Questions on Printing Photographs With Cannon PIXMA

[jim evans]

I just bought a Cannon PIXMA iP5200 and have two questions about
printing photos.

I had never tried to print photographs on plain inkjet 24 lb paper
before and they are coming out much too light. Is this normal for
printing on plain paper, or is it something about the Canon printer?

I also printed a couple of photos on some HP premium glossy photo
paper I had lying around from an earlier printer. The ink seems to
bead up on the image. Must one use only Canon paper? I got the Canon
instead of a Epson because I read that Epsons were finicky and only
produced good results on Epson paper but Canons would make good prints
on any good quality photo paper. If I must restrict printing to
certain photo papers, which ones are they?

jim

 

[measekite]

I just bought a Cannon PIXMA iP5200 and have two questions about
printing photos.

I had never tried to print photographs on plain inkjet 24 lb paper
before and they are coming out much too light. Is this normal for
printing on plain paper, or is it something about the Canon printer?

Do not waste your ink. I would use either Canon PHoto Paper Pro or I
would cut full sheets to size of Costco/Kirkland glossy photo paper and
use the Canon Pro setting. The result will be about 97% as good at 1/7
of the cost. Costco sells a good rotary paper cutter under the Fiskers
brand. The model appears to be made for Costco. Make sure you use only
Canon ik for best results and no print head clogs that can ruin the printer.

I also printed a couple of photos on some HP premium glossy photo
paper I had lying around from an earlier printer. The ink seems to
bead up on the image.

That paper is not good for Canon.

Must one use only Canon paper?

No Costco?Kirkland photo glossy, Epson Glossy and or Epson matte paper
works well.

 

[measekite]

I just bought a Cannon PIXMA iP5200 and have two questions about
printing photos.

I had never tried to print photographs on plain inkjet 24 lb paper
before and they are coming out much too light. Is this normal for
printing on plain paper, or is it something about the Canon printer?

I also printed a couple of photos on some HP premium glossy photo
paper I had lying around from an earlier printer. The ink seems to
bead up on the image. Must one use only Canon paper? I got the Canon
instead of a Epson because I read that Epsons were finicky and only
produced good results on Epson paper but Canons would make good prints
on any good quality photo paper. If I must restrict printing to
certain photo papers, which ones are they?

jim

 

[Edwin Pawlowski]

I had never tried to print photographs on plain inkjet 24 lb paper
before and they are coming out much too light. Is this normal for
printing on plain paper, or is it something about the Canon printer?

No printer does well on plain paper. Use photo paper for photos, use a good
quality coated paper for a mixed use of say, a memo with a couple of photos
on it. The paper makes a huge difference.

I also printed a couple of photos on some HP premium glossy photo
paper I had lying around from an earlier printer. The ink seems to
bead up on the image. Must one use only Canon paper?

Each of the major companies tweaks their ink and paper combinations. Some
us dye inks, other use pigment inks and the characteristics vary. I've had
very good results with Canon paper, but I've also had equal results with
Kodak Premium High Gloss. A couple of people say Kodak is not good for
Canon, but it works for me.

 

[measekite]

No printer does well on plain paper. Use photo paper for photos, use a good
quality coated paper for a mixed use of say, a memo with a couple of photos
on it. The paper makes a huge difference.





Each of the major companies tweaks their ink and paper combinations. Some
us dye inks, other use pigment inks and the characteristics vary. I've had
very good results with Canon paper, but I've also had equal results with
Kodak Premium High Gloss. A couple of people say Kodak is not good for
Canon, but it works for me.

Kodak paper is known not to work well with Canon printers using Canon
ink. Canon Tech Suppt does not recommend Kodak paper but they will
recommend Epson paper if you do not want to use their own.

 

[Taliesyn]

I just bought a Cannon PIXMA iP5200 and have two questions about
printing photos.

I had never tried to print photographs on plain inkjet 24 lb paper
before and they are coming out much too light. Is this normal for
printing on plain paper, or is it something about the Canon printer?

No, generally photos will look washed out on plain paper. If you must
print on plain, try the Quality setting instead of plain. That helps a
wee bit.

I also printed a couple of photos on some HP premium glossy photo
paper I had lying around from an earlier printer. The ink seems to
bead up on the image.

HP can be tricky sometimes. I have some 4x6 HP Photo Paper (glossy) and
it prints graphics beautifully. I don't use it for photos though, just
graphics. I like this paper for special projects like cards and notices.

Must one use only Canon paper?

Of course not. But keep an ear out for paper people recommend here, like
Costco's Kirkland brand (that Measekite recommended), it is very good,
at a fraction of Canon Photo Paper Pro. Epson Glossy Photo Paper (also
from Costco) is excellent, but I don't like it for photos. It doesn't
look like traditional photo paper. I find it's better suited for
graphics work like greeting cards, CD liners, etc. It is absolutely
excellent for this purpose.

I got the Canon
instead of a Epson because I read that Epsons were finicky and only
produced good results on Epson paper but Canons would make good prints
on any good quality photo paper. If I must restrict printing to
certain photo papers, which ones are they?

The one's mentioned here in this newsgroup. But do your own research
too. Try different brands. For example, I get excellent results from
dollar store paper, believe it or not (20 sheets for $1.00). It does
have one drawback, you can't handle the prints for about a day.
Otherwise the printed result is just slightly better than Canon's best
paper. With Costco's paper being so affordable - 7 cents versus 5 cents
for dollar store paper, I don't even bother with the dollar store paper
and its "drying problems."

One dreadful paper I found is called IBM Glossy. It doesn't seem to work
on any printer - at least it didn't work with my old Lexmark and my
current Canons. And yes, it did say works with all printers. Go figure.

Oh, the problem was that the ink would literally scratch off the surface
with your fingernail or just by lightly rubbing anything printed. I have
no idea who they designed that paper for with its strange surface
coating. Worked good in the fireplace though. . .

-Taliesyn

 

[jim evans]

I just bought a Cannon PIXMA iP5200 and have two questions about
printing photos.

I had never tried to print photographs on plain inkjet 24 lb paper
before and they are coming out much too light. Is this normal for
printing on plain paper, or is it something about the Canon printer?

I also printed a couple of photos on some HP premium glossy photo
paper I had lying around from an earlier printer. The ink seems to
bead up on the image. Must one use only Canon paper? I got the Canon
instead of a Epson because I read that Epsons were finicky and only
produced good results on Epson paper but Canons would make good prints
on any good quality photo paper. If I must restrict printing to
certain photo papers, which ones are they?

jim

Thanks for the many replies.

I should have explained. The reason I need to print on regular paper
is a Word document I am making will be downloaded and printed by many
people. I realize the photographs will not be good but I would like
to make them print the best I can. If it is normal for images to
print lighter then I will adjust the images down to compensate, but if
it is just my printer doing this then I will leave them properly
adjusted. When I say they print lighter I'm not sure that's the
same as washed out, but it may be. I mean you can see into
dark/shadow areas. In one shot there is a darkened doorway to an
unlighted room. In a correct print you can't make out anything in the
room. On the paper prints you can plainly see a bed with clothes on
it, a chair, etc.

jim

 

[Edwin Pawlowski]

I should have explained. The reason I need to print on regular paper
is a Word document I am making will be downloaded and printed by many
people. I realize the photographs will not be good but I would like
to make them print the best I can.

There are a couple of "presentation" papers that work well. Heavier that
copier bond paper, but not as heavy as photo paper. Makes images much more
snappy. You may want to try a couple of different brands. I have some at
work so I can't tell you the brand, but it came from Staples.

 

[measekite]

Do not take this advice. If you print photos than you should print them

 

[George E. Cawthon]

Thanks for the many replies.

I should have explained. The reason I need to print on regular paper
is a Word document I am making will be downloaded and printed by many
people. I realize the photographs will not be good but I would like
to make them print the best I can. If it is normal for images to
print lighter then I will adjust the images down to compensate, but if
it is just my printer doing this then I will leave them properly
adjusted. When I say they print lighter I'm not sure that's the
same as washed out, but it may be. I mean you can see into
dark/shadow areas. In one shot there is a darkened doorway to an
unlighted room. In a correct print you can't make out anything in the
room. On the paper prints you can plainly see a bed with clothes on
it, a chair, etc.

jim

I think what you are seeing is probably normal.
But it sounds like the picture are a little light.
I don't print with Word, but my pictures
inserted into WordPerfect appear essentially the
same as printing directly from the Canon Easy
Photo Print. You should be select standard or
high quality paper printing. If you are already
doing that, then you should just adjust the photo
for a bit more contrast and to be a bit darker.

 

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Do not take this advice. If you print photos than you should print them
on photo paper. The only exception is if you are using a photo in a
document such as a newsletter.

No shit, that is exactly what I just said. Try reading both parts of the
conversation.

 

[Taliesyn]

Thanks for the many replies.

I should have explained. The reason I need to print on regular paper
is a Word document I am making will be downloaded and printed by many
people. I realize the photographs will not be good but I would like
to make them print the best I can. If it is normal for images to
print lighter then I will adjust the images down to compensate, but if
it is just my printer doing this then I will leave them properly
adjusted. When I say they print lighter I'm not sure that's the
same as washed out, but it may be. I mean you can see into
dark/shadow areas. In one shot there is a darkened doorway to an
unlighted room. In a correct print you can't make out anything in the
room. On the paper prints you can plainly see a bed with clothes on
it, a chair, etc.

jim

Then you might want to invest in maximum quality plain paper - something
like Kodak Bright White which I use for special print jobs. It gives
superior plain paper images, not comparable to glossy, naturally. But
really quite nice. Print in High quality resolution and perhaps the
"vivid" setting in Effects.

-Taliesyn

 

[Burt]

There are a couple of "presentation" papers that work well. Heavier that
copier bond paper, but not as heavy as photo paper. Makes images much
more snappy. You may want to try a couple of different brands. I have
some at work so I can't tell you the brand, but it came from Staples.

To continue on Edwin P's post, the presentation papers and heavier matte and
double sided matte papers that are designed for inkjet printing are coated
to accept inkjet inks. They provide much better photo prints than plain
paper. Some are coated on one side only and some on both sides. I've used
Kodak, Epson, and Staples coated papers for a variety of purposes. The best
one I've found for double sided printing of greeting cards has been the
Staples photo supreme double sided matte. Detail and color response (canon
i960, MIS inks) is excellent, although glossy photo paper (Costco) is much
better for photos and has the appearance of photo lab prints.

 

[CWatters]

I just bought a Cannon PIXMA iP5200 and have two questions about
printing photos.

I had never tried to print photographs on plain inkjet 24 lb paper
before and they are coming out much too light. Is this normal for
printing on plain paper, or is it something about the Canon printer?

I also printed a couple of photos on some HP premium glossy photo
paper I had lying around from an earlier printer. The ink seems to
bead up on the image. Must one use only Canon paper? I

No. I believe HP Photo paper is unusual (swellable?). I also had problems
with it in my Epson printer.

Epson, TDK and supermarket own brand all work great in both my Epson and my
HP.

Do some experimenting.

 

[CR Optiker]

I just bought a Cannon PIXMA iP5200 and have two questions about
printing photos. [snip]
on any good quality photo paper. If I must restrict printing to
certain photo papers, which ones are they?

jim

Thanks for the many replies.

I should have explained. The reason I need to print on regular paper [snip]
same as washed out, but it may be. I mean you can see into
dark/shadow areas. In one shot there is a darkened doorway to an
unlighted room. In a correct print you can't make out anything in the
room. On the paper prints you can plainly see a bed with clothes on
it, a chair, etc.

jim

Jim...I hate to add another element to this, but given what you describe
above, one solution might be to tweak the images before you insert them. I
use IrfanView as my default viewer and for general purpose image tweaking.
If you go to the "Image/Enhance Colors" function, you can tweak the various
image parameters (brightness, contrast, saturation, gamma and the
individual colors to do color balancing). By changing gamma and the
contrast, I suspect you could get what you want in the printed result.
This, of course, takes a little trial end error, so I wouldn't recommend it
for routine printing, but may be worth it for a "final" important printing.
Also, once you find a group of settings for most of your "normal" images,
you can easily apply those to all such images that will be printed on a
given paper.

For routine printing, the Canon driver for your PIXMA iP5200 lets you set
up a profile. If you do some experimenting with a paper and settings and
find one that works, then by saving the profile and invoking it when you do
that kind of printing, it can be pretty easy for routine work and give
results generally acceptable.

I also have a 5200 and am really very pleased with it. I did a photo
calandar for the family with pictures from a trip to Scotland last summer.
I printed on Staples double sided matte paper and was delighted with the
results. Most of the images printed with the same profile settings, but a
few that out of the "normal" range were tweaked as above with IrfanView
before inserting.

My 2-cents!
Optiker

 

[measekite]

Make sure you get the most out of your IP5200 and use Canon OEM ink that
is controlled by Canon and formulated the design and engineering of the
printer. Keep it clog free. As for matte paper I would go to Staples
and find Epson Double Sided Matte. It works well. If you do need photo
paper go to Costco and get Kirkland full sheet photo glossy.

I just bought a Cannon PIXMA iP5200 and have two questions about
printing photos.

[snip]

on any good quality photo paper. If I must restrict printing to
certain photo papers, which ones are they?

jim

Thanks for the many replies.

I should have explained. The reason I need to print on regular paper

[snip]


same as washed out, but it may be. I mean you can see into
dark/shadow areas. In one shot there is a darkened doorway to an
unlighted room. In a correct print you can't make out anything in the
room. On the paper prints you can plainly see a bed with clothes on
it, a chair, etc.

jim

Jim...I hate to add another element to this, but given what you describe
above, one solution might be to tweak the images before you insert them. I
use IrfanView as my default viewer and for general purpose image tweaking.
If you go to the "Image/Enhance Colors" function, you can tweak the various
image parameters (brightness, contrast, saturation, gamma and the
individual colors to do color balancing). By changing gamma and the
contrast, I suspect you could get what you want in the printed result.
This, of course, takes a little trial end error, so I wouldn't recommend it
for routine printing, but may be worth it for a "final" important printing.
Also, once you find a group of settings for most of your "normal" images,
you can easily apply those to all such images that will be printed on a
given paper.

For routine printing, the Canon driver for your PIXMA iP5200 lets you set
up a profile. If you do some experimenting with a paper and settings and
find one that works, then by saving the profile and invoking it when you do
that kind of printing, it can be pretty easy for routine work and give
results generally acceptable.

I also have a 5200 and am really very pleased with it. I did a photo
calandar for the family with pictures from a trip to Scotland last summer.
I printed on Staples double sided matte paper and was delighted with the
results. Most of the images printed with the same profile settings, but a
few that out of the "normal" range were tweaked as above with IrfanView
before inserting.

My 2-cents!
Optiker