[toni-a]

What's the point of shooting if your pictures will end on storage media and never be seen again ?

I love printing my photos however driving 20 minutes  to the lab isn't that funny. no online printing here.

so I am collecting my pictures till I have a big number of prints and printing every couple of months.

So I am considering home printing.

I want the printer to be able to give decent 20X30cm prints without costing an arm and a leg.

I am ready for some compromise on image quality since I can always print at the lab when it's important, which printer would you recommend in the sub 400 EUR leagues

[Rainer]

Hi Toni,

 

Have you made up your mind yet, whether you want an ink-jet or a dye-sub printer?

 

If you want 20x30cm (8''x12'') prints, you will likely have to go with an ink-jet (since

the choice for dye-sub is very limited at that size).

 

I personally have a small Canon dye-sub (capable of doing 10x15cm) at home. I use

this for the occasional give-away print ... but over the years I have certainly printed

somewhere between 1000 and 2000 pictures with it ... and it is still working ok.

 

Whatever you chose, it should be clear, that home printing cannot compete with

online-printing or shop-printing pricewise. The other thing is, you always need

some spare consumables (paper, ink etc) otherwise you will run out of something

when you desperately want to print something "NOW".

 

Just some thougths ... not overly helpful I fear ... Rainer

[toni-a]

It will be inkjet.

Since I will be mostly printing 20x30 when I want durable waterproof I can still go to the lab

[Brightcolours]

$400 for an A4 photo inkjet? That is a bit much, nowadays. Why not look at A3 inkjets like the Epsom Artisan 1430?

[toni-a]

Prices I am finding here are quite steep.

Found Epson L800 for 400$ Epson L220 for 225, is the L225 a good one for such a job ?

[joachim]

Prices I am finding here are quite steep.

Found Epson L800 for 400$ Epson L220 for 225, is the L225 a good one for such a job ?

Hi,

 

I have good experience with Canon printers.  I am currently using an "anicient" D6700, which has a chroma-life six color inkset.  It went through extended periods of not being used.  Nozzle check is still ok.

 

I had bad experience with Epson in the past.  Gummed up quickly (using genuine Epson ink).  Canon and Epson use totally different technology.  No moving parts in a Canon.  I am considering replacing my Canon with a multifunction.  The chroma-life plus ink sets are said to be even more fade resistant.  I would buy one with six colours (two black, magneta, cyan, yellow and grey).  Using genuine Canon inks and papers and the generic profiles I get good colour on a calibrated monitor.  I never got anywhere with non-Canon papers.  I didn't try any aftermarket ink (ink in a Canon also acts as a coolant).

 

Hope this helps.

[JJ_SO]

If you think to replace your Canon with a multifunction, be aware you can't colour profile Canon A4 printers. At least not on a Mac because it's impossible to print without a colour profile - but that would be necessary to create one.

 

That was the reason I tried Epson after going through 3 Canons, the first was A3+. So far Epson multifunction appears to be okay but I have it now for a year only. I wnated to have a printer which can also print on CD/DVD and there's not much of a choice lately.

 

But I could not calibrate the Epson, too. I gave up and thought I'll take care about that when I have space for a A3+. There are a couple of nice Canon models but for certain papers they want to have a huge border.

 

About "costing no fortune": private printing is the most expensive way to get prints. It's also the fastest to get prints and the one you have most ofcontrol - if you understand how to control this kind of printers. you will waste a lot of ink and a lot of paper...