Pigment Ink And Uv Coating

[Arindam]

Hi all,
I am new to the forum, and this is my first post. I have learnt a lot from you people in the last few days.I am from India, and I am into Wedding Photography. I currently print my photos from the print shop.I want to install a printer to print large sized photos. I have narrowed my search to Epson Pro 3885(3880 in Western world, i think) ($1500 equivalent here) or 4900($3000 equiv). 4900 is too pricey for me.
I have no previous experience with LFPs, but i have used many entry level printers and Mitshubishi Dye Sub.

My question is, can I print on Cheap Glossy Paper from a pigment ink printer ? Or it is only for Matt papers and Specialised Glossys ?
Can the prints, be UV coated ? I mean, is it possible to coat the prints with UV Varnish.
A person from Kodak here, warned me, that the Pigment ink prints cannot be UV coated perfectly, it may be a hit or miss.
The amount is too big for me, and i don't want to take chance.
Looking forward for your comments.
BTW, by "UV coating", I want to mean, UV curable coating.

 

[costadinos]

Unless you are printing lots and lots of photos or require the roll handling option of the 4900, go for the 3885, it's much more suited for the type of work you describe, plus you'll get much better sheet paper handling over the 4900. The ink is the same formulation for both models (with the addition of Orange/Green in the 4900 of course).

As for printing on cheap glossy paper with pigment, it's not a good idea. Pigment inks require special coatings, you'll have to make sure the paper you are using has this, otherwise you'll be facing problems with the inks rubbing off, pooling, decreased gamut/Dmax etc.
And as long as the prints are made with quality pigment inks (OEM or a reputable third party manufacturer), UV coating isn't really necessary. Uncoated, pigment prints will last a lot more than those from the Dye Sub printer (something like 100+ vs 25 years)

 

[Arindam]

@costadinos Thanks for your quick reply.
I read in one of your thread that you print on Photo Lab Roll paper, using pigment ink. Can I use paper targeted for Epson SureLab SL-D3000 ?
Your advise is again required.

 

[costadinos]

@costadinos Thanks for your quick reply.
I read in one of your thread that you print on Photo Lab Roll paper, using pigment ink. Can I use paper targeted for Epson SureLab SL-D3000 ?
Your advise is again required.

I haven't tried the Epson paper, so can't tell for sure. The SureLab is dye based, so there is a small possibility the paper is not pigment compatible (which I really doubt).
The Fuji/Noritsu papers work great with pigments. HP also makes a minilab that uses pigment inks, so if you can get hold of that it should also work.

But for the type of photography you describe (wedding, A3/A2 size), your best bet would be Epson's premium luster. it's really an outstanding paper, pigment compatible, and much cheaper than other competing brands (at least around here, I can get A2 sheets for under 2Eur each).
You could also try contacting this company, they may have a reseller where you live. I buy three types of paper (pearl, satin and glossy) from a reseller of theirs here and they are truly excellent, at half or less the cost of anything else, including the above mentioned Epson luster.
http://www.fortunadg.com/