Charity photoshoot, CF compatible printer needed

[ghwellsjr]

I have no idea how many cartridges you are going to need. I suggested that you buy them from a place that will allow you to return the ones you don't use. You just don't want to run out on Christmas day.

You might even get a store to loan you a printer when they find out what you are doing.

 

[qwertydude]

Qwertydude,

When I print the same picture on the same type of photo paper on my Canon i9950 (4800x2400 dpi, 2 pl) actually looks much better than on my Canon MX850 (9600x4800 dpi, 1 pl) especially in toning and shadow gradients. So resolution is not the only factor to ensure optimum printing quality.

No it's not about the quality of the print, I see even you say that the mx850 is 9600x4800 dpi @ 1 pl which I thought mine was too. But now I look at canon's site on even the mx850 and take a look at the specs.

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/c...ategoryid=123&modelid=16279#ModelTechSpecsAct

It says 9600x2400 dpi @ 1 pl. Did they just all of a sudden change the specs? Hmmm... something seems shady here. Cause I'm 99% sure I remember my ip4600 being 9600x4800 dpi, 1 pl.

 

[mikling]

I think I'll just chip in a bit here.

The ideal solution for your application is to use an identical pair of printers connected to the PC and set up as a pooled pair. You can google how to "pool printers". It is simple, does not requirea additional software and is built into Windows. If I were doing this I would actually take along a pair of Epson printers with a CISS installed. With the given application, it is possible to output around 3 5x7 photos per minute with this setup and this would alleviate any kind of lineup or delay if something like a pair of Epson R260s are used. You can use a Canon but the issue of cartridge changeout will crop up and delay things and your workflow. In any case pooling two printers is highly recommended if you want a smooth flow. Otherwise you may face a bottleneck situation due to printing if there is haevy traffic at certain times. For these situations CISS equipped printers are ideal.

The other consideration is to use software such as that created by Breeze Systems. Their software has a photobooth mode, but you can set it to take single portrait shots rather than "fun" shots. This is even more so, since you can orient the screen to face the family thus allowing them to see themselves at the time the picture is taken.
http://www.breezesys.com/
With the appropriate models of cameras, their software is superb for your application. Expensive cameras are not necessary at all, but will depend on the quality you require. I will suggest that something as outdated as a Canon A70 or A60 which is totally a dinosaur in some consumers eyes and worth next to nothing will amaze you in this application. This is so because they are able to provide a live view and can be controlled by a PC. Thus there would be no requirement to remove memory cards to print. You take the picture with the camera connected to the PC and the picture will immediately start to print. This explains the suggestion for the pooled printers.

Ideally however, you will want to use a camera that communicates with USB2.0 to minimize the time required to get the picture into the pc from the camera. Unfortunately Canon has removed this tethered shooting from their current lower priced Powershots but it still remains within their better Powershots and superzooms. On the older Canon cameras even the 2 and 3 megapixel models had this feature. So a simple 2 megapixel point and shoot all the way up to a dSLR with umbrella flashes is possible.

Surprisingly, you will need a faster or a more current PC if you have a lot of traffic. While I appreciate it is 200 families within a day, do consider the peak periods as that will determine your hardware needs.

I have a setup that does exactly what you seek to do. It's wonderful.

 

[fotofreek]

I just attended a party where a photographer and an assistant were doing just what you described. I don't know if the equipment they used is available as a rental, but they used a DSLR attached directly to a laptop computer, and the printing was done from a Sony dye-sub printer that made superb quality pix using a color transfer film. I wasn't able to get more information as they were quite busy and - well - we were at the party!!! I did google to see what it involved, and the more expensive units can produce a 4x6 in about 10 seconds. I think they also work with a pictbridge enabled camera. The transfer film and special paper are probably very expensive per printed picture. If you are in a large city you may be able to rent such a unit. Otherwise you will need to buy a printer or two plus cartridges. It is probably a little late to try to find older generation Canon printers and get up to speed on refilling (several carts in advance, of course, to facilitate handling the crowd.)

For dye based inkjets the cheapest precut paper I've seen is 4x6 glossy photo paper from costco. Online I also saw precut 5x7 glossy inkjet photo paper.

Since I own several inkjet printers, have experience with refilling, and have enough spare carts to refill to do more than 200 prints I would set up several printers on my laptop and trade off to accelerate the printing. You won't get the speed of the more expensive dye-sub printers, however. At the party they were spitting out prints very quickly. Check into a wholesale photo supply to find cardboard frames or folders that are quite inexpensive when purchased in bulk.