Canon Photo Paper VS Generics

[Brian Tilley]

The photos printed with my Canon i960 printer on Canon's "Photo Paper Plus Glossy" paper are excellent, in my opinion.

I'm not thrilled with the cost of the paper. $14/20 sheets at Staples, a little less elsewhere.

Has anybody found this paper at a really good price?
Maybe larger quantity packages?

How about other brands of photo paper that work well with this printer?

I have tried a couple. The RoyalBrites brand of High Gloss Photo Paper I got at BJ's is quite good, although not as good as Canon's paper.

Anyone else have anything to offer?

[CyberDyneSystems]

Only once...

Every so often CompUSA has a 50% off ALL photopaper sale,...

the last time I bought about $300.00 worth of paper.. and a wide format printer to go with it :shock:

[TeraGram93013]

One thing I've learned in (mumblemumble) years of printing is that your paper stock makes or breaks the final product. Period. The reason Canon papers are expensive is because they are very high quality and turn out fabulous images on Canon printers.

If you really want to experiment with papers you might consider looking at various manufacturer's web sites and checking for sample packs. Sometimes they sell them directly, sometimes they give them out for free, sometimes you can buy them at major online retailers like Adorama.

[Scottes]

My brother was in the printing trade for 29 years, and he knew paper. When I had this discussion with him (long before home color printers) he gave me a long diatribe about paper and ink.

I'll spare you everything he said (OK, I've forgotten it), and I'll translate...

Ink manufacturers do a lot of testing of their inks to develop the correct paper, and vice versa. A lot has to do with the way the ink gets sucked into the paper, how fast it dries and the way it dries, the emulsions left on top of the paper (for matte, semigloss, etc.), the light reflectivity match of paper and ink, the light-fastedness of them both, yadda yadda yadda.

Basically he taught me to buy the paper that goes with the ink. So Epson Inkjet paper for an Epson inkjet.

Now, he admitted that this would work 98% of the time. There are times when a paper manufacturer will make a paper to work with a specific ink (or vice versa) because of some characteristic that 99.9% of us can't see. So there will be a time when a different ink or paper will be better for some thing.

Epson/Canon/HP/etc will make paper for their ink *for the masses*. That is to say, the combo will make 98% of people happy. Well don't you know that most photographers are in the 2% that cares and can see a difference. Bummer for us, because now that means that a good percentage of photographers will want better.

If so, it will cost you.

If you're complaining about the cost of paper, you're probably better off paying for it if the results make you happy. Experimenting with 3 or 4 papers will probably cost you more in wasted paper than you would have saved by staying with the manufacturer's brand. Cheaper paper probably won't look as good, too.

If you're in the percentage of people who think that the manufacturers ink on their paper doesn't look so great, well, you're probably willing to pay the extra price for better ink and/or paper. And if you're not willing to pay then suck it up and accept the quality.

I'll stay with manufacturer's ink & paper until I see a reason to change. And then I'll pony up the cash and pay for the good stuff.

[iwatkins]

With the Canon i9100, I have tried all sorts of papers, both gloss/satin/matte.

I've even gone so far as to buy a box of XYZ make when said company wouldn't send me sample paper to try. I now have a pile of boxes and packets a foot high containing paper I will never use.

Only papers I now use:

For Final Colour Prints:
Canon Photo Paper Pro
Canon Photo Paper Pro Glossy
Canon Matte Paper

For Final B&W Prints:
Ilford Gallerie Classic Pearl
Ilford Gallerie Smooth Pearl

For General art work/graphics (not straight prints):
Olmec Matte (230gsm)

It has been a fairly expensive exercise and I've used a lot of ink. But I now know that when I decide to make a print I am getting the best my system can produce. I can ask no more and am more than happy with the output.

Cheers

Ian

[dn7elson]

How about other brands of photo paper that work well with this printer?

With my Canon s9000 I use the Canon Photo Paper Pro for prints that I consider important, and frequently use Koday Premium Picture Paper (Heavy Weight, High Gloss) for less critical prints. I have found the Kodak paper to be excellent and I have purchased it at various office superstores and Costco for as low as $0.25/ sheet for 8-1/2x11 sheets.

[Radtech1]

I have an S-750 and an I-9100 and in both instances I have found that anything other than Canon Ink with Canon Paper give me less than pleasing results.

Kodak paper, Premium or Ultima, High Gloss or Satin, always gave me crappy results. The ink sits on top of the paper, and pools into little dots.

Epson paper (various grades) gave me slightly better resutls, still forming an ink layer, but at least without the little dots.

In both cases there would never be any question that it was printed at home.

Canon Pro paper yields fantastic results because the ink goes INTO the paper, not on top. I have shown a lot of photos to a lot of people, and 100% of the time the response was "THIS was printed on a computer?!?!"

It is the difference between "Wow!" and "Eh".

Rad

PS, I too hate the expense, but it is worth it to me.

[dn7elson]

Kodak paper, Premium or Ultima, High Gloss or Satin, always gave me crappy results. The ink sits on top of the paper, and pools into little dots.

I have never encountered results like you report. I am just about through my 3rd box of Kodak Premium Picture Paper (100 sheets) and have not had a single occurrance like yours. I do set the print setting for the Kodak paper as being Canon Photo Paper Plus that seems to give excellent results with this paper too.

As is typical for all photo prints using wed media, you need to let them dry for a few mintes before handling them much, but this is the same for either the Photo Paper Pro or any other.

[Brian Tilley]

I am just about through my 3rd box of Kodak Premium Picture Paper (100 sheets) and have not had a single occurrance like yours. I do set the print setting for the Kodak paper as being Canon Photo Paper Plus that seems to give excellent results with this paper too.


Dale,

What model Canon printer are you using?

[dn7elson]

What model Canon printer are you using?

I have the s9000, the model before the i9000.

[arogop]

What I have found with the kodak papers is that the colors are off. Probably due to the not soaking in. I do find however that when I take pictures with pool water in it that effect is very desirable. Just give it extra dry time and don't let your daughter spit on it.

All of the rest of the time I use Canon paper. Mostly the Glossy Plus, because I can get that real cheap. (about 11 cents per 4x6)

When I buy paper I try to stock up when CompUSA has their 50% off sale. Buy the 120 packs of 4x6's. Other wise I will order for Canoga Camera.

I only use Canon ink. About 9.26 per cartrige.

[SoCal69]

I have the canon i860. I use Canon paper mostly, but for everyday inexpensive printing, I also use Epson Glossy Photo Paper, which turns out pretty good results. I buy the 100 sheet pack at Costco for $20.00. A good alternative for decent prints at a low cost.

[dn7elson]

What I have found with the kodak papers is that the colors are off. Probably due to the not soaking in.

Strange. However, my scanner has a calibration target in its firmware and I have used it to calibrate both software and hardware, perhaps the reason I don't find this to be the case on my system.

[Brian Tilley]

Thanks to all for the feedback.

Looks like finding an alternative to Canon paper is a matter of trial and error.

Also, there may not be a clearcut concensus on what paper works well in Canon printers.

When some people find that one brand of paper works well but other people have different opinions, it is a little unclear as to whether it is a matter of personal subjective taste, or if it may be due to diffences in the software and settings used.

Thanks again for the help. I guess it is up to me to decide what I think is best.

[Scottes]

Looks like finding an alternative to Canon paper is a matter of trial and error.

You might want to Google for phrases like "ilford canon i960" and "olmec i960" and see if you can hit some comments or reviews. I don't know what other 3rd party papers and/or inks are out there.

Then again, you said "The photos printed with my Canon i960 printer on Canon's "Photo Paper Plus Glossy" paper are excellent, in my opinion." Sounds like you might just have to put up with the price. If it ain't broke... (other than price).

[Longwatcher]

I use the S9000, can't wait for i9900.
I also use the Canon OEM inks
I have found that with the BCI-6 cartridges and various papers. Sometimes it makes a huge difference where you are and where the paper is going.

Canon paper looks good at home, but fades so fast in my office that it would be embarrassing for me to use Canon paper. No problems observed at home though. Meanwhile the Kodak Ultima paper (I have not liked their premium paper) is the one I like the best for color shots. I am especially looking forward to finding one of their newest batches using the latest technology.

Yes the color is different for Kodak paper from Canon, but ilford, OD, Epson, and HP all have slight color shifts and need to be compensated for.

As to pooling, from my research, the two primary causes of this with Kodak paper is speed of printing and humidity. In a very humid environment it will take longer to soak in and dry because the moisture will soften up the upper paper layers which makes the microscopic holes slightly smaller on the Ultima paper.
The solution that will usually help is to slow the print speed down by making sure the printer is set to highest quality versus highest speed.

Kodak and Hp both have a coating which it is advisable to use in a low humidity environment. Once they dry fully (about 24 hours)though they are the toughest papers in terms of longevity in harsh environments (except the resin coating breaks down in the back window of my car a very harsh environment).

I highly recommend that even if you are not using Kodak paper that you read the Kodak white paper on their new colorfast version of Ultima paper. The link is:

http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=1870&pq-locale=en_US

and if you are really interested they have three technical papers which go into even greater depth on inkjet papers.

BTW: My favorite paper for B+W prints is Epson Matte paper.
I love my Canon Printer, ink, camera and lenses, but their software and paper needs work.

Just my opinion,

[GenEOS]

I am going to use up the rest of my Kodak paper left over from my HP and never use anything but Canon in my i960. I still can't get over the quality of this printer for the price...

[mookiemeister]

The photos printed with my Canon i960 printer on Canon's "Photo Paper Plus Glossy" paper are excellent, in my opinion.

I'm not thrilled with the cost of the paper. $14/20 sheets at Staples, a little less elsewhere.

Has anybody found this paper at a really good price?
Maybe larger quantity packages?

Anyone else have anything to offer?

Canon Photo Paper Plus Glossy 4x6 is currently selling for $7.94 for 50 sheets at amazon.com. No tax and no shipping charge over $25.

[dpanicc1]

To reiterate, Canon paper and ink is the way to go with Canon printers. I tried one other brand of paper, Kodak, and as was stated earlier, terrible results. Canon forulates ink and paper to play nice-nice together--factor in color management, and you really have no choice but stay with Canon supplies for best results. If I had an Epson, I'd use Epson supplies. It's really that simple.

[mookiemeister]

If you don't care about photo paper being glossy, you can get Canon Matte Photo Paper 8.5x11 50 sheets for $8.99 at amazon.com. Then you can use Canon PhotoRecord or Easy-PhotoPrint program and print 4 photos to a page. Each photo will be about 4x5.

[mcneguy]

I have a Canon i950 and after buying everything from Photo Paper Pro to Office Depot paper, I have discovered a company called Red River Paper (www.redriverpaper.com) Their 62lb Polar Satin is the best paper I have used, they even have free Photoshop ICC profiles to match your printer and whatever version of their paper you are using. They even make 8x10 paper.

You can buy a sampler pack that includes 2 sheets of all their papers for like $3 plus shipping so you can try them all out.

Give it a try..

[Brian Tilley]

I have a Canon i950 and after buying everything from Photo Paper Pro to Office Depot paper, I have discovered a company called Red River Paper (www.redriverpaper.com) Their 62lb Polar Satin is the best paper I have used, they even have free Photoshop ICC profiles to match your printer and whatever version of their paper you are using. They even make 8x10 paper.

You can buy a sampler pack that includes 2 sheets of all their papers for like $3 plus shipping so you can try them all out.

Give it a try..

mcneguy,

Thanks for the info. I'll check them out.