large format printing : Understanding software differences WRT sizing
All software including PhotoShop and Qimage must work within the
limitations of the printer which are defined by the driver. If you specify an impossible task, like printing a 16x20 print on 16x20 paper without using borderless printing, different software may handle the request differently. For example, if you don't specify borderless printing, the maximum size print allowable on 16x20 paper using the Epson 4800 is 15.766 x 19.333 inches. If you try to print a 16x20 using PhotoShop, you will be told that the print size is larger than allowed but you will be given a "Proceed" option. If you proceed, PhotoShop will print at 16x20 but will clip the edges of the print and you'll end up with a 15.766 x 19.333 inch print that has the edges missing. In Qimage, you will be told that the print size is larger than one page and will be asked if you want a poster. If you say no, you'll end up with a 15.766 x 19.333 inch print (same size as PhotoShop) but without the edges cropped off. These are just two different ways of handling the same problem and in both cases you end up with (no more than) a 15.766 x 19.333 inch print: a printer/driver limitation. It is important to recognize how different programs handle sizing tasks and in particular, what happens when you try to print sizes that do not fit on the paper. Whatever printing software you use, be familiar with how it handles sizing discrepancies.
Spooling options
Qimage will almost always send more (potentially much more) data to the driver than PhotoShop or other printing programs due to Qimage's interpolation process. As such, you must make sure that the printer is set up properly for large format printing. Not having the printer/spooler set up properly may result in partial prints, no print at all, or crashes due to the system not being able to handle the [large] amount of data being handed to the driver. First and foremost, go to control panel, select "printers and faxes", and right click on your printer. Select "Properties" from the right click menu and then click the "Advanced" tab. If "Enable Advanced Printing Features" is checked at the bottom, UNcheck this option. This is the cause for 98% of printing troubles when printing large prints as this feature can only handle a small amount of data and isn't meant for photographic printing so the option should remain UNchecked. The other options on that tab usually make little difference but I recommend checking "Spool print documents so program finishes printing faster" and also "Start printing immediately". Those options will ensure the best use of resources on the machine. Finally, click the "Print Processor" button and make sure that the right side is set to "RAW". If any other data type is selected, it is likely your photographic printing will not work properly. Click "OK" to save the changes.
Maximum print sizes
Some online sources report that the maximum print length in PhotoShop CS2 is about 90 inches. I have not confirmed this, but I can tell you that when set up properly, Qimage has no length limit. PhotoShop and most other applications that print photos try to send the image all-at-once to the driver: they basically hand off the entire original image at once and simply specify a print size for that image. Depending on the initial image size and specified print size, this all-at-once printing method can overwhelm the driver/spooler and lockups/crashes may ensue. Qimage has a "smart" handoff to the driver that passes the data in smaller chunks that don't overwhelm the system and can allow for much larger prints. With Qimage, you are only bound by the amount of RAM, virtual memory, and hard drive space available and by how well your print driver handles the printing task when dealing with the large amount of data normally used for big prints. Most of the big print failures that I've seen fall into three categories:
Content copyright © 1998-2006 Steve's Digicam Online, Inc.
limitations of the printer which are defined by the driver. If you specify an impossible task, like printing a 16x20 print on 16x20 paper without using borderless printing, different software may handle the request differently. For example, if you don't specify borderless printing, the maximum size print allowable on 16x20 paper using the Epson 4800 is 15.766 x 19.333 inches. If you try to print a 16x20 using PhotoShop, you will be told that the print size is larger than allowed but you will be given a "Proceed" option. If you proceed, PhotoShop will print at 16x20 but will clip the edges of the print and you'll end up with a 15.766 x 19.333 inch print that has the edges missing. In Qimage, you will be told that the print size is larger than one page and will be asked if you want a poster. If you say no, you'll end up with a 15.766 x 19.333 inch print (same size as PhotoShop) but without the edges cropped off. These are just two different ways of handling the same problem and in both cases you end up with (no more than) a 15.766 x 19.333 inch print: a printer/driver limitation. It is important to recognize how different programs handle sizing tasks and in particular, what happens when you try to print sizes that do not fit on the paper. Whatever printing software you use, be familiar with how it handles sizing discrepancies.
Spooling options
Qimage will almost always send more (potentially much more) data to the driver than PhotoShop or other printing programs due to Qimage's interpolation process. As such, you must make sure that the printer is set up properly for large format printing. Not having the printer/spooler set up properly may result in partial prints, no print at all, or crashes due to the system not being able to handle the [large] amount of data being handed to the driver. First and foremost, go to control panel, select "printers and faxes", and right click on your printer. Select "Properties" from the right click menu and then click the "Advanced" tab. If "Enable Advanced Printing Features" is checked at the bottom, UNcheck this option. This is the cause for 98% of printing troubles when printing large prints as this feature can only handle a small amount of data and isn't meant for photographic printing so the option should remain UNchecked. The other options on that tab usually make little difference but I recommend checking "Spool print documents so program finishes printing faster" and also "Start printing immediately". Those options will ensure the best use of resources on the machine. Finally, click the "Print Processor" button and make sure that the right side is set to "RAW". If any other data type is selected, it is likely your photographic printing will not work properly. Click "OK" to save the changes.
Maximum print sizes
Some online sources report that the maximum print length in PhotoShop CS2 is about 90 inches. I have not confirmed this, but I can tell you that when set up properly, Qimage has no length limit. PhotoShop and most other applications that print photos try to send the image all-at-once to the driver: they basically hand off the entire original image at once and simply specify a print size for that image. Depending on the initial image size and specified print size, this all-at-once printing method can overwhelm the driver/spooler and lockups/crashes may ensue. Qimage has a "smart" handoff to the driver that passes the data in smaller chunks that don't overwhelm the system and can allow for much larger prints. With Qimage, you are only bound by the amount of RAM, virtual memory, and hard drive space available and by how well your print driver handles the printing task when dealing with the large amount of data normally used for big prints. Most of the big print failures that I've seen fall into three categories:
Content copyright © 1998-2006 Steve's Digicam Online, Inc.
