R1800

I read here that others use the R1800 for digital negatives with good success. My few tries using it with chartthrob were not good...certainly not as good as previous efforts with a photo 2200.

I'm wondering if anyone knows the best color to use with the R1800 inks to maximize UV blocking?

Thanks,

I have been using an R1800 for several months and have been getting good results. I am new to digital negatives and have been using Chart Throb up to this point. So, consistent with the thread mentioned in the last post, I have been able to get reasonably good results without the ink tweaking capabilities of QTR. However, I occasionally get a negative where the contrast is simply too high and I can't quite figure out why.

That said, my next project will be learning to use QTR to improve the quality of my prints.

- John

John Lockhart said:

I have been using an R1800 for several months and have been getting good results. I am new to digital negatives and have been using Chart Throb up to this point. So, consistent with the thread mentioned in the last post, I have been able to get reasonably good results without the ink tweaking capabilities of QTR. However, I occasionally get a negative where the contrast is simply too high and I can't quite figure out why.

That said, my next project will be learning to use QTR to improve the quality of my prints.

- John

Click to expand...

The point of my post was that you don't need anything beyond the Epson driver and a correction curve to get really excellent negatives from the R1800:

I print digital negatives on an R1800. The R1900 has an updated ink set
(orange instead of blue) but may provide similar results. For the R1800 the simplest path to high quality negatives is just to print using all inks using a correction curve. The curve is easy to create if you have a reflection densitometer that can directly enter readings into a spreadsheet program like Excel. I use Inkpress, Arista, or Pictorico OHP; high-speed off; photo RPM (2880); premium glossy photo paper media; no gloss optimizer; icm with no color adjustment. These negatives may be even better than the ones I get from my 3800 (either QTR or colorized negatives).

Just to follow up on Phil's post...He and I have compared notes on R1800 (his) vs. R1900 (mine). As closely related as they appear on paper, the ink densities appear very different. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but in terms of both composite black from the Epson driver, and QTR black only, the Dmax is considerably lighter (as much as 0.3 log) on the R1900.

The R1900 is a great printer for glossy and luster color prints, and the small drop size makes for pretty good black-only prints, and it has both PK and MK without purging lines or swapping carts. But it is poor for digi-negatives which require high densities (like for high-relief carbon). It worked well for carbon with high-pigment load tissues (Bostick & Sullivan tissues) and cyanotype, though. So it's a bit of a mixed bag, but I wouldn't recommend it, even though But that's just my opinion.

I've decided to switch to a 3880 and sell the R1900. Found a great deal on Craigslist, with carts 75% full.

If I get a chance, I'll follow up with the actual density numbers in a couple of days once I get my 361-T up and running.

--Greg

Thanks for the input guys.
I'll try again with the glop off and stick with it.

Greg,
Don't do the density numbers for my sake, you're talking way over my head...but thanks for being willing.

Definitely turn the glop off. There's no reason to use it on OHP unless you're trying to protect MK ink from rubbing off.

This is not a strategy I would recommend, but it is possible. MK has very high UV density, but it can tend to result in grainy images, from what I understand.

The density numbers aren't just for your sake, Steve. It's as much for the archives as anything else.

--Greg