Canon PIXMA Pro9000 Mark II Printer

After dumping my HP 9180 printer (see post below) I did a bit of research and settled on the Canon PIXMA Pro9000 Mark II. After my bad luck with the 9180 I certainly wasn’t going to buy another HP and I was disinclined to try another pigment printer right now. After reading this review, I decided that my best option was the P9000 Mark II. The availability of a $100 rebate sealed the deal.

In terms of size, the P9000 Mark II is nearly as big as the 9180. Due to its straight paper path it has a larger overall footprint, but size is not really an issue. Any pro printer is going to be big.

In the box you will find the following items: PIXMA Pro9000 Mark II Inkjet Photo Printer, power cord, eight printer cartridges (black, cyan, magenta, yellow, photo cyan, photo magenta, red and green), Mac/Windows software, Getting Started booklet, various information sheets and a warranty. It’s important to note what’s not included. First, you will need to supply your own USB printer cable. Second and most surprisingly, there is no manual. The software that you install during the set up process contains an online user’s guide, but there is no hard copy or PDF manual. This is startling given Canon’s reputation for great documentation. The online guide can be printed (at your expense of course).

Unlike the 9180, the P9000 Mark II is an 8-color dye-based ink printer that handles fine art photo papers up to 13" x 19". From the samples I saw, in several cases the P9000 bests the 9180. Canon claims that the ChromaLife100 system can produce prints with a 100 year life span. I guess I won’t be able to validate that though.

Set up was simple and straightforward and went off without a hitch, partly because I had the review videos to refer to. Once you extract the printer from its abundant packing you install the power cord and plug it in. This allows the print head tray to move to the middle position affording you easy access to install the print head. This is done by lifting the latch and carefully setting the print head into place. Once it is seated correctly, close the latch and install each print cartridge in turn. When the cartridge is properly installed a friendly red light turns on and you can move to the next cartridge. The cartridges are amazingly small for a 13 x 19 printer so we’ll keep an eye on that.

After all of the cartridges are installed, close the top door and the printer spends a few minute adjusting itself. Now it’s time to load the software. During that process software and drivers are loaded, the printer is connected to the computer, an alignment is performed and test sheets are printed. That’s it. From start to finish it took about half an hour.

Here are a few initial impressions. First, I really like the straight paper path. The 9180 loads from the bottom and ejects from the top on the same side of the printer. That means that the paper path is curved which, in my opinion, results in more paper jams. At least that’s what I experienced. In addition, paper is clearly visible so there is no guessing when you are close to running out. Although this means a slightly larger footprint, I think it will mean fewer hassles in the long run. Second, the P9000 has a very simple design. For those who crave more on board controls that may be a problem. I like it. Finally, unlike the 9180 which required constant power, the P9000 may be turned off and on as needed. In fact, there is an auto on and off feature that can be set. A very green machine.

In the coming days I’ll be sharing my impressions of the P9000. I am particularly interested in printing an image already printed with the 9180 and comparing the two.

Two New Books

I recently acquired both Mastering Photographic Composition, Creativity, and Personal Style and Camera. Both are well worth the under $30 price tag. Take a look and show me the love by purchasing from my links. It costs you nothing extra, but helps me out.

A New Beginning

Author’s Note: The following article relates my personal experience with a particular product. I have been able to confirm that at least one other user has experienced the same problems, but your mileage may vary.

When I returned to photography after a several year hiatus, I realized that I was going to have to do something about a printer since I only had an HP Laser-Jet. After doing a bit of research, I settled on a Kodak. At the time, Kodak was just getting into the printer business and their advertisements made a very good case that their product was an improvement over the competition in terms of cost and quality. Besides that, the price was right, under $200 as I recall.

Subsequent to that purchase, I read an article on The Online Photographer about pigment printers. I quickly realized that, if I was going to get serious about this, the Kodak was not going to cut the mustard, so I sold it to a friend. From what I could gather from the T.O.P. articles and other sources, the Hewlett Packard B9180 was a very good choice. Although I winced at the $800 price tag because I was also buying other equipment at the time, I ordered one from Amazon.

The first inkling (pun intended) I had that I had made a mistake occurred when I unpacked and set up the printer. The first test page jammed and being unfamiliar with the printer, I broke off a guide while trying to extract it. Great, I had the printer for less than an hour and had managed to break it. However, when I finally got some paper to run through it, the printer seemed fine. That was until I tried to use the specialty media tray. Despite poring over the manual I simply could not get it to work. I was then that I discovered there were no local dealers or support for the B9180. I hauled the thing into a nearby Radio Shack where it sat for several weeks waiting for a shipping carton. Finally, they shipped it to Texas. It would be over a month before I would see it again.

The repair center in Texas informed me that they could not repair the printer and that my only option was to pay an additional $250 for a refurbished model. I smelled a rat and called HP technical support. They informed me that Radio Shack had misled me and that they would ship me a new printer if I could get the old one back. After several phone calls to Radio Shack the printer made its way back to me and I exchanged it for a new one. I do not recall the specific problems that one had, but it went back to HP fairly quickly. Despite my request for a refund, HP insisted upon shipping me a third. I have had better luck with the third printer, but it fails fairly frequently and munches paper way too often and it seems to use ink even when it’s sitting there. I have now learned how to clear it without damaging it though.

The back breaking straw occurred a week or so ago. A few days before, I had replaced the light magenta and light cyan tanks and had run two maintenances on the printer. Everything was working perfectly. In fact, I had been lulled into thinking this piece of dung was actually okay. Wrong. That night I went to print something and got the dreaded flashing red exclamation point. The error message said that my light magenta/light cyan print-head was clogged. I replaced both tanks and tried again. No luck. I pulled out the print-head and put it back in. No joy. I tried to run a maintenance. No way.

That was it. I ordered a replacement print-head from Adorama with the intent of taking the 9180 to a dealer just to get rid of the darn thing. But the 9180 had one last surprise in store for me. When I went to install the new print-head, the printer told me that the existing head was now fine. Over the course of a few days it had magically repaired itself! I ran several cleanings and an alignment just to be sure and printed some test images to give to the dealer. The 9180 is now history. The only point I have to make about the whole miserable experience is beware of anyone who tries to sell you a used HP B9180. In a subsequent article I’ll report about its replacement.

Impressionism 2

Cottonwood, 2009

When I am so inclined, I am continuing to experiment with this technique. I am becoming more and more intrigued by the creative possibilities. I am hoping to do a lot more during my upcoming Boundary Waters expedition in October. The trees here are already showing some Fall color, so I hope there will still be some color left when it comes time to leave.

Building An M9

Want to build your own M9 since Leica’s is so expensive? Watch this video very closely. Send me one when you are done.

My DMD

As my regular reader knows, the term “Decisive Moment Digital” was coined by Mike Johnston on The Luminous Landscape nearly four years ago. Recently, Mike enumerated some of the specifications of his Digimat, a digital version of the Nikkormat. Although they did not match my idea of the perfect camera, I think the exercise is a good one for anyone trying to evaluate the crop of new cameras. So, here is my DMD.

Right Sized
Inter-Changeable Lenses
Metal Construction
Weather Proof
Crop Factor 1.5 or higher
Viewfinder (Good With Any Lens)
Optical or Hi-Rez Live VF
3" LCD
900,000 dotsS
wivel LCD
DSLR Grade AF
MF Assist
High ISO
In-Body IS
Flash
HD Video
5 FPSUnder $2K

Now, the fact of the matter is that no camera currently on the market meets all of these criteria. A couple of the cameras meet some of the criteria and are otherwise equal in several respects. The current camera that comes closest to my DMD is (drum roll please)…

The Panasonic GH1

The Panasonic GF1 comes in a very close second with only one point separating the two. As with everything in life, however, it’s not quite that clear cut. The GH1 has a very high resolution (1,400,000 dots) built in live viewfinder and a swivel LCD that the GF1 does not. The GF1, on the other hand, is constructed out of metal and is $500 cheaper. That would cover the cost of a couple of adapters or a lens. Then there is the wildcard, the Olympus EP-2. If done right that camera could best both Panasonics. So, I guess the upshot is that My DMD does not exist. The question then becomes do I settle or wait?

Au Revoir M8

From what I have been able to glean on the Web and from the M9 brochure, the M8 and M8.2 are no more. Order one now. I guess.

Talk About Full Frame

While my time has been absorbed with M this’s and G that’s I almost missed the rebirth of the biggest camera of all, the Hubble Space Telescope. The refurbished Hubble is back on line and better than ever shooting images like the one above. See more here. Talk about a refrub!

09-09-09

Image from dpreview.com

As expected (damn those leakers), this morning Leica announced two new cameras and finally took the S2 out for a stroll. The new M-9 is an 18 megapixel full-frame rangefinder stylistically similar to the M8 and M8.2 which preceded it. As previously stated Leica has chosen not to develop a Micro 4/3 camera to challenge Panasonic and Olympus. Instead, the new X1 features a 12 megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor and a fixed Leica Elmarit 24 mm f/2.8 lens equivalent to 35 mm. While it is styled like a mini-M, the camera has much more in common with Sigma’s DP1 and DP2.

Both cameras feature 2.7" LCDs and the X1 has a hot-shoe mounted optical viewfinder available. As usual, DPReview is all over this and you can read more here.

Here’s my take-away from today’s press conference. First, Leica now has a “collection” of cameras across price points that they are very happy with. From the D Lux 4 through the S2, they feel that thjey have got the bases covered. Second, Leica will not be getting on the Micro 4/3 bandwagon. Given their past relationship with Panasonic this seems a bit odd at first. Nevertheless, Leica has always gone their own way and the X1 is no exception. If you want Micro 4/3 you have a lot of good options and clearly Leica will be making lenses for that mount going forward. Third, Leica expects the M9 to be the flagship for the foreseeable future and technologically, with a full frame sensor at 18 megapixels, they have a lot of room to play with.

While I congratulate Leica for the technical achievement of fitting a full-frame sensor into an M body, today’s announcement was personally disappointing. At nearly $7,000, the M9 will not be on my shopping list anytime soon. The X1, on the other hand, is an interesting, but very limited, product. One of my musts is the ability to mount different lenses. With its fixed lens the X1 will not give me the flexibility that I crave.

Although I am disappointed, at least today’s news had made the lay of the landscape that much clearer. The only wild-card left is the Olympus EP-2 which is rumored to have a viewfinder and to be available for Christmas. So, stay tuned.

UPDATE

I just saw the X1 listed on Amazon here for $1995. Yikes.

Impressionism

Vincent van Gogh, The Bedroom, 1889, 2009

I am certainly no art critic, but I do know what I like and I have always been very fond of the work of the Impressionistic and Post-Impressionistic painters of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. I particularly like the original Impressionist, Claude Monet, whose work Impression, soleil levant provoked the critic Louis Leroy to coin the term. I also appreciate the paintings of Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Édouard Manet, Paul Cézanne, and Vincent van Gogh. Perhaps that is why I enjoyed my recent brief visit to the Art Institute of Chicago so much. The AIC has the largest collection of Impressionistic art outside of Europe. It also has many Post-Impressionistic works as well, including Vincent van Gogh’s “The Bedroom”.

Trees (Blue), 2009

Now Impressionism has come to digital landscape photography. The two biggest proponents of the form are William Neil who writes the “On Landscape” column for Outdoor Photographer and Alain Briot whose website is The Beautiful Landscape. Both of these gentlemen have written articles on the subject, which can be found here, here and here.

I am sure that there are many of you who will reject this use of the medium, much the same as the pre-Impressionistic art world did. It seems to corrupt the notion of photography as a documentary and super-realistic art form. This will be especially true for photographers who pixel-peep and obsess about how “sharp” a lens is. In the main, Impressionism makes those points moot.

Trees (Rose), 2009

I, for one, like Impressionism. It tosses out shape and texture and distills the image to color and light. Neil has referred to it as “painting with light” and I agree. In addition, it’s another arrow in the ol’ quiver. On those days that are simply not suitable for conventional landscape photography because of weather or otherwise, experimenting with the technique gives you an option to sitting in the cabin. Although the technique seems difficult to master, it’s really not that hard. Think of your camera as a paint brush and move “with the grain”. Use your display to check your results and try again if you don’t like what you see. Most of all, have fun and don’t judge to harshly.

Holy C**p

A while ago I wrote an article about Micro 4/3 and submitted it to Mike at T.O.P. Mike was kind enough to publish “ Why I Love Micro Four-Thirds”. Little did I know what I had started with my “Many Cameras, Many Lenses” theory. My article has now been linked in another piece about the new Leica M9 (which I was holding back on since it is only a rumour until Wednesday). The article is entitled “The World’s Most Compact Full-Frame Camera” and summarizes why, despite all of its flaws, I will always love Leica. Wow!

The Waiting Game

The announcement of Panasonic’s new Lumix DMC-GF1 is very exciting news indeed. I have been pouring over articles and brochures trying to glean whatever information I can, most of which is very positive. I have even placed an order for one to reserve my place in what I think will be a very long line. That said, I am not quite ready to commit. I want to hear what Leica has to say next Wednesday before I make a final decision. If they don’t fumble the ball, they may present another alternative. In addition, I am torn between the GH1 and the GF1 as to which will be my first MFT body. I say first because I believe that buying into MFT is buying into an ever expanding system of cameras, adapters and lenses not just buying a camera. For now though, I’m playing the waiting game.

So Much To Write About, So Little Me

Wouldn’t it just figure? Here I am in my second week in the grip of some insidious, mysterious disease, when the floodgates open. I think I disagreed with something I ate on my last trip to Lake Superior’s North Shore and environs. Where is House when I need him?

Just prior to IFA, the world’s largest consumer electronics trade fair in Berlin, the manufacturers have been heaping it on. Finally. In addition to the Sony a850 and the forthcoming 9-9-09 announcement from Leica:

1. Canon announced the EOS 7D which features a new 18MP APS-C CMOS sensor, Dual DIGIC 4 processors, ISO range expandable to 12800, continuous shooting at 8 fps and full HD video recording. It also boasts a 3 inch LCD with 920k dot resolution. Canon also released three very nice lenses, the EF-S 15-85mm F3.5-5.6 IS USM, the EF-S 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 IS USM and the EF 100mm F2.8L IS USM which is the first lens to sport Canon's new Hybrid IS technology and weather sealing. Read all about it here, as usual.

2. As if that weren’t enough, Panasonic took the wraps of the Lumix DMC-GF1, images of which were posted here a bit ago. And yes, it has an optional LVF. Game, set, match. In addition to the camera, Panasonic announced two new lenses, the LUMIX G 20mm F1.7 ASPH, a pancake type lens and a Leica DG MACRO-ELMARIT 45mm F2.8 ASPH MEGA O.I.S. macro lens. You will be hearing a lot about this kit from me in the near future (if I can ever get out of bed). In the meantime, DPReview is filling in quite nicely here.