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IPF8400 ordered

danlindberg

Well-known member
I have been seriously looking for someone (within reasonable distance as to avoid shipping) that can do gallery grade printing. I have found none.

In the end I realised that even if I myself have a long way to go, to print as a master printer - the best way to have complete control of the workflow is to have everything you need inhouse.

Can anyone point at either links on the net or advice on a physical book that explains the workflow from the ground up. I will always be printing one piece at a time using my Macbook with current Yosemite.

Any pointers appreciated so I can study a bit until the tool arrives :)
 

scho

Well-known member
Dan,

The Canon iPFWiki discussion forum is a good place to visit for help with any printing issues you may run into. Also be sure to keep your firmware and driver up to date by downloading latest files from the Canon website.

There has been an ongoing color management issue with Canon iPF driver updates and OS X software that requires periodic updating of a system xml file to correct the problem. Doyle Yoder has written about the issue on the Canon iPFWiki and elsewhere. He also keeps the xml file up to date for new software releases and posts a link for downloading the file on the wiki. The file in question is the AppColorMatchingInfo.xml file and it can be found here on your computer:
/Library/Printers/Canon/GARO/Frameworks/GARO_CUPS.framework/Versions/A/Resources/AppColorMatchingInfo.xml

Link to updated AppColorMatchingInfo file

Hope you enjoy printing with your new 8400.
 
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Deleted member 7792

Guest
I'd recommend two books, The Digital Print and The Digital Negative by Jeff Schewe. Both are excellent and cover "the workflow from the ground up" as you put it.

Joe
 

jagsiva

Active member
Congrats Dan! Printing is even more rewarding and frustrating than a tech cam!

When it works, it is a dream. You'll find yourself thinking about final output, what works, what doesn't etc. even as you think about releasing the shutter.

Make sure you follow the routine maintenance, and have some kind of regular use, they hate sitting idle.

The Schewe books are great for printing/profiles/workflow etc. I would also check out Uwe's book on FineArt digital printing at the link below, well written and great fundamentals.

http://www.outbackphoto.com/booklets/booklets.html

Cheers,

Jag
 

vjbelle

Well-known member
You've ordered the best of the bunch. I've owned Epson and Canon and much prefer Canon. The calibration process and understanding how Canon categorizes paper can be a little daunting but take your time and think it through. A calibrated workflow is critical and you should consider making your own paper profiles as there may be none for the paper you want to use. As an example I use both Breathing Color Crystaline and Epson Exhibition Canvas. I had to make a profile for the Exhibition Canvas as none was provided and even though a profile was available from Breathing Color I found mine to be more accurate. I also highly recommend a calibrated viewing station - I have a GTI Executive Viewing Station but a smaller version would be just as acceptable. A smaller proof print is a lot less expensive than printing a large print over again.

Good luck.....

Victor
 

GMB

Active member
Dan,
Congrats to the new printer. I have the ipf6300 since three years. I love the results and the handling of the printer. All very intuitive and easy. I never went through the trouble of making my own profiles, as I found that the profiles from the major paper manufacturers generally produced great results. I only had a problem with skin tones on some Hahnemühle papers (although since I moved to a new computer, these went away—don’t ask me why, there is no logical connection but it happened).
BUT, and this is a VERY BIG BUT, the Canon printers are fragile and need to be taken good care of. They do have some serious software / firmware problems, that can turn out to be particularly costly if you do not run the printer regularly.
I am not a regular printer, and I choose the Canon because I read that they are less prone to clogging than the Epson printers. While this is generally true, they do run more cleaning cycles when not used regularly. At one point, you get a message “Hardware failure—please shut down the printer and restart” or an error code 03130031.2618. Eventually, what can happen is that the power unit and / or the mother board can fry because they get too much current during the cleaning cycles. This is now a well know and well reported firmware problem discussed extensively, for example, on two LuLa threads.

Canon IPF8300 and 6300 Reliability Issues (2F44 + other issues)

Canon iPF 6300 Hardware Error

My printer gave me this error code a few weeks ago. I had not used it for a couple of months, then printer a few shots. The got this code and the printer not does not work at all.

What frustrated me most was that, when speaking to the technician at the dealer where I had bought the printer (this dealer sells almost exclusively to professionals), I was told that this not only happens to folks who, like me, do not print very often, but also to professional users, and that Canon is fully aware of the problem but does not undertake anything to solve it. The technician said that he was very angry because they have many frustrated customers who have problems with these printers.

I am not writing this to bash Canon. I think their printers are great when and if they work. But I am really frustrated myself, partly because I don’t know what to do. I have a good profession printer a couple of block away and the most rational solution would be to buy a A3 printer for home and give all the other jobs away. But I like printing myself—it is so much fun if a nice print slowly emerges from the printer. But I also dread the idea that I have to now to invest another 1500-1800 Euros (2 print heads; 1 mother board) to make this thing work.

I know that in the U.S.. these printers are cheap but here they are very expensive (the new 6400 is 3,000 EUR + 21% VAT in Belgium), and for that money you would expect them to work longer than 3 years. As my dealer said: Any car manufacturer who sells new cars for 30,000 EUR which you then have to repair for 18,000 EUR after 3 years would be out of business soon, but Canon seems to believe they can get away with that.

One piece of advice that I read: There is a software that automatically makes a test print a pre-defined intervals. Someone said that when he does not print for more than a day, he connects his printer to a very basic second hand PC on which the software is installed. The PC then automatically makes a small test print every day or third day. Definitely a cheaper option than a failed mother board and new print heads.

Anyway, good luck and have fun with the new printer—and sorry for the long rant.
 

danlindberg

Well-known member
Thanks guys for very helpful input!!

I got a call last Friday saying the 8400 will be delivered and installed this coming Friday! :D I'm pretty eager to get going....
 

GMB

Active member
I hardly dare saying this but my 6300 is working again after an intervention from Canon (300 €), 2 new printheads (800 €), and god knows how much ink. I now make it a habit to print at least once a week.

Btw, for those in Europe, the Dutch online dealer 123ink is very reliable with good prices and fast delivery. Only problem is that there side is in Dutch only.
 

GrahamWelland

Subscriber & Workshop Member
Dan,

how are you enjoying the Canon? I'm looking at replacing my Z3200 since its out of warranty and a new set of inks which it needs cost a big chunk of a new printer's price. To be fair, the HP keeps on trucking and has been flawless other than sipping ink during the weeks when I don't print plus needing the occasional reboot. However, it's that time ...

the iPF8400 looks like my kind of printer although the reliability report bothers me. That said, I'd happily let mine print every other day off the roll if it means 100% reliability and no clogs.
 

danlindberg

Well-known member
Sorry for late reply....

I am very happy with the Canon :thumbup: I have been printing quite a lot and everything is working fine, technically the images are just about perfect with consistent look and smooth gradiants. Not a single printout that has gone in the bin.
This confidence is important since I print large. On canvas one of my 'standard' sizes is 1,5x1 metres.

I have tried half a dozen different canvases and settled for a no-name that prints nicely and is good to stretch! It is 340gr and matte finish.

For paper I am enjoying the Ilford Gold Silk and one reason is that it imho is equally good for vibrant colours as it is for b&w prints. I have printed 200 of these, however, only on A2 size for ease of handling.

So far so good. I print every 3-4 days with a run of a dozen or so and this seems like the machine is in its comfortzone with this kind of workload.

All in all, I'm definitely happy with the choice:)
 
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