Epson 9890 and Lightroom - Issue with printing an image pattern

[Cornelius]

Hi there

I'm newly equipped with an Epson 9890 and like to adjust my printing workflow in Lightroom for my new roll paper printer.

Yesterday I tried to print on a custom paper 610x405mm four images with 200x300mm each in a 2x2 pattern.
I used Lightroom with "Custom Package" and created four placeholder boxed with 200x300mm each in the 2x2 pattern on my custom paper.

In the print dialog I used normal cut mode and rollpaper banner with a 24 inch paper roll.
Now my problem is, the printer always prints the first line of 2 images, followed by 5mm of the 2nd line, then stops printing and cuts the paper.
So I'm missing the 2nd line of images.

Does anyone has some good advise for me?
I now that Qimage or Mirage would do the job but I really like my workflow with Lightroom and before I invest a couple of hundred swiss francs for a RIP software, I really like to print such a pattern from Lightroom. Especially as I don't understand why it is not working..

Thanks for your help!

[Wayne Fox]

What OS?  What are your printer dialog boxes?  What are your custom settings?

What you describe is common if you enter incorrect measurements into the width/height settings of your custom paper size.  The width should the width of the paper you are putting into the printer not the width of the final desired output.  Many people also transpose those settings, putting a width of the print in instead of the width of the paper.  For example if I am wanting an 18” by 40” landscape print, on 24” roll paper the custom setting would be 24” wide by 40” high.

[Cornelius]

Hi Wayne

I'm printing on OSX 10.9 with the latest Lightroom version.

My custom paper size has the width of my paper roll 610x405mm (24'').
In the driver, I'm using "rollpaper banner".

Any idea why it's not working?

And by the way, how about the papier setting "rollpaper banner borderless". If I understand this right, I need to add additional 6mm to the roll width for custom papers?

[Wayne Fox]

Hi Wayne

I'm printing on OSX 10.9 with the latest Lightroom version.

My custom paper size has the width of my paper roll 610x405mm (24'').
In the driver, I'm using "rollpaper banner".

Any idea why it's not working?

And by the way, how about the papier setting "rollpaper banner borderless". If I understand this right, I need to add additional 6mm to the roll width for custom papers?

Is there a reason you are using the banner setting? It's purpose to to "gang" print continuously without any cutting in the middle.

Are you trying to print borderless? You don't add to the roll width, what it's saying is the image size itself has to be about 5mm larger than the paper size to get "borderless" prints, the idea of borderless is to allow the printer to print slightly larger than the paper itself (the extra ink goes into the little pads behind the print head path, that's why borderless is only supported for select sizes, wherever they have put one of those pads).

With LR, I don't believe that option is usable, because you would have to create a cell size larger than the paper size. So the only option for borderless is the borderless auto expand option.

Maybe I'm confused as to what you are trying to do and your settings.  Screen shots of the Page Setup, custom paper size dialog, print settings, and lightoom screen with the settings readable may help.

[Cornelius]

Hi Wayne

I attached the screenshots of Lightroom and the printer and paper setting.
Sorry everything is in german, but I guess you figure it out.

I like to print 4 pictures with 20x30cm on a paper that is 61x40cm with a 24'' (61cm) paper roll.
After the first line of 2 pictures, the prints prints approx. 1cm of the 2nd line of pictures and then stops and cuts the paper.

Maybe I should try create my pattern in Lightroom on the "contact sheet" setup instead of custom package.
But by my understanding, it should also work with custom package setup.

[Cornelius]

I just tested a couple of prints.
If I prepare the grid in Lightroom in the "contact sheet" setup the Epson prints 4 pictures on one big custom sheet.

But with contact sheets I'm only able to print the same picture either over the whole grid or to print it just once per grid.
If I would need 2x picture A and 1x picture B and 1x picture C, creating the job in a contact sheet will not work. Here I would need to use Lightroom with a custom package.

http://digital-photography-school.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/step1-tm.jpg

[Cornelius]

Ok, I start to figure it out.

New settings for my prints:
Lightroom contact sheet for 2 pictures 20/30cm each
Custom paper settings on 610x200mm
Rollpaper banner

Now I can print a lager peace without cutting and more than 2 pictures at once.
Maybe because I print with rollpaper banner, the printer does not cut after the first page of 2 images. It just adds the next page with a 2mm gab.
Next try will be with normal rollpaper setting (non banner). Maybe it cuts then after every page?

[Wayne Fox]

from everything I can see your original settings should work.  I'm not near my printer for a few days to run some tests to see what might be off.

[Cornelius]

That's exactly what I thought.. I can't find the problem in the settings.
Might be the "roll paper banner". I will try it again with paper settings on "roll paper" and update the post here.

Thanks for your help!

I'm printing on an Epson 3880 for years thousands of pages. But with the 9890 and roll paper I'm a newbie.