Epson Stylus R200 and disc label printing...

[Asylum Steve]

I think one of the best kept secrets of the digital imaging world is the CD/DVD label printing capabilities of the dirt cheap Epson Stylus Photo R200:

http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/c...s&oid=37368464

I knew nothing about this little gem, but saw a Comp USA flyer a few weeks ago offering it for $80 after rebate. I did a little research on the model and became convinced this is the perfect solution to my disc labeling problems. Did I mention eighty dollars???

Like a lot of commercial photographers and graphic artists, I've been trying to figure out how to label my client discs. Sure, had been doing the ole Sharpie technique, but of course, at some point that's not acceptable anymore.

Tried stick on labels, but that's like trying to put window tinting on a car yourself. Tons of little bubbles and crap...

I really thought the new HP LightScribe DVD burners might be the ticket, but while I was waiting for them to become available as stand alone items, I stumbled on the R200. Six color printing (LightScribe is monochromatic) at about half the price...

Below is an image of my first label design, based on my web site's new splash page. Normally I wouldn't use this much black for something like this, but I wanted to see how it would print.

Printing couldn't be easier. You switch to Disc printing mode, swing out a little CD tray, place the special ink-printable disc in a plastic jig that goes inthe tray, line everything up, and the printer does the rest. Oh, first you need to configure disc orientation and ink density. Takes about two minutes and the manual walks you through that.

I couldn't believe how good my first try was. Sure, the fine detail over the black areas was completely lost, but this is simply a matter of adjusting the colors of the original design.

BTW, the printer comes with a little CD labeling art program called Epson Print CD. It's a very simple image editing program with your basic tools and a small library of clip art to use if you want. I made my own design in photoshop and just imported it onto the label template.

This printer is definitely something you should consider if your looking for a cheap but very good solution to your disc labeling problems. If you have any questions about it or the process, let me know...