolf
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


OK, I am not seeing any 'stair stepping', better known as jaggies, which would generally be due to low resolution files. What I am seeing is horizontal banding, which is almost invariably due to head misalignment. (Which would show up more in a bidirectional print than a unidirectional print.) More unlikely, but still possible is a few well placed misfiring nozzles.

When was the last time you did a head alignment?

When was the last time you did a nozzle check print?

Brian A



Nov 02, 2013 at 10:19 PM
CRFTony
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


Sorry for using the incorrect terminology. Like I said, this is all brand new to me.

I just got the printer last week (new) so I haven't done any maintenance. Looks like I'll be giving all of that a whirl tomorrow.

Thanks again!



Nov 02, 2013 at 10:31 PM
hugowolf
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


CRFTony wrote:
Sorry for using the incorrect terminology. Like I said, this is all brand new to me.

I just got the printer last week (new) so I haven't done any maintenance. Looks like I'll be giving all of that a whirl tomorrow.


I don't know why Epson don't have it in the setup procedure, but an auto head alignment should be part of the setup. There is generally no need to do a manual head alignment.

It would be factory calibrated, but I am sure that UPS, FedEx, or whoever delivered it could have adjusted that by a fraction of a millimetre, and that is all that would be needed.

Brian A



Nov 02, 2013 at 10:39 PM
OntheRez
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Epson 3880, issues printing wallets


CRFTony,

Brian obviously knows more than I do about the Epson, but the first thought that hit my mind when I looked at your pix was head alignment. His remark don't know why Epson don't have it in the setup procedure is absolutely valid. Doesn't take much for things to be out of alignment particularly given UPS/FedEx's known propensity for tossing packages about.

Robert



Nov 04, 2013 at 10:32 AM





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