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Re: Epson or HP for alt-phot ... ?
rocky wrote:
>
> I own an HP1120CSE and the banding is so terrible ...
> There are many, many displeased 1120CSE owners. Take a
> look. Better yet don't waste your time, just buy an Epson.
Philippe Monnoyer wrote:
>
> >I have to choose between a Stylus Color 900 or the last HP (970Cxi I think)
> >for inkjet printing and most probably for alt-phot negs.
> >What I like with HP is that you change the heads along with the ink
> >cartridges, ...
I doubt I got the only good printer. The HP DeskJet 970 works fine. No
banding and good alignment. Various options should be tweaked to
override the preset characteristics for optimum performance. I compared
this printer with the Epson 1200 at several stores and found the HP to
consistently print cleaner crisper fonts. I can only guess that this
might have been do to better printing heads or the ink delivery. I was
impressed by the patented method HP discharges the ink with the 970
(explained on their web site). In another year or so HP will probably
have a larger width for this style printer (this one is limited to 8.5
inches wide.)
For the best resolution, I think it is a good idea to have new printing
heads with each ink cartridge. There is a choice of cartridge size, and
the smaller volume cartridges assure a fresher head (but at a higher
cost.)
The inks are different. HP says that they developed inks that would not
spread as fast and dry quicker. Instead of addressing resistance to
fading, they made all inks to fade at the same rate. Their black ink is
totally different from the colors and blocks enough light to produce
pure white. Note that a new line of inks are used for the 970. I am
not concerned about longevity of the inks as I plan to only print a
negative and use it immediately. In the future I could print another
negative as needed.
The important issues for me are to get get a high enough resolution with
a good enough tonal quality. And to do this at home, myself. Next is
to speed things up as I've only got a 300 Megahertz (waiting for 1.2
Gigahertz.)
Another word on banding. I have noticed that if too much contrast is
given (by way of curve adjustment) to the highlights (dark areas on
negative), then noise or "banding" from the scanner can become
noticeable. It is important to keep in mind that these values are at
the low end sensitivity of the scanner and prone to noise. One
suggestion is to produce an original negative with less maximum density
so that all portions may be scanned producing a good strong signal.
Just as a negative must be customized for a particular process, it must
be customized for digital process and equipment used as well.
--
Jeffrey D. Mathias
http://home.att.net/~jeffrey.d.mathias/