News, news, news..

We’re getting the band back together and hitting the road again. The Epson Print Academy is going to Atlanta this Saturday, November 8th at the Renaissance Atlanta Hotel Downtown.

Featuring Andrew Rodney (The Digital Dog), Jeff Schewe, Greg Gorman, Mac Holbert and John Paul Caponigro, the new EPson Print Academy is headed to Atlanta for the first of a 15 city tour. We’re dragging along one of the new Epson Stylus® Pro 7900 printers with UltraChrome® HDR inks and we’ll be teaching how to get the most out of that, or any fine art ink jet printer. In fact, attendees are registered to win one of the 7900 printers (given out next June) or a change to win one of 15 3800 printers (one will be given away at each venue). For more information, check out the web site at Epson Print Academy.

• Science of Color Management
• Calibration, Characterization
• Advanced Custom Profiling
• Color Spaces, Gamut, Bit Depth and L*a*b
• Advanced Driver Settings

• Advanced Photoshop CS4 Camera Raw 5 Settings
• In-Depth Understanding of the Lightroom 2 Develop Module
• Non-Destructive Workflow
• Smart Objects
• Working and Printing in 16 bit
• Editing in Photoshop CS4 with Lightroom 2 Managed Files
• Printing From Lightroom 2 with Files Edited in Photoshop CS4

• Developing a Strategy for Image Enhancement
• Creating a Sense of Dimensionality
• Working With an Exit Strategy
• Drawing with Light
• Mastering Selections
• Gradient, Contour and Luminous Masking
• Managing Midtone Contrast
• New Techniques with Photoshop CS4
• Advanced Burning and Dodging
• Evaluating and Employing Advanced Black and White Conversion Methods
• Working With Microporous and Cotton Fiber Media
• Printing to an Epson Stylus Pro 7900 with Ultrachrome HDR Ink

Original post by Jeff Schewe

PixelGenius, LLC has added a free ICC profile for the new Epson Stylus® Photo 2880 Printers designed to work with the Epson Exhibition Fiber Paper. The free profiles are available from the PixelGenius web site on this page. This brings the number of free profiles available to 10 including profiles for the R2400, 3/4/7/9800 series as well as the 4/7/9/11880 series printers.

PixelGenius has partnered with Epson America, Inc. in the development of these custom profiles for Exhibition Fiber Paper for use with Epson Stylus® Pro Printers that use UltraChrome K3 Ink™ and UltraChrome K3 Ink™ with Vivid Magenta. In addition PixelGenius has made available useful color management information and instructions on how to create the finest prints.

The profiles are provided “As Is” with no warrantee nor direct tech support from either Epson nor PixelGenius. The profiles have been created and tested by members of PixelGenius and are being provided to the printing community for free as a public service. 

We highly suggest that you visit the Epson Web Site to make sure you’ve downloaded and installed the most current printer driver and firmware for your particular printers.

To use these profiles, you should install them in the correct location for your OS;

Mac OS X: /Library/ColorSync/Profiles (available for all users)
Mac OS X: User/Library/ColorSync/Profiles (available for just this users)

Windows98: C:\Windows\System\Color
Windows XP: C:\Windows\System32\Spool\Drivers\Color
Windows 2000, XP: C:WinNT\ System32\Spool\Drivers\Color
Windows Vista: Right-click on the ICC profile, and choose “Install Profile”

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

A new development making raw image processing available at retail for the first time!

Press Release: Noritsu Koki announces an agreement that establishes technical cooperation between Noritsu Koki and Adobe Systems. This agreement enables photo retailers with Noritsu input terminals (CT terminals) and Noritsu minilab systems to accept and process raw image data, which is widely used in digital SLR camera photography. This is the first time that raw image data will be supported at the retail level, opening the door for retailers who want to easily provide high quality photographic prints from raw image files.

Raw image data provides more flexibility, higher quality, and more creativity than other image formats such as JPEG and TIFF, and this is why the use of raw image data has grown rapidly along with the increase in popularity of digital SLR cameras. However, raw formats differ between different camera manufacturers, as most manufacturers have chosen their own proprietary raw format. This means that when a photographer prints image data at home or at retail, they must first use proprietary software to convert the raw image data into another format such as JPEG.

Noritsu Koki and Adobe Systems have entered an agreement in which Noritsu Koki is supplied with technology to convert raw image data into the Digital Negative (Hereinafter DNG™ ) format, which is a standard raw format developed by Adobe Systems.

This DNG conversion technology will be incorporated in Noritsu minilab systems. This enables Noritsu equipment to read and process raw image data from each camera manufacturer without requiring an additional conversion step beforehand. Furthermore, the converted image data is then enhanced with Noritsu’s AccuSmart™ image processing technology, providing high quality photographs and media writing. This means that customers can easily receive a high quality print service, eliminating the need to conduct raw image data processing (conversion) beforehand.

The list of camera models supported by DNG conversion is extensive, and this list will continue to grow. Constant additions of new models ensure that digital camera models released in the future will also be supported.

Support is scheduled to be given to Noritsu equipment around the end of May 2008.

As of January 10, 2008. According information gathered by Noritsu Koki.
DNG™ is a registered trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated.
Noritsu and AccuSmart are trademarks of Noritsu Koki.

Information about raw image data that can be converted with DNG is available on the Adobe Systems Incorporated web page listed below. Some models may not be supported.

http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/cameraraw.html

Users of Noritsu products
In order to input and print raw image data with Noritsu input terminals (CT terminals) and minilab systems, a version upgrade is required for the equipment used.

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Epson has posted “Public Beta” print drivers for recent Epson Stylus Pro printers to provide full Macintosh 10.5.x (Leopard) compatibility.

These drivers provide enhanced functionality as well as the potential for 16 bit/channel printing–just as soon as imaging applications can actually send 16 bit data. Neither Photoshop CS3 nor Lightroom 1.3 do yet.

The drivers that are currently available are:
Stylus Pro 3800 Series

Stylus Pro 4800 Series
Stylus Pro 4880 Series

Stylus Pro 7800 Series
Stylus Pro 7880 Series

Stylus Pro 9800 Series
Stylus Pro 9880 Series

Stylus Pro 11880 Series

The download page is Professional Imaging Public Beta Leopard Printer Drivers

Additional info is at Epson’s Macintosh Leopard Support

There is no word, at this time, regarding Leopard drivers for Epson Stylus Photo printers such as the R2400 and R1800 although Leopard drivers are expected (some time in December, 2007).

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

PixelGenius has posted their profiles for the new Epson Exhibition Fiber Paper due to be shipping in November, 2007. Working with Epson, PixelGenius members Andrew Rodney and Jeff Schewe (an Epson Sylus Pro member) have been testing the Exhibition Fiber Paper (EFP) over the summer. At the suggestion of Dan (Dano) Steinhardt from Epson, PixelGenius created ICC profiles for all of the current and new shipping Epson UltraChrome K3™ printers–including the Epson Stylus® Photo R2400 Printers.

The profiles are available on the PixelGenius web site for free download. Click here to go to the download page. PixelGenius also posted detailed instructions on the use of the profiles as well as a Profile FAQ page that includes gamut plots of the EFP 11880 printer profile with new Vivid Magenta Inks and Adobe RGB color space.

Profiles are available for:
Epson UltraChrome K3 Ink™ Family of Printers

• Epson Stylus® Photo R2400 Printers
• Epson Stylus® Pro 3800 Printers
• Epson Stylus® Pro 4800 Printers
• Epson Stylus® Pro 7800 Printers
• Epson Stylus® Pro 9800 Printers

Epson UltraChrome K3 Ink™ with Vivid Magenta Family of Printers

• Epson Stylus® Pro 4880 Printers
• Epson Stylus® Pro 7880 Printers
• Epson Stylus® Pro 9880 Printers
• Epson Stylus® Pro 11880 Printers

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

If you are, you aren’t alone. There are several “known issues” that Adobe is working on and expects to address with a Photoshop CS3 update in the not too distant future.

For the time being, if you are interested in participating in helping test the solutions, you can apply for the position of “tester” by visiting John’s blog, reading the post and following the directions (note, it’s really important to follow the directions!) See: Fixes for Photoshop printing due soon

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

New Fiber-Based Technology Delivers Look and Feel of Revered Darkroom Paper with the Creative Benefits Epson Ink Jet Printers Offer in Both Color and Black-and-White

Press Release: LONG BEACH, Calif. – Oct. 8, 2007 – Epson America Inc. today announced what many professional photographers are saying is the perfect blend of revered darkroom papers with the limitless creative control of ink jet printing with the introduction of its Signature Worthy™ Exhibition Fiber Paper. The paper will be available in 25-sheet packages of 8.5”x 11,” 13”x 19,” 17”x 22,” and 24”x 30” cut sheets.

This breakthrough paper was developed over several years in collaboration with many of the industry’s leading professional photographers to meet their most discerning requirements. Many who have contributed to the development of Exhibition Fiber Paper have commented that what sets it apart are its extraordinary blacks, clean whites and a surface texture that is just like a true black-and-white silver gelatin print. Additionally, Exhibition Fiber Paper produces extraordinary color output enabling photographers to make stunning prints in both color and black-and-white.

Testimonials from Leading Professional Photographers
“All I’ve been hearing for the last five years is that there’s a true fiber-based ink jet paper coming just like F surface air dried,” said Vincent Versace, fine art photographer and educator. “I’ve seen them all, I’ve printed on all of them, and I was still waiting until I printed on Epson’s Exhibition Fiber. Not only does the paper look like F surface air dried, but some of my images actually look better than they do on silver gelatin. To say the D-Max is amazing is an understatement. The whites are significantly cleaner and brighter than anything I’ve printed on, which means I can tone digitally in the computer with extraordinary precision and I am not locked into a manufacturer’s one tone. With Exhibition Fiber I’m getting details in deep blacks that I have never had before and overall this paper produces black-and-white prints that you literally fall into.”

“My black-and-white prints are amazing on this paper and the color is better than anything I have ever seen,” said Greg Gorman, well-known personality photographer and workshop leader. “When I saw my first print on Exhibition Fiber there was a 3-dimensionality to my color work that I haven’t seen with any paper before. For the first time I can use one paper that looks amazing in both color and black-and-white.”

More About Exhibition Fiber Paper
As part of an ongoing collaboration with creative professionals to produce the highest quality prints, Epson has partnered with the Pixel Genius™ group, a unique collaboration of industry-leading digital workflow experts, to produce custom color profiles for use with the new Exhibition Fiber Paper. The custom profiles will be available for download October 15 at www.pixelgenius.com/epson, along with valuable information on their use and how to optimize a color managed workflow.

“The print is in many ways the ultimate expression of photography,” said Dan (Dano) Steinhardt, marketing manager, Professional Imaging, Epson America. “Printmaking has a long-standing tradition that when the highest quality is achieved, the print is then worthy of the artist’s signature. Many of the world’s leading professional photographers are telling us that Epson’s Exhibition Fiber Paper is truly, Signature Worthy.”

More information about Exhibition Fiber Paper can be found at www.proimaging.epson.com.

Availability
Exhibition Fiber Paper will be available in November through authorized Epson Professional Imaging resellers.

About Epson America Inc.
Epson offers an extensive array of award-winning image capture and image output products for the consumer, business, photography and graphic arts markets. The company is also a leading supplier of value-added point-of-sale (POS) printers and transactions terminals for the retail market. Founded in 1975, Epson America Inc. is the U.S. affiliate of Japan-based Seiko Epson Corporation, a global manufacturer and supplier of high-quality technology products that meet customer demands for increased functionality, compactness, systems integration and energy efficiency. Epson America, Inc. is headquartered in Long Beach, Calif.

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Some people were taken by surprise by Photoshop CS3’s new Print dialog. Some weren’t pleased by the new behavior. So, John Nack asked Dave to say a few words on John’s Adobe Blog. Click here to read the entire post.
Dave says: “The change which seems to be causing the most consternation is the change from application-wide page setup to document-specific page setup in Photoshop on Windows. This is the way the Mac version has always behaved, and was the way the Windows version of Photoshop was intended to behave way back in the day, but for one reason or another, that never quite got hooked up.
With CS3, I was brought in to “improve and modernize the printing code,” and part of that effort has been trying to get the Mac and Windows versions more in sync. In the short run, this means trying to rip out code that behaved differently […]

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Source: The New York Times
Written by Ian Austen
GATINEAU, Quebec–THE preservation center at Canada’s national archive here might have the last word when it comes to keeping the color in color photography.
A four-story concrete building, which is enclosed within a second protective building, holds two warehouse-size vaults where negatives, prints and film are kept in the dark at 0 degrees and 25 percent relative humidity.
Before anything in the collection can be examined, technicians must put it into an acclimatization chamber that resembles an oversize stainless-steel refrigerator, where it is warmed up over a 24- to 48-hour period.
Henry Wilhelm, an American researcher on photographic preservation, says the complex and costly system is worth the trouble.
“Those images should last thousands of years,” he said from his office in Grinnell, Iowa. “Imagine seeing photos of the building of the pyramids.”
But even officials at the archive are uncertain how to manage the medium that now […]

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff

Adobe has taken some heat from users for what they claim is its lukewarm support for Windows Vista.
Source: InformationWeek
Written by Paul McDougall
Adobe Systems(ADBE) on Monday said it plans to release a Windows Vista-compatible driver for printers that use its PostScript page description language in July — a full six months after Microsoft’s new operating system was released for general sale.
PCs running Windows Vista can currently print documents on PostScript-enabled printers using a default driver that ships with Vista. But the default driver isn’t capable of enabling advanced printing effects like transparencies and gradients, Adobe said.
Drivers send instructions back and forth between computers and connected peripheral devices like printers, monitors, and CD-burners.
Read entire article

Original post by PSN Editorial Staff