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Canon Pixma Pro-100 prints very dark

nsrkb
Contributor

I see that this is a recuring problem with the Canon Pixma Pro-100, but as nothing I have found online helps I'm asking and are hoping that someone can solve this problem for me.

 

Just picked up a Pixma Pro-100 today, and installed it on my 2011 iMac 27" (Yosemite) with downloaded drivers from Canon's website to be sure i have the latest ones. I also checked the printers firmware but that's the latest at 1.100. Wether I'm printing via Lightroom or Photoshop; or via Canon Print Studio Pro, My Image Garden, or via LR / PS directly; with- or without PS as color manager; the prints turns out to be much to dark.

 

I have to set an exposure of +2/3 in LR to be anywhere close to getting the same result as on the screen. I'm also careful to select the right ICC profiles for the correct paper. My monitor is calibrated with an Spyder4pro and I also re-calibrated it during this process to see if that helped.

 

Well. Long story short; the prints are to dark. So i borrowed my wife's 2013 MacBook Pro (Yosemite) Spyder4pro, and installed the latest drivers from Canon. Again; on this machine the prints are also to dark with about +2/3 to correct for the printer to do something that looks like the monitor. Both monitors are also set to about 30% brightness.

 

I also have access to an Epson Stylus Photo R3000 and the prints from this comes out much brighter.

 

Sadly I see that many others also have the same problem. So; here's the question. How do I fix this? Do i have to return the printer again and get a refund? Because this is clearly not good enough.

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Thank You for Your answers. But sadly i have "been there, done that" on all of Your advices.

 

I'm returning the printer on Monday and are replacing it with an equal printer from Epson as i have only good experiences with that brand and the prints i get without using hours tinkering settings.

 

This was my first (and last) Canon printer.

View solution in original post

15 REPLIES 15

jrhoffman75
Legend
Legend
Two items. 1. What brightness do you have your monitor set at? 2. Download the test image from this site: http://outbackprint.outbackphoto.com/printinginsights/pi049/essay.html

And print it without making any adjustments to it. How does it look?
John Hoffman
Conway, NH

1D X Mark III, Many lenses, Pixma PRO-100, Pixma TR8620a, LR Classic

1. At this moment my monitor brightness are 85. I calibrated it when it was at the same brightness. And i have downloaded and printed the test image with the correct ICC profiles selected.

 

On the lower left patch ramp (the black) i can; on my monitor see the difference between 2 and 2. On the print (Canon Luster paper) i cant distinquish between 2 and 6 (2 and 8 is the first one that's clearly different).

 

Colors looks great but to dark. As it has been since i first installed it.

jrhoffman75
Legend
Legend
You can go into the printer driver and boost the brightness.

http://forums.usa.canon.com/t5/media/gallerypage/image-id/6565i1210DEFF47CBACE0
John Hoffman
Conway, NH

1D X Mark III, Many lenses, Pixma PRO-100, Pixma TR8620a, LR Classic

Yes i can. But that's guessing regarding the brightness and i still won't be able to get it right without a printer calibration tool, or a working ICC profile / working driver.

It looks to me that it's more of a contrast problem than a brightness problem. But that would probably end up in me having to guess again.

There's a difference between fixing the decease and hiding the symptom. I believe in the first one and i "refuse" to believe there's nothing that can be done besides having to play games every time i want to print.

Hello again. I recognize that a print is good if you like it and bad if you don't, despite what others might say, but I will at least share my experiences. They might help you or others who are following this thread.

 

My monitor is calibrated with Spyder 3. Gamma 2.2, 6500K, 83 cd/m^2. Contrast at 50%; brightness about 52%. My monitor lets me choose blackness level - it defaults to 50%.

 

When I print the test image I linked to above, using Lightroom, with no adjustments, my technical output is as follows:

 

Middle step wedge shows twelve disticnt steps. Whitest step is color of unprinted paper.

 

Step Wedge.JPG

 

It varies from paper to paper, but I can discerne at least the 252 step and on some papers 253 - telling me I have good highlight detail.

 

On the black side I discerne 8 or 10, nothing lower. (That sounds like what you are reporting).

 

Artistically I am very happy how my print looks - nice red strawberries, good flesh tones, etc.

 

One my monitor, the on-screen image is almost identical to the print. I am surprised that you can see the 2 wedge step on screen at a very similar brightness.

 

I also checked out this B&W test image:

 

http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/article_pages/bw_printing/bw-test-image-2.html

 

You are probably aware of this since you are printing with Print Studio Pro, but others may not be.

 

You can print a series of test images:

 

PSP-Pattern.JPG

 

find the one that best suits your taste, enter the calibration values in PSP, and save them as a custom setting. Then, each time you want to print recall the setting.

 

You can do a similar thing in Lightroom using the printer driver and User Templates.

 

LR-User.JPGDriver-Adjust.JPG

 

There would be some one-time trial and error to that approach.

John Hoffman
Conway, NH

1D X Mark III, Many lenses, Pixma PRO-100, Pixma TR8620a, LR Classic

Thank You for Your answers. But sadly i have "been there, done that" on all of Your advices.

 

I'm returning the printer on Monday and are replacing it with an equal printer from Epson as i have only good experiences with that brand and the prints i get without using hours tinkering settings.

 

This was my first (and last) Canon printer.

Of course that is an option but I will suspect you will have to do some "tweaking" of it's, or you laptop's setting's also.

I like Epson printers, they do a great job.  I switched from them to Canon.  They (Epson) tend to be cool and Canon tends to be warm.  Maybe what you are seeing as dark or brighter.  For people pictures, warm is more pleasing.

 

You can get your Pro-100 to print very well.  Many, many 1000's of have.  You don't need all the ambigious settings offered and suggested but you do need to do a few essential things.  The Epson will be no different.

 

Laptops are not the best printing platforms for the best prints but they can work.

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!

I simply love the colors from the Canon. The main reason i bought a Canon and not an Epson. So that's not the issue. The issue is that the prints are getting to dark. Simple as that.  And it's not a case of "it's a little bit to dark". It's quite extreme. I have tested now for a few days, and still have one day mor of testing before i return it (if i don't find a solution quickly). I have now used up the black, and "light black" and are running low on all other colors. _ONLY_ because of the Canon printers lack of ability to give me the prints that i want.

 

Untill now i have only used HP and Epson. It's not even the case of me being a novice as i have printed- and sold my photos for well over eight years. So i have some idea of what i'm doing when it comes to tweaking, calibrating and creating ICC profiles for different settings.

 

Can't say I see the link between what kind of machine and the prints. Both my iMac 27" and MacBook Pro 15" are printing equally good. So does my wifes MBP 15".

 

But the Canon Pixma Pro-100 are by far the worst printer i have worked with. I want more than good colors in my prints. I want it all.

"So i have some idea of what i'm doing when it comes to tweaking, ..."

 

You have me wondering about that statement because like I said, the Pro-100 works for man, many of us.  No disrespect meant, please.  My only goal is wanting to get you satisified.  However, at this point I think a return and a different (brand) printer is the best solution for you.  Sometimes people get so frustrated with something, a change is best.  Not saying it's right or wrong, good or bad, but the best choice.

 

Barring a factory defect with the printer, though, it will do a fabulous job. Of that there is no doubt.  I use three of them.  Smiley Happy

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!
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