looking for a pigment ink printmaker

[Bill Eger]

Bruce,

Aside from the distance -- I'm in Hawai`i -- I fit your other needs.

I have new Epson Stylus Pro 9800 Professional Edition, running ColorBurst RIP, Adobe Creative Suite 3 Design Premier, Quark or Corel X3. Have Epson 44" canvas in stock.

We usually use US Priority Mail. Rolled work in 4" PVC pipe with end caps is very secure.

Do you need imaging work? We use ONLY the Nikon D-80 with NIKKOR 105mm 28 Micro. That makes some folks nervous but it is wonderful for everybody else. Or is your work already in digital format?

Bill Eger

[QT Luong]

I was impressed with the canvas prints made by Michael Chambers http://pictureelement.com/ (formerly of Calypso Imaging) and from what I have seen at his studio in the SF Bay, he would have everything you require. He was a nice person to deal with.

[Harley Goldman]

Try contacting Marc Muench at Muench Photography. He is west coast, but one heck of a good printer.

http://www.muenchphotography.com/

[Bruce Watson]

Thanks all. I've sent email asking for info to some of those mentioned. Sorry Bill - Hawai`i, much as I love it (been there twice, before I got into LF though -- needs another trip!), is just too far away.

Actually, this looks like an opportuntity. Maybe I should buy that 9800 and become a printermaker for the "other side" of NA It's a thought anyway.

[Bill Eger]

This is where I got my degree, BTW. They don't like Epsons last time I was associated with them.

There are always a bunch of people who don't like anything you bring up. Normally it is caused by some strange prejudice or, just as often, total lack of understanding of the technology. Scares 'em. Epson's UltraChrome K3 inks and the very stable jet systems used make Epson the most consistent printer in the world. The print you pull today can be matched precisely a year from now.

If there is a down-side to Epson it is in their tech support and sadly wrong profiles for their own media. That is correctable with ICC profiles and some patient tweaking for each type of work needed for the growing customer base.

Where is Bowling Green, by the way?

[Greg Lockrey]

Where is Bowling Green, by the way?

In Ohio about 20 miles south of Toledo. I'm in Michigan about 5 miles north of Toledo. BGSU was a good school and still is in the Visual Communications and Art worlds. Kind of a "sleeper" college with some great talent. A lot of the college text books in those fields were written by BG professors at one time or another. The college team color wheel was "invented" by a BG prof BTW.

[Greg Lockrey]

Actually, this looks like an opportuntity. Maybe I should buy that 9800 and become a printermaker for the "other side" of NA It's a thought anyway.

We'll welcome you aboard too, but be prepaired to spend about $20k to "tweak" that printer in to satisfy your work flow.

[Bill Eger]

We'll welcome you aboard too, but be prepaired to spend about $20k to "tweak" that printer in to satisfy your work flow.

Greg, I don't know where you got that information but it is dead wrong. There is a company in Los Angeles that supplies the 9800 plus a Mac and they get beginniners set up and calibrated -- if you believe them -- for about $20k. But the printers in Honolulu who have used their "service" weren't happy. I didn't use any outside service, bought my printer and supplies from IT Supplies and it's running fine. As I noted in a previous send, Epson tech support is very disappointing. The profiles supplied by Epson for THEIR media print way too dark. Tech Support for Epson doesn't know what that means. There is very good information from ColorBurstRIP which Epson supplies no extra charge with the machine.

You have had a number of negative comments about Epson and I think it is time you refreshed your information sources.

[Greg Lockrey]

Greg, I don't know where you got that information but it is dead wrong. There is a company in Los Angeles that supplies the 9800 plus a Mac and they get beginniners set up and calibrated -- if you believe them -- for about $20k. But the printers in Honolulu who have used their "service" weren't happy. I didn't use any outside service, bought my printer and supplies from IT Supplies and it's running fine. As I noted in a previous send, Epson tech support is very disappointing. The profiles supplied by Epson for THEIR media print way too dark. Tech Support for Epson doesn't know what that means. There is very good information from ColorBurstRIP which Epson supplies no extra charge with the machine.

You have had a number of negative comments about Epson and I think it is time you refreshed your information sources.

Oh you misinterpreted my meaning, Bill. I have 5 Epson's from the small 3800 and 4800 plus 3 @ 9600's. I had as many as 5 at one time, but streamlining the production to smaller X800 machines. No, I like Epson. The $20k is about the amount of paper and ink you will use playing with the printers just getting the work flow to work for you the way you want it, if you are as critical as I am anyway. I don't have to do this with each machine since they are very close tolarances in production, delta 12, I read somewhere. I copy artwork for a living and the client expects that the print to be as close to the original as possible but not some facsimile to a perseived reality as in general photography. If the 3800 is any indication of where Epson is heading, I can't wait for a 44 inch version.

[Bill Eger]

Oh you misinterpreted my meaning, Bill. I have 5 Epson's from the small 3800 and 4800 plus 3 @ 9600's. I had as many as 5 at one time, but streamlining the production to smaller X800 machines. No, I like Epson. The $20k is about the amount of paper and ink you will use playing with the printers just getting the work flow to work for you the way you want it, if you are as critical as I am anyway. I don't have to do this with each machine since they are very close tolarances in production, delta 12, I read somewhere. I copy artwork for a living and the client expects that the print to be as close to the original as possible but not some facsimile to a perseived reality as in general photography. If the 3800 is any indication of where Epson is heading, I can't wait for a 44 inch version.

Greg, There is a ton of difference between the 9600 and 9800. The main change in Epson quality print is their fairly new UltraChrome K3. I have some questions for them that are unanswered about "Photo" and "Matte" blacks. My preference is Matte. Epson support dudes say that if it is used on Epson Premium Luster Photo Paper it won't dry. Nonsense. I just took a photo job off the machine and the most recently printed 100 percent black was dry!

I've had this shop in action since February. ONE problem erupted but it had nothing to do with quality except that I needed to hit the Pause button and the next few traverses of the print head when re-started made unacceptable extensions on a quarter-inch of space. Support denies that could happen, of course but...

I do a wide range of work including art. And, as said earlier, I use the Nikon D-80 raw for my imaging! The result to some very picky artist eyes is that it beats the color and resolution of two "fine art reproduction" folks here. I print 44" full frame wide. My main exhibit is a $100 bill printed 44" with all the engraving sharp as a needle. Takes me a 50th of a second to get art ready for PhotoshopCS3. What do you use for imaging?

I kid thee not.