Looking for a recommendation for a photo printer: I am new to photography. I am going to the local university for Media Design-Photography. I have a Canon Rebel T5i. I have a MacBook...

PhotoChallenged Loc: Bear, Delaware

I am new to photography. I am going to the local university for Media Design-Photography. I have a Canon Rebel T5i. I have a MacBook Pro with retina display. There are also PC users in the house. I want to get a designated photo printer. I was looking at the Epson Artisan 1430. Any other suggestions?

wisner Loc: The planet Twylo

It appears that you are serious about photography since you are investing time and money in a structured learning environment. I might suggest the Epson 3000; I realize this is a lot more money than the one you are looking at but, if you are serious about this, then the 3000 will allow you room to grow in your art; better ink, larger prints, much better black and white, and support for third party papers.
The T5 is an excellent camera. Good luck!

PhotoChallenged Loc: Bear, Delaware

Thank you for taking the time to respond. I will check it out.

DavidPine Loc: Fredericksburg, TX

You're on the right track with Epson. I recently acquired an Epson Pro 3880 and it is a great printer for photography and has large ink cartridges (9). It is expensive but may save you money in the long haul. Ink will be your biggest expense regardless of the printer. Good luck.

PhotoChallenged wrote:

I am new to photography. I am going to the local university for Media Design-Photography. I have a Canon Rebel T5i. I have a MacBook Pro with retina display. There are also PC users in the house. I want to get a designated photo printer. I was looking at the Epson Artisan 1430. Any other suggestions?

Hando Rei Loc: Long Island New York

Many good printers out there . Some printers are relatively inexpensive but ink will be the biggest expense especially when printing large photos . Remember that the budget will also determine what you will eventually buy .

FiddleMaker Loc: Merrimac, MA

DavidPine wrote:

You're on the right track with Epson. I recently acquired an Epson Pro 3880 and it is a great printer for photography and has large ink cartridges (9). It is expensive but may save you money in the long haul. Ink will be your biggest expense regardless of the printer. Good luck.

David, I have been toying with the idea of getting either an Epson Pro 3880 or a Canon PIXMA Pro-1. At this price level, it may not make much difference. I was lead to believe that the Canon printer has a better ink delivery system - less trouble with the print heads. But that may not be true. Any thoughts on Canon versus Epson? -FiddleMaker

A.J.R. Loc: Devon, UK

I have the Epson Photo R3000 and would certainly agree with Wisner An excellent printer that should give you everything you want up to A3+. It takes 8 ink cartridges, as aposed to 6 on the 1430, and also has larger ink cartridge capacity than the 1430. If however you need larger prints than A3+ go for the Pro 3880 as suggested by David Pine.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

I have been using the Epson Pro 3880 for around 4 years without any problems. Ink is expensive but the cartridges last a long time

PhotoChallenged Loc: Bear, Delaware

I thank everyone for taking their time to respond. I will take a serious look at all your recommendations.

rocar7 Loc: Alton, England

One last recommendation: whatever printer you go for, use the same make paper and inks, ie Epson printer, Epson inks and Epson paper. Don't be tempted to use cheap inks or papers, the results are not as good

PhotoChallenged Loc: Bear, Delaware

Thanks, I will do as you suggest.

rocar7 wrote:

One last recommendation: whatever printer you go for, use the same make paper and inks, ie Epson printer, Epson inks and Epson paper. Don't be tempted to use cheap inks or papers, the results are not as good

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

PhotoChallenged wrote:

I am new to photography. I am going to the local university for Media Design-Photography. I have a Canon Rebel T5i. I have a MacBook Pro with retina display. There are also PC users in the house. I want to get a designated photo printer. I was looking at the Epson Artisan 1430. Any other suggestions?

A day ago someone asked the same question. The thread is here: http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-227543-1.html

In it was the suggestion, including mine, to consider the Canon Pro line. I have the Pro-100 that uses dye inks. The Pro-1 and Pro-10 use pigment inks.

If you count the value of the current rebate, the included paper and ink, Canon is giving the Pro-100 away for you to try.

A.J.R. Loc: Devon, UK

rocar7 wrote:

One last recommendation: whatever printer you go for, use the same make paper and inks, ie Epson printer, Epson inks and Epson paper. Don't be tempted to use cheap inks or papers, the results are not as good

I certainly agree that it is best to use Epson inks but there are many fine papers available that will give you excellent quality print (when profiled to your printer), some though are more expensive than Epson. The UK company Fotospeed do a very good range. Not sure if available in USA.

rocar7 Loc: Alton, England

A.J.R. wrote:

I certainly agree that it is best to use Epson inks but there are many fine papers available that will give you excellent quality print (when profiled to your printer), some though are more expensive than Epson. The UK company Fotospeed do a very good range. Not sure if available in USA.

Yes, I agree as far as companies like Fotospeed are concerned. One big advantage of using, for example, all Epson products, is that you will get very good results by checking "Printer handles colours", which is ideal for the OP, who is looking to buy his/her first printer. Plenty of time to try profiles later.

billybob40

GET IT!
The 1400 was one hell of a printer, had 3.