Printing issue

[gracie_r]

I have a Canon photo printer at home that I got back in 2006. Off the top of my head, I can't remember which one - hopefully it won't be important for my question.

I printed out pictures to give to family of my older daughter when she was born (end of 2006). They were printed on Canon paper, probably the paper that came in the box with the printer. Since then, I've seen the pictures hanging up on relitives' fridges and they've yellowed. I don't use the printer much (I usually send out and have my pictures printed) and now I am even more hesitant to use it because of how the pictures look even two years later!

I am thinking it is a problem with the paper, since I printed them with borders and the borders are also yellowed (though the actual photo looks worse). Could the paper in the box have been old? It hadn't been opened until I bought it, so it shouldn't have been exposed to anything. Any other reason the pictures might have yellowed? I'd like to start printing my own photos again, but if they won't hold up for even two years, forget it!

[Anbesol]

Hello Gracie, their are a lot of factors that could go into it. But I need to know which ink/head system you are using, wether the ink is the pg-40/cl-41, or if you are using the cli-8/pgi-5 systems, which head generation it is (model number will tell me this), which OS, and which software you are using to print.

If you are printing from a windows original software, like picture and fax viewer, stop. At the very least, you will want to print from Canons easy photo print. If you have photoshop, that is ideal. The way I personally maximize the color accuracy of my prints is A) tune the photo's to a color calibrated moniter. B) Once completed, convert the tuned photos to a CMYK colorspace. Simply select Image, Mode, CMYK. This simple step will make a very profound difference. C) make sure that the actual image data is set to the size of paper you are printing on, you will *need* to do this to print right from photoshop anyway. And make sure that it is at least 300 dots per inch. Exceeding 300 dpi is fine, but makes no difference.

The drivers for translating colorspace to printer hardware will vary between programs, it actually makes a profound difference which software you print from.

Matte and Semi-Gloss canon paper will give you the very best results, with Canon, all of their double sided 5x7, 8x10, and 8.5x11 paper is actually semi-gloss, though it doesn't state it on the package. The photo paper plus glossy never produces the color accuracy and resolution that semi-gloss and matte do. Canon's base photo paper glossy is absolutely terrible, which is probably what you got with your printer. Matte is significantly better and its cheaper than their glossy, and Semi-gloss is ideal. Their Photo rag, museum etching, and premium matte are great as well, but they are very expensive.

Hope that helps

[gracie_r]

It is a Canon Inkjet PIXMA iP5000, and the ink cartridges say BCI-"color". Does that give you enough info? We probably would have had Windows XP at the time, and I probably used the printer software that came with the printer. But honestly, I can't remember.

Would Canon's easy photo print have come wth the printer? Or is it seperate software? Now I have Photoshop Elements, so I would be printing from that.

And like I said, it was probably was Canon glossy paper that came with the printer, and I probably bought the same stuff when that ran out. I'd much rather use matte anyway, so it is nice to hear that that actually prints better.

Thanks for the info! If you have any more insight now knowing the type of printer, please let me know. I'd like to not have to buy a new one if this one is sufficient.

[Anbesol]

http://www.microcenter.com/single_pr...uct_id=0286469

If you are near a Micro Center, they have an incredible deal on Pixma IP4300's - refurbed units at $50. Its a great deal because its at the pinnacle of Canons CMYK printing technology, and the ink included in the unit alone is worth $70 - I bought 4 of these for just the reason. Yours uses the BCI-6 Ink, a less versatile ink, a significantly less durable ink, and a significantly less capable printhead technology. The IP4300/IP4500 use a much more durable ink, the Chromalife inks, pair that with more advanced ink sublimation technology and better printhead resolutions. Better printing, better use of ink, sharper images, using a cmyk profile and printing to mine - I can outdo the Fuji Frontier at wal-mart every time.

I personally purchased 4 of these, I paid $200 but got $280 worth of ink, $150 worth of print heads (4), and 4 sets of the printers (backups?).

[gracie_r]

Thank you! We do have a Micro Center nearby. I'll have to consider picking up a new one. Thanks again!

[Anbesol]

I'm sorry let me respond to the actual problem. The yellowing is the inks response to the gases of the atmosphere, just natural fading. The BCI-6 ink, printed on Canon paper, will last only months before it starts to fade. The CLI-8 ink however, has a 10 year gas-fastness, meaning you can leave it out on a fridge or something for 10 years before it even begins to fade. When you hear years quoted for ink longevity, ex: Canon dye: 100, Epson dye: 100, HP Vivera: 105 - those are quoted as dark archive longevity, there is also light-fastness (behind UV glass) and gas-fastness (out in the open) which varies, canon's 10 year gas-fastness is very solid performance.