burkphoto wrote:
As an ex-lab guy who ran both silver halide printing operations and inkjet printing operations (and electrostatic and dye sub...), I have to say the answer comes down to this set of questions:
What sort of volume do you anticipate, and with what sort of frequency are you going to want to print? How important are controls over color, privacy, paper stocks, and time? Do you want the best archival results? Do you want to print directly from Lightroom so you get the widest possible color gamut? How good is your monitor, and do you calibrate it and profile it monthly with hardware and software from X-Rite or Datacolor?
For Black-and-White, I'd prefer one of the Epson P-Series ā The P400 has two black inks, plus Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Red, Orange, and a Gloss Optimizer. That's so it can print on both glossy and matte surfaces. The larger P-Series printers use a more advanced configuration for a wider color gamut and finer B&W gradation. They're pricey, but pretty amazing.
For most hobbyists or pros who need to do some in-house printing, the Canon Pro-100 is fine for what it is ā a great value. I don't have one, but have seen excellent results from them. This forum may help you decide:
https://community.usa.canon.com/t5/Professional-Photo-Printers/PRO-100-True-B-amp-W-Prints/td-p/36347
As an ex-lab guy who ran both silver halide printi... (
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I have the Epson P600. It has 3 blacks and does exceptional black and white prints. That is 3 blacks pus matt black.