Canon Community

lwlandy · ‎12-28-2014

I noticed a strong Magenta cast to my prints that have any sort of magenta content. Most noticeably on Sunsets which all come out red rather than Orange. I started looking for solutions and cannot believe how prevalent this issue is with Padma Pro Printers??

Surely there is something fundamentally wrong here? Either many hundreds of people don’t know how to follow instructions or there are driver/SW issues that needs to be addressed. I can find hundreds of reports of this across various models, with no resolution posted and Canon apparently unable to offer anything other than workarounds. (I will be calling them soon to confirm). It’s always Magenta too..

I scoured the web for a solution and have tried all combination of suggestions, even the ones that quite frankly seem ridiculous, like do not preview the print first as this will screw it up?? If that is the case then that is a bug, surely.

If anyone can offer any suggestions for a way to resolve that does not include all previously tried remedies: Using Canon paper, Inks and ICC Profiles. Turn off all Printer color management (Ironically, the only way I can get the printer to print anything like it should color wise, is to turn the Printer color management on.)

From tests I can see that the printer is being told to print Magenta, See below Print preview of a sunset. So I am sure the printer is fine, I just need to get the SW to drive it correctly.

Canon Pixma Pro 100, Canon Ink, Canon Photo Paper Plus Semi Gloss,

Windows 8.1, LR 5.7 PS CS5.

Any help, much appreciated.

Thanks

Lee

ebiggs1 · ‎12-30-2014

First, you must not let the printer set anything. Turn off every bit off control it has. You can do this with the Canon My Printer under the Printer Settings tab. Do you know how? I will guess, yes, for now but if you don't get back to me.

Second, you need to have your photo editor handle all the settings and color matching. You know how to do this? I prefer Photoshop.

And lastly, it is essential you get some settings on your monitor that somewhat matches what the printer is printing. Your printer may be doing exactly what you are telling it to do and you have no idea it is, because your monitor is off. If you don't do this step, you can forget the other steps. However, there are only a few things that you need to be concerned with. You don't need any fancy extra add-ons to do this. No additional sortware or gadgets, etc.

But you must get the grey-scale very close. You need to get the brightness very close and you need the contrast very close.

After you do these things you can make adjustments to your prints by just looking at your screen. Because you know the monitor and printer are on the same level. One more point, you can NOT get a printer to print every color exactly the way you saw it. It isn't possibile as all colors and adjustments effect all others. My goal is to get the skin tones right. That is what people notice most. Remeber you are dealing with two different disciplines here. One is colored light and the other is colored dyes. They are not the same thing.

For instance, I know my Pro-100 tends to print darker than what I see on the monitor (typical). So, I automatically know to set it's prints 1/2 to one stop brighter in Photoshop, in my case. It also prints with a slightly warn tone. Most of the time, with protraits especially, this if OK but sometimes it is not. In that case I adjust the "temp" setting slightly cooler in PS.

All the Canon photo printers I have ever seen have this warm/magenta cast. Canon engineers must prefer this look. It can not be changed. You need to "fix" it in post.

Make sure you have the correct ICC profiles and you are using Canon brand ink and paper untill you get good with the printer. Very, very important, otherwise you don't know if the printer is doing exactly what you are telling it to or not.

Important though is, use the USB connection until everything is right. You are just adding another issue when you try to set up the printing and the wireless all at the same time. Just like using Canon branded products until it is a go. Use a real printer USB cable. Not just any old USB cable.

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

View solution in original post

Stephen · ‎12-19-2023

I've never been officially trained on printers, but printer techs have told me that the PRO printers skew warm, just like our cameras do. It's part of the Canon Color Science. If that's not your cup of tea, you can always adjust it however you like, but the defaults are warmer than neutral.

ebiggs1 · ‎12-19-2023

"Telling you that it is embedded in the printer that way effectively ends any further discussion about problem resolution."

Absolutely not John. That is just the default setting out of the box. I have had four Canon Pixma Pro printers over the last decade or two, I still have one right nest to this computer and they all exhibit the same magenta cast. Actually for portrait work I do it is pleasing if not accurate so i am good with it. I rarely do facsimile color printing but when I do I adjust it in PS.

They are fantastic printers. I use them heavily for a time and sometimes they sit for a long while but come right back into service when I need them. I never had a single hitch with any of them but they do have the magenta cast. The Canon techs were all as helpful as possible until we decided that is how they are. If you do portraits leave them alone. But a snow white wedding dress does present a problem.

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

jrhoffman75 · ‎12-19-2023

@ebiggs1 wrote:
"Telling you that it is embedded in the printer that way effectively ends any further discussion about problem resolution."

Absolutely not John. That is just the default setting out of the box. I have had four Canon Pixma Pro printers over the last decade or two, I still have one right nest to this computer and they all exhibit the same magenta cast. Actually for portrait work I do it is pleasing if not accurate so i am good with it. I rarely do facsimile color printing but when I do I adjust it in PS.
They are fantastic printers. I use them heavily for a time and sometimes they sit for a long while but come right back into service when I need them. I never had a single hitch with any of them but they do have the magenta cast. The Canon techs were all as helpful as possible until we decided that is how they are. If you do portraits leave them alone. But a snow white wedding dress does present a problem.

Hi Ernie and Stephen.

I am not a printer expert, but when this issue arose about 10 years ago I did not experience that condition so I wanted to experiment.

I printed several different printer test images and never noticed a color cast

It is also my understanding that the purpose of ICC profiles is to "zero out" the printer effect, so if the printer was deliberately adding a tint to the calibration sheet the ICC profile process would compensate for that.

I agree with Stephen that folks like the Canon color science as produced by Canon cameras.

I am surprised that Canon would produce professional level printers that alter that color science by shifting the color balance. I could understand hobbyist printers doing that, but I would like pro level gear to be neutral.

I agree it's a great printer. There are likely factory calibration variations, like all products. I'm glad mine wound up where it did.

John Hoffman
Conway, NH

1D X Mark III, M200, Many lenses, Pixma PRO-100, Pixma TR8620a, Lr Classic

Stephen · ‎12-19-2023

Like I said - I've never been trained officially, but what you're saying makes sense, and must be true, otherwise, no pro would ever use our printers! 😁

ebiggs1 · ‎12-19-2023

"... have used many different papers ..."

I agree, paper makes a huge difference. That is why there are specific profiles. The ICCC profile changes the base settings in the printer. That is probably why you have been successful or at least satisfied with your Pixma Pro printer.

I prefer Canon paper because they should know their printers. My second choice and the one I use most for weddings is Red River. They have good and working profiles on all their papers. Their faux canvas is super popular around here.

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

ebiggs1 · ‎12-19-2023

"... no pro would ever use our printers!"

It is a common printer around here. Pros or lets say folks that make money, always hated being called a "pro", with their cameras mostly do people or pets. For that the Pixma Pro is an excellent choice. Most "customers" will prefer a warmer photo over a neutral or cooler one. Been there done that. That can be changed but perhaps not as easily as one might think as it does take some effort and it will mess up the ICC profile which are expecting the default configuration. I am not a printer expert either although I worked for Hallmark Cards in KC for 40 years in the Graphic Arts department so I hope some of it rubbed off.

I must admit it has become almost a moot point because most people don't want prints any longer. The last couple dozen or so weddings, yes I'm retired but can't let it go, I have shot all wanted their photos on a thumb drive. I printed none!

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

ebiggs1 · ‎12-19-2023

While on this topic my latest Pixma Pro printer tends to print darker than what I see on my monitor which was calibrated several years ago. I also know it has the magenta cast. I make adjustments in Photoshop and all is well with the world.

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

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