Printer

[ahunter97]

Hi,

I am VERY new to digital scrapbooking and I am trying to find out if it is right for me. I have bought The Scrappers Guide to Adobe Photoshop. I have a 30 day trial of Adobe Photoshop. I just want to find out how digital scrapbooking really works before I go and buy everything under the sun. So could you give me some advice on what kind of printer I should be looking at. I searched for a large format printer (b/c I thought those are the one that I needed) but when I looked at the prices they were VERY high and not what I had expected so I was hoping you guys could let me know what kind of printers you all use and which ones are the best.

Thanks SOOOO much,
Jenn

[troush]

Jenn,

A lot of people scrap 12 x 12, and then print at 8 x 8 - I do it that way. I just have a regular Epson all-in-one. Cannon, HP, or Epson all make excellent printers.

-Trish

[Priss]

Recommend any printer that uses photo-quality inks, and "talks about" the archival quality of the ink....so they don't fade so quickly. I run three HP printers, and two Epson Printers,--all using photo quality ink, and they are all JUST FINE for my printing. You can check the nice print quality you get at Costco and Walmart where you take in your jumpdrive and print from theirs too--and I think that the actual cost per page is close to the same (I figure about a dollar.) Good luck and have fun shopping. I do not print 12x12 either, always either 8x10 or 8x8, and I do a lot of "brag book size" 6x6 and 4x6. All those sizes and many more are easily accomodated on the home-use printers you see advertised.

[ahunter97]

Ok...so basically I don't have to spend 500.00 on a printer? I haven't started yet I have just been trying to figure everything out first but it seemed (when looking at printers, ink, and paper) that this hobby is VERY expensive. So basically I just should get a printer that is good for printing pictures? Also it seems that you would use a lot of ink when printing a page even if it is a 8X8, apx. how many pages can you print with the same cartridges? I know it really depends on the type of printer that you get but I was just hoping to get a rough idea? Thanks so much for taking the time out to answer my questions.

Jenn

[troush]

Well, it depends - on the ink, paper, and which manufacture. Consumer Reports has ratings and stuff that will tell you about cost. I don't print that much myself, really. It may be cheaper to use online places. But, if you compare it to buying different papers, stickers, brads, etc (that you can't reuse), and doing paper scrapping, I think you come out ahead digi-scrapping.

-Trish

[Winterfox]

I just finished printing my 28 page album on Wyoming in 8 X 8 on my HP 3210 printer with six cartriges with some of my ink levels down. I printed in the top most format and only had to replace my magenta which was very low when I started the print job. I still have high levels of ink left in the other cartriges. My album printed way beyond my expectations and looks professional.
Carol

[chris.orrell]

Hi, I have a canon pixma and I love it, I print all my pages 8x8 and I use canon paper (I have found canon paper works best in canon printers), This printer has 5 ink tanks. I haven't counted exactly how many pages I get before I have to change inks but I would put it up in hundreds.

[connieg]

There are other options to printing your LO's. Check with Staples or anyone who does printing and compare thier prices. Just make sure you ask what size and format they perfer. Myself, since I bought my HP 3210 All in One, I print everything myself. I usually make my LO's 12x12 and resize them to print. It depends on the size album I purchase as to whether it is a 8.5 x 11 or smaller. As far as cost, compared to traditional scrapping I think it's cheaper,( camera, film, film developing cost, paper, embellishments, stamps ect...) plus you don't have to find a place to store all of your supplies. As far as how many prints I get, I really couldn't say because, I usually print at a higher quality and I just don't print LO's, I also print cards, photo's, and things I need for my business, plus I always keep my printer on, and this in its self will use ink everytime it performs a maintenance check.
When I purchased my printer, I made a list of things I wanted and needed the printer to do, then went out and compared and bought the one that met all of my needs, in the price range I had set.

[casey]

Hi Jenn,

As Troush said, Canon, HP, and Epson printers all print great images. I have owned HP and Epson. I would probably not buy another Epson, as they are known to have problems with printhead nozzle clogs (check out some sites where you can "fix your own printer", or review sites). Epson printers have a permanent printhead (as opposed to other brands which have it as part of the cartridge and therefore replaced each time a new cartridge is installed). I've (so far!--fingers crossed) been lucky with mine, but I know several other people who have not been so lucky.

Good luck!

Casey