Xerox C75 EX help needed getting best photo prints.

[cwaldner]

Hi, I am trying to get good photo prints from a Xerox C75. I have tried a lot of settings and i am not getting the details i am expecting. The ps sample prints from the fiery are very comparable to good inkjets, but my prints are not. So far the best prints i am getting is with 1200 resolution and screening set to 200dpi.

I am printing high quality 23mp images from a Canon 5d3 on xerox elite paper. I have tried printing directly from lightroom and photoshop, i have also tried converting to tiff and using cws to print. The colors are great from the xerox, but the details are not.

Without me posting what settings i am actually trying, i would like to put aside what i have already 'learned' and would like suggestions what i should actually try to get the best possible prints from the C75 with a Fiery EX.

The sample prints from the fiery are very detailed and am hoping that is possible with my pictures.

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

You should be printing in 600 dpi mode, as the C75 and J75 print 600x600 x 8 bits, while the 1200 mode is 1200x1200 x 1 bit, thus giving you better gradients among other things. I use the enhanced screen option for 600 dpi, and it works great. My color is the one thing I have trouble with.

 

[cwaldner]

Wouldn't the 600dpi give me even less detail? I tried your setting and if i set it to the screen to 600dot (or anything over 200) it gets really weird. prints are dark and colors are very bad.

I would like detailed process of complete workflow to get nice photos from the press that are similar (or even in the same ballpark) as the sample test print images.
Thank you

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

Exactly, I process it using the enhanced text option.

http://imgur.com/a/i1PD8

 

[gsbatch]

Dpi and screen dot lpi are not the same thing. Default lpi is 200 I think. Also make sure you are not in productivity mode.

 

[cwaldner]

I know there is a difference. I just dont like that my pirinter has 1200dpi and I can't use it. That bothers me because in this case here i am looking for better detail.
I have also heard the press prints at 1200x1200 regardless of what the fiery dpi is set. I also dont see more detail (ignoring bit) on 1200 than 600. Is that normal?

how do I set production or not?

i have also noticed the colors vary a lot from what picture I print. I'm guessing its color space issue, even though i convert to tiff without a color space attached and print via cws. Is there a better work flow?

priceline's settings have helped so far. Thank you.

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

It may be wise to read the manuals from front to back for the C75 and the Fiery. It will explain exactly what everything does.

 

[cwaldner]

yes, I using the manual. It takes a lot of time to read it and I am. While i am reading it now i would like to know what your settings for success are when someone comes in your shop with a beautiful photo and you want to print it on the press.
Any help is appreciated.

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

I tell them to go to a camera shop place in town, because they do a much better job than me on their Epson. They'll pay a lot more, but it's not worth my time dicking around with some artsy fartsy "eh, the color just isn't right" type of customer. I'll never get the type of color they want, and I could never charge enough to make it worth my while, while those type of people will probably leave a bad review or something if their photo was even a bit different than their expectation. That's not to say the C75 won't produce amazing colored or b&w images, it's just barely outside the envelope of what these artists expect.

 

[cwaldner]

Fully understood, but i am still trying to make the best photo with the c75 possible

 

[pippip]

I have to agree with PricelineNegotiator, whenever I get someone in asking do we print photos I send them to the camera shop in our town. The client is just looking for a completely different result to standard print clients.

We've just gone from a DC242 with creo to Versant 80 with Fiery and I'll admit the Dc242 was better at photos. I'm watching this thread carefully and will be hoping to find the time to test some of the settings being suggested by you all, much appreciated by the way.

 

[cwaldner]

I am not trying to compete with a fine art photography printer (which we are also doing) I'm just trying to get someone to share that thinks he can get the c75 to print great looking photos. I have made some good looking photos with it since starting this post, but the results vary largly from one photo to the next, and i dont know why.

come on. Post the secret sauce for your best results

 

[Milo Wilson]

Have you performed a calibration on ALL dpi settings for the paper you are using?

 

[pippip]

^ I was wondering the same, if some settings are improving details for the op but they are then losing colour then surely a calibration should be needed somewhere.

 

[cwaldner]

I have profiled and calibrated the papers i am using. So far my best photos are on Xerox elite 110lb silk paper.
I am trying to figure out a workflow to print photos that were adjusted in lightroom. They vary a lot from picture to picture. Im not talking about a series of pictures taken on the same day

 

[wonderings]

I have never found photos to be that great on digital. Had a J75 and currently have a Versant 2100. While it is good for brochures and corporate stuff, it is not something I would sell as professional grade photo prints. Digital just does not compare to a good inkjet and I don't think you will get anything that will be as good with a C75. Not sure if any digital will get close. If you are expecting high quality photo prints like you get from an inkjet I think you will be disappointed.

 

[cwaldner]

But why do the small square sample fiery test prints have tons more detail than the photos i print? When i play around with settings and different photos, some of them come out great and some terrible... all of which look great on computer.
I am not expecting it to come close to good inkjets, i would be happy if most pictures from it would be similar to the sample prints or very few if the good prints from it.

Looking for people's best settings on what photo, workflow, and settings are.

 

[AP90]

But why do the small square sample fiery test prints have tons more detail than the photos i print? When i play around with settings and different photos, some of them come out great and some terrible... all of which look great on computer.
I am not expecting it to come close to good inkjets, i would be happy if most pictures from it would be similar to the sample prints or very few if the good prints from it.

Looking for people's best settings on what photo, workflow, and settings are.

If I had to guess I would say the ones turning out bad are because they have a lot of tones that CMYK cannot replicate. Id say the fiery test print are ones that are optimized for CMYK so they look amazing. Makes sense too. Why would you want test prints to look awful? Also, some of the files you are printing might keep enough of the colors within CMYK to make them look amazing. But just remember, most professional photography printers utilize at least 8 colors. Your trying to achieve the same with only 4 of those colors.

 

[cwaldner]

Very interesting point ap90.
I will look to see if there is a big difference in certain gradients that might mess the prints up.

I just hoped i can get my prints that good. I noticed some come close, but then the next photo is a mess. i was thinking it had to do with color space and profile mismatch.