Canon Pro-1000 Printing Dark

[floyd]

Hi, everyone!

I did read the thread about dark prints with the Pro-100, but it dealt with color images. I strictly print black and white.

So I bought a Canon Pro-1000 after reading many positive personal and professional reviews. I made my first two prints today, and they are a too dark. Let me qualify that statement. My first print was definitely too dark. So I lowered the brightness control on my 27" iMac monitor to the lowest setting, one bar showing. Then I went back into the Development module in Lightroom and lightened the image about a stop/stop and a half. The second print had much better highlight detail but the shadows were still too dark.

Because I print just B/W I didn't calibrate my monitor. I can barely see the image on my monitor when editing. What can I do to increase the brightness of print and still see the image on the monitor enough to edit it? Also, any ideas why the shadows would still be too dark but hte highlights are fine?

I'lll do my best to describe my settings.

Paper: Hahnemuhle Baryta FB (glossy) 8.5x11

Settings:

Lightroom handles color managing (I think!). Using a Canon print profile.

All paper settings are high quality, glossy fine art.

Please help!

Sorry for my ignorance. Hopefully my descriptions above will give you an idea of my issue. Please ask questions, but don't assume I know much of the technical lingo.

Thank you!

[jrhoffman75]

I have a Pro-100, but the application settings should be the same, so i will try to help.

Even though you say you print strictly B&W, do you have color inks installed?

If so, download and print this test image without making any adjustments to the image - don't worry how it looks on the monitor. Report back how the test print looks.

http://www.outbackphoto.com/printinginsights/pi049/essay.html

You said you are using a Canon print profile. Do you mean a Hahnemuehle developed profile for the Canon Pro-1000?

Are you on a Mac or PC computer?

[floyd]

Hi, JR!

Thanks for offering to help.

To answer your questions:

Yes, there are many color inks installed.

I am using Lightroom on an Apple iMac with 27" retina display.

I went to the Hahnemuhle website and downloaded their profiles for the Canon Pro 1000. I placed them in Library>ColorSync>Profiles>Displays

I'm using Hahnemuhle Baryta Fiber Based (FB glossy)

I'll print the test image tomorrow and get back to you.

[jrhoffman75]

If you go to System Preferences->Printers and Scanners what printer version do you see installed?

[floyd]

[jrhoffman75]

I see that the printer that is highlighted is an AirPrint version.

Does the one above it also say AirPrint?

If not try selecting that one to print. If it also says AirPrint delete both of them using the “-“ button and reinstall the printer using the “+” button. It may take a few minutes, but wait until you see a version that doesn’t say Bonjour or AirPrint. 

Have you installed the the latest Canon driver from the Canon website?

[floyd]

Hi, John!
Thanks for all the insight and advice. I gotta get a bunch of Christmas shopping done today, but, hopefully, tonight I'll be able to check the software and driver then print the test print.

[floyd]

I deleted both Pro-1000 printers from my preferences, clicked "+" and added it again. The only version available was Bonjour, which I added. How do I add the printer so it isn't Bonjour (whatever that means)?

I also downloaded the most recent driver from Canon's website, but I think I already had that installed earlier.

I'll try printing the test print later tonight, after the Packer game!

[jrhoffman75]

Delete the Bonjour version. Start over again and just wait for the non-Bonjour version to appear. It could take several minutes.

[floyd]

Non-Bonjour version does not show up, even after 10 minutes.