Printing large panoramas?

The slightly older Epson 2100 will also take these rolls, and is available
used for more reasonable money, if that is an issue. Uses the same pigment
based inks and produces very nice results. Most other choices are going to
get very expensive.


Peter

 

I want to buy a printer that is capable of printing large panoramas. By
that, I mean pictures that are wide than say A4/A3. Are there any inkjet
printers that can take rolls of paper? Can you buy inkjet paper in rolls?
Image quality is important as the intention is to frame the pics for
hanging. Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Phil

 

The Epson 2400 will take A3+ sheets and a roll of paper that is 329mm
wide. There is a review in this week's "Amateur Photographer" that
rates the 2400 very highly indeed.

The downside is the price, typically over £500. But the quality of
the prints is superb, and they have a predicted life of 100+ years.

I'm considering buying one to replace or supplement my Epson 1800.

 

I've looked at a few reviews of the Epson 2400, it seems very good. I've
also looked at the Epson 1800. That looks quite nice too. As an Epson 1800
owner what is your opinion of the 1800?

Phil

 

I find it very slow. I bought it to print wedding photos, which means
fairly large quantities. My wedding packages start at 25 photos, then
40, 60 and 100. Most people choose 40. 25 and 60 are joint second in
the popularity stakes and the 100 package has only been taken up once.

Printing 40 at anywhere between 10x8 and A4 takes between 11 and 14
minutes each, meaning that the printer is tied up for up to nine hours
- a whole working day. So I tend to have them done on a Fuji Frontier
with a lot of manual intervention. The 100 package was done on the
Frontier - I simply don't have two and a half days!

The prints from the 1800 are remarkably good. The quality is, in my
opinion, indistinguishable from chemical prints. I can't imagine that
the 2400 is markedly better, except in black and white, where the new
"light light black" will probably improve on the range of tones that
is available with the 1800. I have had no complaints about the
quality of colour prints from the 1800. I don't use it for black and
white - I do that in the darkroom. But the 2400 might cause me to
retire the darkroom.

The 1800 is reasonably quiet and the ink costs are acceptable - I only
use Epson ink and paper to ensure that the prints will last. The 1800
is very well made and has been totally reliable, even when worked very
hard. However it doesn't accept A3+ paper and, as far as I am aware,
it won't work with a paper roll.

I also use an Epson 800 for proofing and one-off jobs. It is
basically an A4 version of the 1800, although there are some minor
differences.

I hope that is of some help.

 

Thanks for the detailed appraisal of the 1800. It's very useful. I guess if
it's good enough for wedding photography, then it is good enough for me! I
notice you say that the 1800 can't use A3+ or roll paper, however the blurb
from Epson suggests that it can. I checked out the PDF brochure at
http://www.epson.co.uk/products/inkjet_printers/Stylus_Photo_R1800.htm Paper
sizes like 329mm x 10m are mentioned. Would you be able to shed any light on
that? Perhaps an accessory needs to be purchased for roll paper?

Phil

 

It seems you learn something new every day! Thanks, I'm delighted to
know that. One reason for considering an upgrade to the 2400 was the
ability to print on a roll.

I don't have a manual for the printer so don't know what is involved.
But I will certainly look into it. Thanks again.

 

i think you can get an attachment to allow roll paper printing.

i have an R800, and remember something similar for it.

 

Manuals etc for the 1800 can be found here:

http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/...e=yes&infoType=Doc&oid=14121&prodoid=53540919

Phil

 

Thanks Phil. That link was very useful - I have downloaded the latest
drivers from the Epson site.

From the user manual and product information, it seems that the paper
roll guides should come with the printer. I bought my printer bare,
without the roll guides and with no paperwork, software or drivers, in
an auction sale of equipment from a failed business.

At least I now know what all the buttons do! Thanks again.