topic Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100) in Professional Photo Printers

Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

tweetprinter — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 22:58:55 GMT

Hey everyone, so I run a business printing tweets (it's called Framed Tweets), and after going to Fedex Office for a year, I just got a Pixma Pro-100 to print at home instead.

Problem is, the tweets I'm printing aren't nearly as crisp and clear as the prints I was getting from Kinko's. The text is a hair less-sharp, and the colors are less vibrant.

Does anyone have any ideas for the best settings to print a tweet? I'm working with a Mac and 100 lb, 275 gsm cardstock, by the way.

So you have an idea of what I'm talking about (left is Fedex's print, right is Pixma Pro 100) [Mod Note: Image removed per forum guidelines - inappropriate language].

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

tweetprinter — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 23:07:46 GMT

Looks like my image got censored for the profanity: here's the family-friendly version 🙂

(Left is Fedex Office's print, right is my Pixma Pro-100; note the slightly blurry, gray text + less color intensity on the "follow" button)

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

jrhoffman75 — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 23:21:34 GMT

What media type are you selecting when you print? What kind of printer did FedEx use (maybe a laser printer)? Card stock (which I suspect is a matte type surface isn't the best media for a dye printer since the ink spreads.

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

tweetprinter — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 23:33:38 GMT

Hey John, thanks for your reply!

I've played around with a few, but nothing in the list really matches what I'm using (it's not THAT textured, but it's definitely not photo paper). I'll admit, I've only tried a few—there's so many options...

Fedex was using their massive laser printer, yup. (side note, if you can suggest a laser printer that can handle thick cardstock and prints tweets perfectly, I would be open to returning this one and getting that)

I also tried using the Canon photo paper that came with the printer (with the media setting to match), but got similarly lackluster (literally!) results.

Any suggestions for a new kind of paper and/or media type setting to try?

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

jrhoffman75 — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 23:43:26 GMT

Hi again. My experience with Canon paper has been excellent. What software are you printing from?

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

tweetprinter — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 23:46:14 GMT

Yup, I'm sure it'll work well with the right settings!

I'm printing from Preview on Mac—I also have Photoshop.

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

jrhoffman75 — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 00:12:57 GMT

Check these settings in Preview

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

tweetprinter — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 07:22:06 GMT

This actually looks pretty sharp. Still, the color is a bit off. The black text is greyish, and all icons are desaturated and kind of lackluster. Here's what I mean:

(First is the Fedex print, second is Pixma Pro-100)

How would you suggest fixing that?

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

jrhoffman75 — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 17:39:35 GMT

The snappiest paper I have found is Photo Paper Pro Platinum printed at highest quality.

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

tweetprinter — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 20:36:43 GMT

Hey John, I'd love to switch to that paper, but I do have 1,000 sheets of this particular custom-cut tweet paper I'd like to use. Is there something I could try to get more vivid colors printed with this paper? I noticed there's a TON of color profile options—could one of those be the answer? Thanks!

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

jrhoffman75 — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 21:56:02 GMT

The ICC profiles are intended to produce accurate color (as close as possible to the calibration color swatches) on a particular media type (surface). You could start with the Canon paper profile that you think is closest to your media type (card stock is probably conidered a matte surface) and then in the printer driver adjust colors.

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

tweetprinter — Fri, 02 Mar 2018 06:09:32 GMT

Wow, this worked like a charm! Thank you so much John, you're a hero!

Re: Printing tweets (Pixma Pro-100)

jrhoffman75 — Fri, 02 Mar 2018 12:44:53 GMT

Glad to be of help.