Epson Stylus Photo R1900

I have long been invested in a competitor's brand when it came to high-quality inkjet printing, and making the switch to not only a new printer but also a new vendor was a tough decision. As a professional… photographer (Member, NPPA), I carefully coordinate ICC color profiles for true color fidelity from lens to monitor to print. No sub-$2000 printer - until now - has ever satisfied me. Epson's R1900 is a STEAL even at full retail price. The color fidelity, gamut, and smooth skin tones are unmatched and are more true to life than the professional digital printing service that I formerly used (and have since fired). You operating costs are not going to be as cheap as if you purchase a big-box-storestyle photo printer - you'll go through ink faster than with other brands (especially the Gloss Optimizer, which covers the entire print with a fantastic gloss coat when turned on, but whcih if fortunately sold in a low-cost 4-pack). Even with higher ink costs, if you're looking at this product you're probably already ready to take your game to the next level. Although this printer will produce stunning prints on any media, you really need to try printing on Epson paper with Epson's ICC profiles installed - words cannot describe the quality of the prints produced. The first 11x14 I printed took not only my breath away, but that of the fellow professional photographers staring over my shoulder. The Gloss Optimizer cartridge and newly formulated inks are a clear improvement over this model's predecessor (R1800) and produce fantastic glossy prints. You have to see it to believe it - you will not be disappointed. Also consider purchasing paper and ink directly from the Epson store - the prices are better than I have found elsewhere online - and there are frequently sales on their higher end papers.

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I am a professional photographer, and after having heard so many good things from friends about Epson I decided to go at the 13" level first, I am very pleased with the overall results. I've read that some… people say they get "dark" prints, it is probably true, but you can easily compensate for that in Photoshop using Curves and the Screen Mode and vary opacity so that it's just right for you. This happened to me too but I'm not sure if it is because I need to upgrade my calibrating system for my monitor. So I just made some printing tests..and I adjusted the photograph prior to printing and that's it, I'm very pleased with the results. So far this is the first ink cartridge I change and it was the gloss optimizer, it lasted for 12 5x7's, 8 8x10's, 2 8.5x11's and 1 13x19" and I will soon be needing to replace the Cyan and Photo Black cartridge. I've tried different papers with their corresponding ICC profiles and I like: Kodak Professional paper Lustre E for Inkjet (255 g) it's affordable and gives me better skin tones than Ilford. However I'm very pleased with Ilford's Galerie Smooth Pearl Paper (red package) I use it for printing 5x7's and 13x19's, Ilford Galerie Gold Fibre Silk is 310 gsm and excellent better than the Smooth Pearl. I'm impressed with Ilford Galerie Smooth High Gloss Media, it looks a lot like Kodak's Metallic paper which I can only get from a pro lab. I don't like Epson's luster paper it's too shiny, won't purchase again, it's not 5 stars as they claim. I tried using Moab canvas 350 gsm and the printer did not accept it, apparently it's too thick and it caused a paper jam, so be cautious about the thickness. I still haven't tried the Hahnemuhle Fine Art paper samplers I've purchased I'll keep you posted. For Matte prints turn the gloss optimizer off, always print with the Best Photo Quality possible and turn off the fast speed. The results vary widely depending on the paper you use, so make a wise decision and purchase sampler packs to see what works for you. The printer does indeed take a lot of desk space so plan accordingly. I can certainly understand why purchasing RIP software is advisable (although more expensive than the printer itself), Epson's included software is primitive, so try controlling the printer from within Photoshop to get better results. I truly enjoy printing in-house instead of going to the lab, that is priceless! I used to get frustrated with labs all the time because their colors are hideous and not consistent, this isn't a problem anymore I get the colors I want anytime.

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My experience so far with the R1900 has been very good. The print drivers setup easily on Windows Vista (32 bit). Out of the box, the printer delivered excellent glossy photos on Epson ultra premium paper.… This is the first large format printer I've owned, and so I'm very happy with it. One note about using photo printers like this with programs like Adobe Lightroom or Photoshop is that you need to do a bit of research to find the best settings, and you have to remember to apply them each time you print. Try some different settings and papers, and keep notes of what worked best. I did waste some ink and paper finding this out, but it was worth it to see what actually printed best.

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I've owned this printer for about a year now and I think it performs reasonably well. There are two significant issues with the unit I own: 1) Occasionally it will refuse to recognize a replaced… cartridge, but Epson has been very good about sending free replacements. The only issue is the waste of time and frustration when this happens. So far it happened to me on two occasions. Both times Epson replaced the defective cartiridges overnight. I did not even have to call them, just send them an e-mail and get a very quick response. 2) I wasted half a roll of canvas trying to load it as per Epson instructions. The unit would accept the edge of the roll, but as I would send a print job in, it would report a media jam every time. Pressing the jam clearing button would result in the printer advancing a blank piece of canvas forward, while the roll back-up button would do nothing and I would have to pull the canvas out of the unit manually, damaging the canvas in the process and risking destroying the printer as well. I tried to follow Epson instructions twice with the same result and then decided to pre-cut the canvas roll to pieces of required length and feed them via a cut-sheet feeder. This approach worked like a charm - no jams and no problems. I got great prints of any length I needed. I will never use the crappy roll feeding system on this unit again. I gave the unit 4 stars to account for the two issues above.

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