printed image is too large

I've been using PS Elements 6 for about 2 years, and do all my editing and printing with it. I've had my Canon Pro9000MkII for about the same length of time and I've never seen anything like this.

I printed an image and it came out larger than I expected on the paper. I checked and rechecked and the printed image was larger than the onscreen image, by about 1/8" in each direction. It was just a test print so I blew it off. In the process of testing, I made two more prints of the same image, at a different size from the first. Of these two, one printed at the correct size and one was larger. There was more than an hour between the prints but neither PSE nor the printer was shut down during that time.

So I shut down PSE, restarted it and printed a different image. This one is also about 1/8" too large in both directions. (The aspect ratio stays correct.)

I print a lot and I've never seen this before. Has anyone else?
Thanks

I have seen this, in fact the dimensions, for example 16 x 12", are normally only a "close aproximation", being slightly over rather than slightly under.

Thats on an Epson R2880 via Photoshop 7, so its not only a Canon or Elements issue. I have no idea why its the case and as I always use mounts it does not bother me anyway.

Never seen this happening on my R2880. If I print an image that's 26.67x40 cm, it gets printed at exact that size… Not a mm larger or smaller.

"Onscreen image" how are you comparing?
In PS the Zoom > print size is only as reliable as the screen resolution you've set in the preferences.

https://photography-on-the.net …ion+Photoshop#p​ost9652841

Rene,

Typically I crop to 405 mm x 305 mm and once printed it sits easily with my 400 mm x 300mm mount, more than the 2.5mm on each side I'd expect, its probably the extra 1/8" that ncjohn is finding.

As I said, this is not an issue for me, I'm used to it and its built into my workflow! But if you don't have the same issue thats very strange. I simply assumed it was normal.

René Damkot wrote in post #14904541
Never seen this happening on my R2880. If I print an image that's 26.67x40 cm, it gets printed at exact that size… Not a mm larger or smaller.

Historically, that's what I've always seen also. I print a lot of greeting cards with a precisely sized image, and they've always been right before.

I'm comparing the printed image with what I set in Image>Resize.

No, I found out about that long ago. Interesting thread, though; I've always wondered why that View>print size didn't work.

Lowner wrote in post #14904721
Rene,

Typically I crop to 405 mm x 305 mm and once printed it sits easily with my 400 mm x 300mm mount, more than the 2.5mm on each side I'd expect, its probably the extra 1/8" that ncjohn is finding.

As I said, this is not an issue for me, I'm used to it and its built into my workflow! But if you don't have the same issue thats very strange. I simply assumed it was normal.

I guess if it's consistent and you're used to it, that's okay, but this is new and inconsistent, as I stated in my original post.

I assume it couldn't be something as simple as having "fit to paper size" or something similar checked or unchecked?

stsva,

All I can tell you is not in my case. I don't "fit to paper size" as I use A3+ paper and theres a lot of white around the image!

stsva wrote in post #14905115
I assume it couldn't be something as simple as having "fit to paper size" or something similar checked or unchecked?

No, that's something I would never use because I'm picky about print images being the size I want them to be. Also, it would mean that I checked it 3 times and unchecked it once. I'm pretty sure I'd remember.

ncjohn wrote in post #14905229
No, that's something I would never use because I'm picky about print images being the size I want them to be. Also, it would mean that I checked it 3 times and unchecked it once. I'm pretty sure I'd remember.

It's definitely a mystery. Good luck figuring out what's going on.

Are you using a preset or a printer setting that involves a full bleed page set up (i.e., borderless)? At least on Epson printers, there is a control for how the image gets slightly resized to make sure the image goes to the edge of the page (slightly larger than the page) for borderless prints, so that there is no paper strip at the edge of the print.

Maybe?

kirk

Kirkt, I think you may have hit it. (I'm not absolutely sure, since it wasn't happening every time, but...)

Because I want to always have the image exactly the size I set it to, I always choose borderless printing with no "extension," even when I'm not printing to the edge of the paper. (That is, no amount of "overshoot" to prevent that white edge.) But, like Jerk Zuckerberg, the Canon printer driver sometimes changes settings without asking, and I've noticed lately that sometimes it really, really wants me to set some "extension" with the borderless choice; I often have to set it back to "no extension" when I'm making a print, even though I never chose to have extension in the first place. (In other words, it's changing the setting I chose for the amount of extension.)

I did a test, using the first image that had the size wrong. I sized the image to the same size it was set to at that time and printed it with no extension. It printed correctly. Then I added one "increment" of extension and the print came out a little larger. With two increments of extension, the image printed exactly the size it was when I first noticed the problem.

So I suspect that, when I made those prints that came out oversized, I didn't notice that some extension was set. Rather than spend more paper and ink on more tests, I'll just keep my eye on that extension setting and see what happens.

Thanks for the help.

That might explain your size increase, but it does not explain mine, as I never print borderless.

I don't because the ink bleed off the paper edge shortens the life of the printer. The ink "nappy" fills up and once full, the printer is a goner.

Lowner wrote in post #14907564
That might explain your size increase, but it does not explain mine, as I never print borderless.

You don't need to print borderless for it to happen (if I read previous posts correctly). What paper size did you set? Maybe some settings activate the "extension" setting?

Rene,

I use A3+ paper and crop the image to 305mm x 405mm before printing it. At least I do that when framing or puttting into a cellophane envelope with a mount in order to offer for sale. For display at home it can be anything my wife wants!

But the fact that I have fractionally more under the mount I see as a good thing, as long as its consistent (and it is) I can mentally adjust for it.

I'm hoping that this weekends Dorset Steam Rally sells at least one of my steam train images. Bank holidays do seem to be good for me in that direction.