Which Printer?

[magician john]

Lightroom Version Number

11.3

Operating System

1. macOS 11 Big Sur

I am looking for personal recommendations on A4 printers that print with vibrant, accurate colours to use for nature prints.

I am thinking about the Epson ET 8500, being an environmentalist and have seen mixed reviews. Otherwise the option I see is standard Epson xp8700 cartridge based printer.

many thanks

 

[matonananjin]

So, @magician john , did you find all these replies helpful?

I don't know anything about Epson printers and therefor can't offer anything intelligent about these printers. I've always been a Canon printer user. But what I would suggest is, regarding any printer decision is consider ink availability. We all know the horror stories about ink expense. But, again, consider availability.

I recently bought a Canon Pixma Pro 100. It's an A4 printer and the output quality seems fine. Since I've retired I haven't actually used it that mmuch; just for a few vacation shots and some landscapes. But a while back I ran out of one or two of the cartridges and went to my local office supply place (Office Depot?) where I've always gotten ink, and was informed, "We don't carry that ink. You can only purchase it online."

Maybe you wouldn't view this as a problem. If you're like my son you buy everything online anyway! The problem, at least partially to me, is there is not enough demaad for the ink to demand office wsupply stores to carry it. So Canon is the (almost) only source and they aren't discounting at all. $17 for a single cartridge! My other concern is that I haven't seen a lot of other photogs online discussing using this printer. If there isn't enough usage is Canon going to continue to supply it? I have found a cartridge now and then on eBay cheaper. And since I'm retired have the time to occasionally search eBay.

But if I were still shooting for hire I would be concerned. I should have researched this better before buying.

Good luck on finding a printer that will server you.

 

[Conrad Chavez]

The lack of replies is probably because many photographers tend to use the Epson P800/900 or Canon Pro 100/1000 series due to the wide gamut archival pigment inks. Fewer are familiar with the ET 8500. And yes, few office supply stores carry cartridges for photography-focused printers which are a small niche of the total printer market; walk-in stores tend to carry cartridges for the much higher volume office printers. My local photography store (yes, we still have one) does carry cartridges for those printers, if I need one in a pinch, but if I want to save money I look for them online.

One resource to look at is the review of the ET 8550 on the Northlight Images website. Keith Cooper, who runs that site, has been reviewing printers and scanners, from a serious photography perspective, for many years. His review might be more useful than the reviews from general PC hardware web sites. Skimming his review, he seems to say it’s pretty good.