Hi guys,
Sorry for this late report on the Canon PIXMA Pro9000... so let me say the most important thing first... it is SPECTACULAR! Miles ahead of the predecessor Canon i9950 that I've been using. The reason why I was so late in reporting is that I was quite unbelieving that this new printer is so good, that I went back to my archives of images and started reprinting some of the images I've done on the i9950. The difference between the two sets of prints are astounding side-by-side! I actually wanted to stop at 5 prints but I kept on going because the quality was just so incredible. I was finally forced to stop when I ran out of A3 paper and the stores are already closed... :bsmilie:
I think one of the revelation is that although both the older i9950 and Pro9000 uses the same number of inks, the Pro9000 delivers smoother gradients and much more accurate colours. If your screen is calibrated (the Spyder Express 2 that comes with the Pro9000 if you buy at Cathay comes in useful), the canned profiles for Canon paper delivers very close results. And the prints are vibrant yet neutral, so you are getting the best of both worlds.
As mentioned, the set-up is very easy and fast, so you should be up and running in an instant. The LED ink system is fantastic as mentioned before, and the printer is very robustly constructed. Printing is extremely fast, taking less than 2 minutes for each A3 print! And that is in high-quality mode... which accounts for my burning up of my horde of photo paper so quickly... :embrass:
Monochrome printing is better than I expected, although the contrast is slightly higher than I expected. I think that is due to the use of black ink only for printing, which reduces colour cast when printing BUT it slows down printing substantially. If you are printing lots of monochrome photos, that could be an issue if you need them quickly.
The software is the work of a genius, and it works very well as reported by other reviews. There is no longer any need to resize your images to print them, as the Easy Photo Print Pro software automatically does that for you in a non-destructive manner. Works like a charm, and if you're a Canon DSLR owner using the bundled Digital Photo Pro (DPP), you can even print images direct from RAW in DPP!
Other nifty features include straight-through printing where you can feed in thick media such as the Hahnemuhle papers or cardboard or canvas media. The system is elegant with the back tray sliding out sleekly from the back, and the printer is equipped with wheels at the back to let you lift and drag the printer for straight-through printing! :thumbsup: Nice attention to details! But... I wonder why they have a PictBridge port in front of the printer... it's quite unlikely for photographers to print direct from camera for such a high-end printer right? :think:
I've printed nearly 30 A3 prints and the ink is still going strong. Gonna pop down to Funan or Sim Lim tomorrow to get more ink and paper. My experience with this printer has been very positive and it's definitely worth every cent. If you are thinking of getting the Pro9000 and don't already have a colour calibrator for your display, the Cathay offer of $899 for the Pro9000 and ColorVision Express 2 is a great buy to start your own digital lab!
Sorry for this late report on the Canon PIXMA Pro9000... so let me say the most important thing first... it is SPECTACULAR! Miles ahead of the predecessor Canon i9950 that I've been using. The reason why I was so late in reporting is that I was quite unbelieving that this new printer is so good, that I went back to my archives of images and started reprinting some of the images I've done on the i9950. The difference between the two sets of prints are astounding side-by-side! I actually wanted to stop at 5 prints but I kept on going because the quality was just so incredible. I was finally forced to stop when I ran out of A3 paper and the stores are already closed... :bsmilie:
I think one of the revelation is that although both the older i9950 and Pro9000 uses the same number of inks, the Pro9000 delivers smoother gradients and much more accurate colours. If your screen is calibrated (the Spyder Express 2 that comes with the Pro9000 if you buy at Cathay comes in useful), the canned profiles for Canon paper delivers very close results. And the prints are vibrant yet neutral, so you are getting the best of both worlds.
As mentioned, the set-up is very easy and fast, so you should be up and running in an instant. The LED ink system is fantastic as mentioned before, and the printer is very robustly constructed. Printing is extremely fast, taking less than 2 minutes for each A3 print! And that is in high-quality mode... which accounts for my burning up of my horde of photo paper so quickly... :embrass:
Monochrome printing is better than I expected, although the contrast is slightly higher than I expected. I think that is due to the use of black ink only for printing, which reduces colour cast when printing BUT it slows down printing substantially. If you are printing lots of monochrome photos, that could be an issue if you need them quickly.
The software is the work of a genius, and it works very well as reported by other reviews. There is no longer any need to resize your images to print them, as the Easy Photo Print Pro software automatically does that for you in a non-destructive manner. Works like a charm, and if you're a Canon DSLR owner using the bundled Digital Photo Pro (DPP), you can even print images direct from RAW in DPP!
Other nifty features include straight-through printing where you can feed in thick media such as the Hahnemuhle papers or cardboard or canvas media. The system is elegant with the back tray sliding out sleekly from the back, and the printer is equipped with wheels at the back to let you lift and drag the printer for straight-through printing! :thumbsup: Nice attention to details! But... I wonder why they have a PictBridge port in front of the printer... it's quite unlikely for photographers to print direct from camera for such a high-end printer right? :think:
I've printed nearly 30 A3 prints and the ink is still going strong. Gonna pop down to Funan or Sim Lim tomorrow to get more ink and paper. My experience with this printer has been very positive and it's definitely worth every cent. If you are thinking of getting the Pro9000 and don't already have a colour calibrator for your display, the Cathay offer of $899 for the Pro9000 and ColorVision Express 2 is a great buy to start your own digital lab!
