This is an In-Depth Focus HD video review comparing three popular 24-inch ink jet printers priced under $4,000: The Canon ImagePROGRAF IPF6300, the Epson Stylus Pro 7890, and the Epson Stylus Pro 7900. All are pigment printers with excellent color gamuts for fine art and photo printing. Segments include setup, printing speed, image quality on photo and fine art papers, and extra features. Length: 6:16.

24-Inch Ink Jet Printer Shootout

This howling white wolf lives on a large wolf preserve in Salem, NY–less than an hour from NYC. Fortunately, his howl is scarier than his bite.

Announcing a Starbucks Photo Exhibit: For the second time in 6 months my photos have been selected for display at the Starbucks in Fishkill, NY, a few miles from my home and studio/test lab. Perhaps it’s payback for all the coffee I drink there, or  the positive feedback the management received from my first exhibit (Oct. to Dec, 2010). Either way, since it’s the busiest Starbucks in NY state outside of NYC (with over 23,000 customers passing through each month), it’s great exposure. And ideally it will raise local awareness of my work and open up doors at galleries in the area. Now, if only I could barter the showing for free coffee I might break even by April…

The new exhibit’s theme is Nature Nearby (within 30 miles of the Starbucks store.) As a lifelong resident of the Hudson Valley, I’ve found more than my share of beautiful places (and animals) to photograph, and the ones on the wall at Starbucks are a small sampling of my favorites. So far, the shots of two wolves have gotten the most feedback––probably because very few folks are aware that dozens of wild wolves (including a pair of rare Red Wolves) are living on a preserve in nearby Salem, NY. (visit the Wolf Conservation Center for more info.) I got a chance to go behind the scenes while doing a story for Popular Photography magazine back in 2007, and actually got bitten by the white wolf in the photo above (that sounds more dramatic than the fact that he grabbed hold of my shoe and wouldn’t let go until the Preserve’s Director tossed him a few pieces of venison for dinner. But it might explain the excessive hair growth I experience during the full moon.)

The prints on the wall range in size from 24 x 36 to 18 x 24, and all were made using pigment ink printers (either the Epson Stylus Pro 7900 or Canon ImagePROGRAF 6300). They look much better as large prints, but if you can’t drop in to see the show, check out the following gallery (click on any image to move into the large screen view). The last image in the gallery is a map showing the location for each photo, and if you want a Google Earth file that shows the general location of each area photo, download this small .kml file and open it in Google Earth.

In case you missed the exhibit last Fall, I’m including another gallery of photos that were shown then. A bit more widespread in terms of geographic locations, ranging from a photo shot in Amsterdam to images from my UN documentary on the Great Barrier Reef. Enjoy!!

PS: These photos are all for sale–but right now I’m in the midst of setting up a dedicated URL for that purpose. In the meantime, if you’re interested in purchasing a print of one of these photos, contact me at mikemcnamara79@mac.com.

Cover story for the March, 2011 issue of Outdoor Photographer magazine by yours truly!

A GREAT DAY! Ever have one of those days where you walk into a bookstore to check out the photo magazine section and discover you have the lead cover story on one of the best pubs on the rack? Not yet? Well, don’t give up! It actually happened to me last week, and in addition to my surprise, I was amused by an ironic twist. You see, it’s not the first time I’ve had a cover story on a national magazine. In fact, I’ve lost count of the cover stories I wrote and illustrated during my 17 year, temporary assignment at Popular Photography (PP) magazine. However, At PP I always knew a month before an issue hit the newsstands what stories I had on the cover. But as a freelance I discovered that you can never be sure when a submitted article will actually be published, and you rarely get a glimpse at a magazine’s cover until it’s in print. That explains why I was surprised to see my story “Go Big With Your Best Shots! Printers for Super Scenics” featured in the skyline of this month’s Outdoor Photographer Magazine (above one of the most beautiful cover images I’ve ever seen by George Lepp).

The ironic twist comes from the fact that Outdoor Photographer magazine was and still is PP’s number one competitor, and had been the subject of several reports and conversations I had at my former gig. For the 10 years I tracked it between 1998 and 2008, OP was the only magazine that grew its readership, while the readership at nearly all other photo magazines—especially PP and AP—shrank significantly. I can’t go into the details of my competitive analysis reports due to my severance agreement, but I can say that I was always impressed by how targeted OP was to photo enthusiasts in both content and design, and that it was the only competitive magazine I read on a regular basis during that time. A glance through the current issue shows that it has remained on track, and is a much better value (and a much healthier book, based on content, ad diversity and page numbers) than PP is today. An added twist is that the lead story in this month’s PP is all about tips for improving your outdoor photos. Too little too late?
Now I’ll have to add one other publication to the short list of my favorite reads: Digital Photo Pro. In my opinion, it’s equally targeted and designed for professional photographers, and I’d highly recommend it to anyone who’s thinking of going pro with their photography. Perhaps I could convince the editor of that magazine—Chris Robinson (hey, isn’t he the editor of OP too?)—to surprise me again in a few months with a cover story of my own on DPP? Hint, hint!

MOVIE TIME:
In related news, I recently completed a product-comparison movie on three state-of-the-art 24-inch ink jet printers—the Epson Stylus Pro 7890, Epson Stylus Pro 7900, and Canon’s ImagePROGRAF 6300. Find out what I discovered regarding the differences in their setup, performance, image quality, and extra features in the following video (click on the arrow icon in lower right corner to play it in 720p HD):

INTRODUCTION: When it comes to versatility and the price you pay for features, few office products can top an All-in-One inkjet printer. These multipurpose devices can print, scan and copy documents, send faxes, and even transfer files from memory cards directly to your computer. The latest AIO models priced below $200 also include premium features such as WiFi connectivity, high speed fax, auto-document feeders, touch-screen LCD panels, and duplex (double-sided) printing.
For business owners, waiting around for a slow printer adds up to a waste of time and money. But how can you really determine the speed of a printer before you purchase it? And which one is not only fast but has the best balance of features and performance for the price?

To find out, I ran the following six models through a gauntlet of tests to determine the best of the breed: (note: all prices are street prices as of Jan. 30, 2010.) Brother MFP-790CW ($139), Canon Pixma MX860 ($179), Epson WorkForce 610 ($129), Hewlett Packard Officejet 6500 ($159), Kodak ESP 7 ($149), and the Lexmark X7675 Professional ($189).

The summary results of the speed, image quality, font sharpness, and moisture resistance tests for all but the Kodak AIO are included in the following HD video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eZeZ-qKsQ0

FULL TEST REPORT:
For more information on the testing methods and settings I used, plus in-depth analysis of the printing, scanning, copy, card reading speed, energy consumption, and ease-of-use features for all six models, download the complete 32-page AIO Office Inkjet Printer Shootout Test Report

(To enable high res printing and other features in the full test report, request a password by clicking here.)

TEST PHOTO GALLERY

This gallery contains magnified details from high res scans of test prints referenced in the AIO report and AIO HD video. Click on the PicLens link to start a slide show, or scroll over and click on individual thumbnail images below:

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On day two of the CES 2010 trade show Sarah Myers of CEA asked me to give a roundup of the trends and products I found most interesting on the show floor. Check it out:

I love making my own prints from the photos I shoot. It doesn’t matter if the original photos come from digital cameras or from film scans, I want to control the process from end to end in order to produce a work of art that represents my vision and not a lab technician’s (or worse–a minilab’s auto-balancing filter.) There have been too many times when I received prints back from a lab that had color and contrast that didn’t come close to the actual colors and contrast captured by the camera. In fact, the thrill I felt when I made my first photo print (in color, by the way, using a Kodak Ektaflex printing system I set up in my bedroom) got me seriously hooked on this photography thing that wound up becoming my career. Now, many years and thousands of prints later, I still get a kick out of printing. But much has changed in that time.

Before decent ink jet printers arrived on the scene, I spent more than 1,000 hours in darkrooms mastering the craft of “silver-halide” printing in both color and black and white mediums. The chemical darkroom was fun while it lasted, but I’m never going back. For starters, I don’t miss inhaling strange stop bath and fixer fumes (although the possible damage done might explain some aspects of my personality), nor to I miss the setup and clean up routines which often lasted as long as the printing session. Most importantly, I have come to prefer the expanded color gamut, paper surface and material variety, display longevity, and precise control I get from modern ink jet printing systems compared to silver halide printing.

However, having reviewed dozens of ink jet, dye sub, and other types of digital printers over the last 18 years, I know what works and what doesn’t–at least for me. When it comes to photo-quality printers, I’m picky–and usually gravitated towards the 13×19-inch or larger models. However, I don’t always need super-sized print output, and occasionally I find myself popping out 4×6 prints as fast as I can to hand off to a visiting relative or friend, or even printing a color document (for black and white document printing, nothing is economical or as fast as a sub-$100 laser printer.) That’s why I love the new Epson Artisan 800 All-in-One (AiO) printer ($299).

As its name implies, Epson’s Artisan 800 AiO does more than make prints. It can also copy color or black and white documents (up to 40 at a time via the document feeder), fix up faded and damaged photos, scan photos and art, fax in color or b&w, and even print directly onto coated CD and DVD disc. In addition, the printer offers Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and LAN networking connections for attaching to home or office networks and to camera phones and other portable devices. The Artisan 800 is loaded with easy to use image enhancing features that can produce brilliant prints and expand the capabilities of your home digital darkroom. By giving you control over the final output in addition to expanded gamut and higher color accuracy, I think the resulting prints will rival or exceed the image quality of prints made in silver-halide based minilabs, plus the ability to print on various media (including CD and DVDs) make this AiO one of the best choices around for serious photographers on a budget, or creative artists who want to do more with their images or art.

For more analysis on the Artisan 800 features, listen to the October 11, 2008 McNamara Report segment on Inside Digital Photo (slide to the 19min 45sec mark for that segment);

And for additional comparisons on the Artisan 800 features versus its competition, read my Selling Tips column in Photo Industry Reporter.

To listen to this topic discussed on the Inside Digital Photo show, Aug. 9, 2008, click the play button:

High-end color calibration and profiling tools used to cost a pretty penny and required a learning curve that few photographers had time to deal with. But new calibration and profiling tools such as the X-Rite Colormunki Photo ($449 street) and DataColor’s Spyder3Studio ($600 street) are available for less than a quality 13×19-inch printer or 24-inch monitor. These tools can create profiles for monitors, printers, and digital projectors, they’re portable, easier to use than ever, and will pay for themselves in ink and paper savings in no time–especially if you make a lot of prints. But which is the best choice for your work flow and color demands?

I would recommend the X-Rite Colormunki Photo if you plan to make lots of printer and paper profiles, grab spot colors, and only have a few computers to calibrate. It’s faster at profiling prints (you can slide it across several patches in a single move-see photo below), slightly more accurate on monitor profiles, and portable enough for making quick spot color readings. Otherwise, its limited license (which allows for loading on only 3 computers) is a pain, especially for any pro photographer who has a home computer, laptop, and more than one computer in his or her studio. 

On the other hand, I gotta hand it to Datacolor: The metal case for the Spyder3Studio is Sweet! Plus this system includes two color measurement devices, one for monitor and projector calibration and profiling, and one for creating printer profiles. Both of the Spyder devices are colorimeters, even though the print device is called a spectro-colorimeter in the literature. It includes easy-to-use setup instructions and calibration programs that work on an unlimited number of Mac and PCs. Print profiling takes longer to achieve with the Spyder3Suite than the Colormunki, and results were nearly as accurate. However, it’s not as easy to use the print measuring device on spot colors (or fabrics) as it is with the Colormunki.