 |
Photo InkJet Printers |
Information Technology Services Contact us :(323)-343-2600 |
 |
||
|
Photo Inkjet Printers: FAQs
Do I need a photo inkjet printer? If you need to print out a lot of black text, we recommend getting a
laser printer, due to costs and speed. "Photo" Inkjet and Inkjet... what's the difference? Photo colors and speed. Six colors verses Four. A typical four color inkjet printer will output black text at about 7
to20 pages per minute(ppm). Photo printers were designed for printing
detailed images or photos. In order to do so, they tend to be slower and spend more time on each line or pass. Some photo printers may not print
black text as sharp as a normal inkjet at their fastest text print speed,
again due to the purpose and design of the printer. The average photo
printer is able to print black text at about 7-10 ppm. How much are they like real photos? How long do they last? They are very much like traditional real photos from a photo lab. With recent developments with new papers and inks, they look and feel just like a traditional photo. The print technology of the inkjet produces the print by laying down ink in very fine dots. When viewed from about a foot away, the dots blur together and they are not noticeable. Many large signage and billboards are printed with industrial inkjet printers. If the viewer is about 5 to 10 feet away from the sign, they will not see the millions of dots forming the image. The term "lightfastness" is basically how permanent a color is or how unaffected by light it is. Inkjet printer manufacturers have given a lightfast rating of about 25 years on most of the photo print ink, based on such factors as light, framing, and the type of paper the ink was printed on. If your prints are going directly into a album, it should last quite a while. How do I archive my photos? How do I archive them digitally? Frame them under glass or put them in an album away from light and moisture. Keep your negatives in a save place away from light and moisture, too. Since most of your prints would probably come from a digital camera or from a scanned image, it is best to archive (save) the image onto a compact disk recordable (CD-r) and store that in a safe place. CD-r recordable media is inexpensive and durable, just take a look at your audio CDs. The compact disk re-writable (CD-RW) drives are fast writing and inexpensive. As of this writing, CD-RW drives are running at about $50; and CD-r media are less than $0.50 per CD.* What about those on-line photo printers like Ofoto.com*? Just upload the digital images or mail your film to them. Your photos printed and developed the traditional way. The cost as of this writing was about 49 cents a print for a 4"x6" plus shipping and or developing. In about a couple of days, the prints and negatives (if any) are mailed to you. It gets a little costly, and defeats the purpose of getting a photo printer. What is the cost of printing? How about compared to traditional prints? The primary cost of printing anything is paper. It is recommended to buy the photo printer's brand of photo paper for quality prints. Some photo printers and their inks produce low quality prints with third party papers, while others print fine on most papers. As of the time of this writing, the average price for a pack of 20 sheets of 4"x6" paper costs about $6(~$0.30 per photo). For a 50 sheet pack of 8.5"x11" for about 30 dollars(~$0.60 per sheet~$0.20 per photo when printing three 4"x 6" prints on a sheet).* Ink is the next consumable product that adds to the costs. The average cost of an ink cartridge is about $20-$30 for either black or color carts. Depending on printer manufacturer your photo printer may have two carts (one black and one 5 color) or individual carts for each color (6 carts total). There is a tendency in most inkjet printing to use one color faster than others, after which the entire cart needs to be replaced. Individual color ink tank are noted to save money by only replacing the expired color. Individual tank systems usually cost about $10-15 dollars per color as of this writing. Time is the third factor in cost in relation to easy of use and print speed. The convenience of printing a 4"x6" in about a minute or two, sure beats driving to the photo lab and paying a premium for a one hour service. If you are printing a larger 5"x7"(2-5 minutes) or 8"x10"(5-20 minutes), the cost and time would be even better. With new "computer-free" photo printers, you can print directly from the digital camera or media without the turning on your computer. With current bundling of software included with printers, the process of printing is simple drag and drop. So, let's see if we can get a ball park figure of whether or not printing at home is more cost effective than upload printing. Lets say that we can output about about 75 different prints. Why? Typically, a color cart will average about 50-80 4"x6" depending on printer model and settings. Scenario 0- Film Processing Pros would be cost per print is least expensive; archival quality traditional prints and film; film and negatives can be used as evidence in legal documentation, and a film and cameras are inexpensive. Cons would be: the photo lab will print entire roll of film used, whether or not the pictures are desirable. You may only find a hand full of good / useful photos out of an entire roll. It gets expensive with more rolls of film. The inconvenience of driving to the local shop to drop off and pick up adds to the expense. Privacy is another factor, anyone may see it. Lastly, negatives or prints needs to be scanned into computer for web or CD archival. Scenario 1- Upload and Wait Pros would be quality traditional prints of
the prints you want that are much more durable and longer lasting than
inkjet prints; share your photos online, which allows printing. Cons would
be the requirement of the use of a computer connected to the internet, cost,
and time (to upload and to receive). Pros would be fast convenient private prints. Cons would be expensive paper that run up the costs; prints will last about 2-20 years depending on paper and handling. Scenario 3- Most Versatile 8.5 x 11 If you wanted a 5"x7" or 8"x 10", which normally costs about $3-$10 at a photo lab, you can printed it with your 8.5"x11" paper. Pros are versatility of larger print sizes and lower costs. Cons (in addition to the Scenerio 2) are that you have to cut the photos out with a pair of scissors or an utility knife and a metal ruler. I personally use Scenario 3. It is the fastest and most convenient method. Occasionally, I will shoot with film or use on on-line services to make "real" photos. To mimic traditional prints from a lab, inkjet manufactures designed two methods to make prints which has no edge. The first method is to print on "borderless" paper which has perforated edges that detach off. Generally these papers compatible with most printers, and may require downloading templates that will help print within the perforated area. The second method is to make the printer print off the edge of the paper and onto a sponge. Most photo inkjet printers offer this method of printing and has exact sized papers (4x6, 5x7...). Does Dots Per Inch (dpi) Resolution Matter? Yes. When shopping for inkjet printers you
will see various resolution sizes by manufacturer. Generally, the greater
the DPI rating, the denser the ink dots are likely to blur become
unnoticeable to the naked eye. With the denser dots, the printouts
should look more like photos. A 720 dpi print has many visible dots. Most
printers today have about 1440 - 2400 dpi depending on manufacturer. At 1440
dpi, the dots disappear at about a viewing distance of 4-7 inches. At 2400+
dpi, the dots are not noticeable at close viewing. Some printers require
special papers to utilize the high dpi resolutions. |