Luminous Landscape Forum

Raw & Post Processing, Printing => Printing: Printers, Papers and Inks => Topic started by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 05:42:31 pm

Title: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 05:42:31 pm
I'm trying to print a 12x18 inch image on a 13x19 inch sheet of Hahnemuhle Photo Rag baryta. Every time I print it  it prints a one inch border on one side and no border on the other. When I print the same image with same profile and settings on another paper, it prints correctly. Is the hahnemuhle paper shifting in the printer?

This is in photoshop cc2017, windows 10.

@#!!$%^&!!???

Sharon
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 22, 2017, 05:55:19 pm
Very, very unlikely. What application are you printing from?
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 05:55:41 pm
Photoshop cc2017
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 05:57:55 pm
I had a sheet of harman photo gloss baryta at the same size I put in with the same settings including the profile and it printed perfectly - put the hahnemuhle back in and same problem
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 22, 2017, 06:07:15 pm
When you click on Print Settings in Photoshop's Print menu, then click on Paper size, scroll to the bottom to Custom Paper size. Click "+" to create a new preset. In that dialog create a 12x18 inch new preset with the margins set to 0 on all 4 dimensions. Give it a name (say change it from "Untitled" to 12x18) and revert to Print settings. Because it is 12x18 on a 13x19 sheet you will want a half in margin on all 4 sides. In the Photoshop Print menu, make sure the box called "Centered" is checked, then go back into Print Settings and make sure your new preset is still active. If so, exit from there, click Print and it should come out fine.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 06:13:38 pm
Mark, thanks for your help.. I can't find a box that says centered.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 06:14:32 pm
I found it and it was checked - trying a print now.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 06:26:44 pm
I removed my screenshots to avoid confusion.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 06:30:46 pm
Here's what it was printing with those settings.

Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 22, 2017, 07:04:45 pm
Sorry, I made a mistake. The custom page size should say 13x19 with 0 margins. Then call-up your 12x18 photo and with Centered checked, it should place that 12x18 in the center of a 13x19 sheet. In the Print Menu scroll down to "Position and Size", where you should see "center".
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 22, 2017, 07:06:42 pm
It just occurred to me - you may be on Windows and I'm "talking" from a Mac, but I would hope such basic setting options exist in both versions of the driver.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 07:09:13 pm
That's the settings i used originally though. Centered was checked. Wondering if i should use the front feed.

Yes i am on windows.

Thanks Mark.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 22, 2017, 07:37:35 pm
You can try the Front Fine Art feed, but that paper is quite flexible, so I've had no difficulty putting it through the top  sheet feeder.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 22, 2017, 07:47:36 pm
Ive got a tight deadline. Ill see what ican make work. Thanks Mark
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 22, 2017, 07:50:43 pm
Hope you get it going right - it *should* work.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: schertz on April 22, 2017, 09:27:52 pm
Looking at your Screenshot-(7).jpg image from post 7, you have 12x18 as the paper size, but it should be 13x19. If the printer thinks there is only a 12x18 paper loaded it will print the image all the way over to the edge with a 1-inch border on one side and very little border on the other, as you indicated in the OP. You can also see from Screenshot-(6).jpg that Photoshop thinks that 12x18 paper is loaded because the margins are so tiny in the print preview.
Mark had the correct answer in reply #9, you need to tell the print driver that you have 13x19 paper loaded (or "A3+" or "Super B") and print your 12x18 image centered in the middle of the page.

Mike
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 23, 2017, 08:40:17 am
Yes that wasn't the skewing  problem - if you read all the posts you'll see. :-)
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 23, 2017, 09:25:38 am
Yes that wasn't the skewing  problem - if you read all the posts you'll see. :-)

Sharon, do you have an idea what was the cause? I think as long as you were loading the paper correctly it must be a setting of some kind. The printer normally warns you of a paper skew before it starts printing, and if there were a mechanical problem causing paper shifting after the print starts, it would most likely be printing at an angle or irregularly, but that is not what you reported - you reported a bigger margin on one side compared with the other, which sounds very much like a mistaken setting somewhere. Just wondering whether you've discovered anything yet.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 23, 2017, 11:27:22 am
Mark, I don't have any idea. After the second one did it, I put in a 13x19 sheet of Harman fiber gloss baryta, leaving all the settings the same as the photo rag baryta and it printed perfectly - put the hahnemuhle back in and it skewed again. It has to to be the paper.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 23, 2017, 11:30:06 am
Really strange; as I say I've had no issues with that paper in the P800, and I've printed a lot of 13x19 sheets. I'm at a loss about what could be going on.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 23, 2017, 03:17:40 pm
Now the printer is not printing the top 1/4 of the image -image size 12x18. It prints a smaller size perfectly. I had this problem the other day and called Epson and they told me to uncheck optimize enlargement which I did and that worked. But now I don't have it checked and it did it again. I've reinstalled the epson driver but this is driving me nuts.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 23, 2017, 03:49:45 pm
Found this info but no idea where library/caches is.

Anyway, what worked and hopefully will help someone else:
 
* Delete com.Epson folder from ~/Library/Caches
* Delete printer from Printers & Scanners in Systems Preferences
* Re-Add printer in Printers & Scanners. I used Epson IP and Epson P800 driver (not AirPrint, although testing with AirPrint during debugging showed the same issues as the Epson driver).
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 23, 2017, 04:49:07 pm
I reinstalled my printer driver, updated the firmware and reinstalled photoshop and lightroom and got a good print. Hopefully it will stick. I'm restarting everything in-between prints in case it is a cache issue. I also unchecked paper size check in the menu on the printer itself.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on April 23, 2017, 05:14:57 pm
You've been dragged under the bus on this one, so hopefully all that uninstall/reinstall activity resolved it.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 23, 2017, 05:47:56 pm
So far so good, Mark. Three more prints to go. Thanks for your support. :-)
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Rand47 on April 24, 2017, 10:34:08 am
Quote
I also unchecked paper size check in the menu on the printer itself.

Now I'm mad at myself for not suggesting this when I first read this thread!  Because one paper type was OK and another not, I figured this couldn't be the problem. 

My P800 drove me stark raving nuts until I finally found and unchecked this "on the printer," which allows the driver to control it "alone."

Rand
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 24, 2017, 11:05:09 am
Now I'm mad at myself for not suggesting this when I first read this thread!  Because one paper type was OK and another not, I figured this couldn't be the problem. 

My P800 drove me stark raving nuts until I finally found and unchecked this "on the printer," which allows the driver to control it "alone."

Rand

Thanks for the confirmation, Rand. Printing is always a bit of a mystery to me. :-)
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Garnick on April 24, 2017, 02:39:08 pm
Now I'm mad at myself for not suggesting this when I first read this thread!  Because one paper type was OK and another not, I figured this couldn't be the problem. 

My P800 drove me stark raving nuts until I finally found and unchecked this "on the printer," which allows the driver to control it "alone."

Rand

Hmmm - this is interesting. Yesterday morning I had started a reply to this thread that suggested Sharon should take a peek at that setting(Paper Size Check) and make sure it was turned on/checked.  However, after reading a number of her posts it seemed that occasionally she would be able to get a good print, no skewing.  Also the fact that it seemed to be relegated to one specific paper type.   For me that sort of eliminated the PSC setting, since it is not capable of being turned on or off unless done intentionally by the operator.  The PSC is very important for printing in a number of ways.  One of the most often mentioned issues happens when the PSC has been turned off for some reason and then not turned on again before printing on roll paper.  When that happens the printer will spit out 12-15" off paper before it starts printing, therefore apparently wasting that amount of paper.  If that happens in my workflow I flatten that paper and cut 8.5x11" sheets for testing, so very little actual wastage.  I then make sure I turn PSC on again before the next print.  I would still tend to rule out the PSC setting for Sharon's issue, since she did three different "fixes" before trying to print again.  In that case it's almost impossible to determine which "fix" actually worked.

Sharon - I'm very glad you are finally back to the point of printing on this paper issue free.  I also agree with Mark Segal that you have definitely been "dragged under the bus" with his issue.  However, if you feel up to it after all of this, and if you are curious at all, I would suggest that you turn PSC back on again and see if the issue returns, since I assume you have left that setting turned off.  If indeed the issue is no longer there when you have PSC on, that would of course imply that the re-installs you did are what actually fixed the problem.  Just a suggestion obviously, one that you may not want to try now, and I'm sure we would all understand that decision.  :)

Gary       

       
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: pearlstreet on April 24, 2017, 02:46:34 pm
Hi Gary, I would be glad to test it once this is over! I'm leaving on Thursday so I have to finish this order before I leave. I'll report back here with the results but I won't be able to test it till next month.

Thanks for your response!

Sharon
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Garnick on April 24, 2017, 06:10:09 pm
Hi Gary, I would be glad to test it once this is over! I'm leaving on Thursday so I have to finish this order before I leave. I'll report back here with the results but I won't be able to test it till next month.

Thanks for your response!

Sharon

Hi Sharon,

 :) I understand completely, why tempt fate?  My "request" was born out of curiosity on my part, but if you do choose to run this "test" eventually please let us know the result.  One positive aspect is that if you do run into a problem again you can always turn PSC off and be back where you started.  I very much suspect it was one of the segments you re-installed that did the trick, but of course there's also the fact that it seemed to affect only that one paper type.  Still somewhat of a conundrum wrapped in an enigma me thinks  :-\

Gary
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Rand47 on April 24, 2017, 08:34:53 pm
For me, having the PSC on was much like "double profiling" in color management.  The printer was fighting the driver & Lightroom (in my case) settings re size and placement of the image on paper.  Once turned off I had zero further problems.  Since I print exclusively out of Lightroom, making and storing print templates greatly simplifies my workflow and minimizes operator mistakes in settings re size, default margins, print centering, proper media type and concomitant ICC profile, etc. 

Rand
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: FrankG on June 05, 2019, 04:58:41 pm
@Mark D Segal. Why set up a custom 13x19 if you can select 13x19 from the paper size choices?
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on June 05, 2019, 05:06:13 pm
@Mark D Segal. Why set up a custom 13x19 if you can select 13x19 from the paper size choices?

It's to lock-in correct margins so everything is centered the way the OP wants it.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: FrankG on June 05, 2019, 05:19:26 pm
Thank you.
I understand that the objective was to print a 12x18 image on 13x19 sheet with equal margins all around (.5).
I don’t understand why selecting a 13x19 shhet size with Center checked would not provide the same result?

Excuse my ignorance, but I’m trying to learn about margins and non printable area and how to Center smaller images on larger sheets. If the image and paper aspect ratios are the same, then equal margins all round. If the ratios differ then equal top/bottom and equal left/right.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on June 05, 2019, 05:37:47 pm
Thank you.
I understand that the objective was to print a 12x18 image on 13x19 sheet with equal margins all around (.5).
I don’t understand why selecting a 13x19 shhet size with Center checked would not provide the same result?


It principle it should, but when it doesn't work as intended, the alternative that does work is a custom preset.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: FrankG on June 05, 2019, 05:55:11 pm
Good to know.
Also, if the Center box is Un-checked them setting the margins becomes available.
Would this be the equivalent?
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on June 05, 2019, 11:01:29 pm
Good to know.
Also, if the Center box is Un-checked them setting the margins becomes available.
Would this be the equivalent?

Different things happen in different places. In Photoshop's Print Module, if you uncheck Centered, the positioning opens up. If you check Centered it doesn't, because you've just selected the positioning. In the Epson driver new Preset, you can set the paper size to the default size you want there, and all 4 borders to None. So if you check Centered in the Photoshop Print Module and Borders to None in the Epson driver Preset, the print should come out centered. In Lightroom's Print Module, you use Page Set-Up to set the paper size and orientation (Portrait or Landscape). You use Print Settings to access the Epson Driver and make or select your printer preset, same as for Photoshop and you Save them. Then in the Print module itself you select the Cell Size and the Margins in the right panels. If you set all 4 margins to be the same size, the Cell should be centered on the sheet.

Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: FrankG on June 06, 2019, 09:29:15 am
Thanks.
I don't use Lr so only the first portion is relevant to me right now (Ps & Br) -

"...In Photoshop's Print Module, if you uncheck Centered, the positioning opens up. If you check Centered it doesn't, because you've just selected the positioning. In the Epson driver new Preset, you can set the paper size to the default size you want there, and all 4 borders to None. So if you check Centered in the Photoshop Print Module and Borders to None in the Epson driver Preset, the print should come out centered."

Q: Is selecting a preset paper size (e.g. 8.5x11) with margins set to zero vs a standard paper size (e.g Letter) preferable because then there are no margins or non printable areas (what are the little zebra stripes?) forced on you as they are in the former, and it can truly centre the image relative to the paper edges ?

As an aside you can even tweak a side to compensate for minor paper shift in the printing process.
Also, would selecting a standard paper size but with the Borderless Auto Expand option not offer a similar use of the full sheet to centre the image to the edges ? Hovering over these options show that the paper is still the same size vs expanding it with the Borderless>Retain Size option.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on June 06, 2019, 09:34:21 am
I just mentioned what I found works in my Epson SC-P5000. I recommend you experiment using your printer with these several different settings options you mention and observe what happens. Only a bit of time and a few sheets of paper.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: FrankG on June 06, 2019, 11:15:44 am
OK thanks. Will do.
Let me just ask this - when you use your paper size presets and you preview the image, do you see the 'zebra stripes' at all ?
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on June 06, 2019, 01:23:39 pm
OK thanks. Will do.
Let me just ask this - when you use your paper size presets and you preview the image, do you see the 'zebra stripes' at all ?

None at all - ever, that I can remember.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: FrankG on June 06, 2019, 09:51:05 pm
Thanks for your help pointing me in this direction.

Ps>Print>Check the Center box

Set up custom paper size/s with 0 in all of the 4 margins.
You can enter a very small margin (.03 or .05) on 1 or 2 sides if necessary if there seems to be a slight paper shift, or just to compensate for an individual printer's idiosyncrasy. Just to nudge it.
Save as a preset.
I made separate presets for all my common paper sizes and a Vertical & Horizontal orientation version for each.

Ive tested it with some small size prints (6x4, 5x7, 8.5x11) and they all appear to be printing properly centred (within a very small tolerance).
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on June 06, 2019, 10:14:49 pm
You are welcome. Good you are getting it sorted out.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: Mark D Segal on June 07, 2019, 10:30:33 am
None at all - ever, that I can remember.

I take that back - I seldom print in Photoshop - mostly LR except when I need Absolute Rendering Intent, which I did this morning. And YES, in the Photoshop Print Preview, I did see an extremely narrow band of hatched lines all around the perimeter of the image. I think this is simply the difference between the printable image size and the sheet size.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: FrankG on June 07, 2019, 01:14:28 pm
"YES, in the Photoshop Print Preview, I did see an extremely narrow band of hatched lines all around the perimeter of the image. I think this is simply the difference between the printable image size and the sheet"

I stand to be corrected but I think it is aka 'non printable area'.

Perhaps the 'zebras' appear in the Ps preview because Ps doesn't know that you've assigned a custom size with 0 (zero) margins, or are using a borderless option
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: BobShaw on June 07, 2019, 07:25:36 pm
I am sure that there are some excellent solutions here.
I spent about a year of angst with a 3880 trying to get it to print the way I wanted it and remaking presets for each paper.  I was shown a printing programme called Mirage Print and haven't printed from an editing application since. It always comes out exactly the way it says. There are a number of printing programmes. So my advice is editing programmes for editing and printing programme for printing.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: nirpat89 on June 07, 2019, 07:47:19 pm
"YES, in the Photoshop Print Preview, I did see an extremely narrow band of hatched lines all around the perimeter of the image. I think this is simply the difference between the printable image size and the sheet"

I stand to be corrected but I think it is aka 'non printable area'.

Perhaps the 'zebras' appear in the Ps preview because Ps doesn't know that you've assigned a custom size with 0 (zero) margins, or are using a borderless option

In my case, the zebras disappear with borderless option.
Title: Re: Epson P800 - Paper not Centering
Post by: FrankG on June 07, 2019, 09:49:16 pm
... Mirage Print...

Thanks.