Lets start from scratch...

[daryll]

Hi All.
well belive it or not even though I have taken several thousand photos with the S2 ,I have never printed one out :eek: .
Why? you might ask ,easy i havent got a clue as to ICC this, Profile that ,calabrate the other.
I did try a few times but always ended up with a picture that looked nothing like the screen image (which in turn looked only a bit like the image I saw with my own eyes).
So i would like Someone to explaine to me (in simple terms) the basics.

I have a Pantone ColorPlus that calibrates the moniter ( I presume gives me an profile for the moniter).
Adobe Photoshop CS and an Epson 2100 printer ,I have some Ilford smooth perl paper with the downloadable profile for that paper.
The images are in RAW format and converted to 16 bit TIFF`s in Photoshop .
My working space is as follows.

RGB = adobe rgb 1998.
CMYK = US web coated (swop) v2
GREY = dot gain 20%
SPOT = dot gain 20%

Preserve embedded profiles
off.
off.

Adobe ACE
perceptual

Use black point compensation
use dither (8bit /channel-Images.

The preview check box is also ticked.

:cheers: Daryll

[Keith Cocker]

Hi Daryll,

I don't have your printer (I have the EPSON 1290) so this might not be the same for you but the way I print is as follows (and I'm delighted with the results and exhibit and sell my prints):

After editing and sizing to actual print size

CS - Print with Preview
Show more options ticked - Colour Managment
Print space - choose the Paper profile for the paper you are going to print on
choose Perceptual as the intent
Press Print..
Choose your printer and open Printer "Properties"
You should then get the Epson printer properties dialogue box
Go into Advanced settings and choose the paper type you are using (Matt etc) Choose "no colour adjustment" option (so your paper profile that you chose in Print Space is controlling this) and the Print Quality (I always use 1440 dpi) You can save these settings.

Then print.

I have profiles for all my papers made for me by Fotospeed which give a better result than using generic profiles as they can be matched better to the exact printer, ink and paper combination but the above should get you good results with the manufacturers profiles.

Best of Luck

[HulaMike]

Have to agree with Keith.

The two most important things to cover when editing and printing are a calibrated monitor and a good ICC profile for the printer/ink/paper combo you use. This is the only way you can print exactly what you see on screen.

I use Epson 1280's with Epson ink (for now) and Epson papers. I purchased ICC's from Jon Cone at InkjetMall.com for this combo. My prints are exactly what I see on screen. No guesswork any longer.

When you buy an ICC from a reputable supplier, they'll show you how to set up your printer and Photoshop for use with their ICC, at least Cone did. Follow the instructions and you're all set.

[eric]

I have a 7600 which is the big brother to the 2100. I have done this so often now I do it without thinking, so I've got Photoshop running in the background to make sure I don't miss something.
Firstly you will need profiles for your printer. I would assume that Epson supplied them with the printer, if not you should be able to download them from their website, I usually use the one in the USA. The Epson printer forum on dpreview also has access to some. I believe Kathy wrote them. Mine are no good to you as they are printer specific. You could go onto this forum and do a search on "profiles"
When you want to print you must turn off all printer color management. On the 7600 I have to click "advanced" on the main printer settings page and this lets me tick "no color management".You should have something similar.
In photoshop choose "print with preview" and then "show more options".
Source space should be set at "document"
Click on the down arrow at "print space" and all of the profiles on your computer will be shown. Just choose the one which matches your paper and away you go.
Hope this helps

[Maisiemouse]

Daryll

I've had several problems with colour printing on Ilford Gallerie paper, even when used with the downloadable profiles. I use an Epson 1290, and I've only ever got satisfactory colour prints using Epson Premium glossy photo paper/genuine Epson ink. This combination can produce reasonable B&W, albeit with a definite tone. I also had no luck whatsoever with Ilford paper & B&W prints - the colour casts were too difficult to control, and I ended up wasting loads of paper.

Incidentally, I've recently been using Lyson Small Gamut cartridges & Lyson paper for B&W. The results are very good, and despite the criticism that the printer becomes dedicated to monochrome I've found no problem at all swapping between Lyson & Epson cartridges in the same printing session (just make sure you keep the cartridges in an airtight container when they're not being used).

Sean

[eric]

Sean,
When I was using a 1270 any black and white print had that colour cast, I think it stems from the fact that although in theory you can make black from cyan, magenta and yellow, in practice you cant.
I did find that the 1270 was very picky about paper. It did not like Kodak or HP. The only third party paper I used was TDK, and their glossy was superb.
At least with the 1290 you can swap carts, if I want to do that I have to empty tubes containing about 250ml of ink. Down here in OZ the ink is over $1 per ml.