Digital Output - July 2008 - (Page 28)

Presto is a 96-inch wide UV flatbed printer. Retail, trade show, event, and museum signage are its primary output. “That’s where the growth is in the commercial lab segment and in retail and wholesale labs,” explains Howard. Durst also sells the Theta 76 Digital Lab System. It produces high quality prints from 3.5x5 to 30 inches wide by 13 feet long. It is a complete digital imaging system designed for continuous printing on roll media. Plus, its daylight-loading media cassette, built-in cutter/sorter, and linked RA4 paper processor provide minilab performance with readyto-ship dry image output. The system prints individual images inside a nested file as well as single prints. Lastly, Durst’s Rho 600 Pictor is an entry level, flatbed, roll-to-roll UV ink machine for all substrates—wallpaper, canvas, and specialty surfaces —finding popularity in photo labs. The Durst Rho 600 Pictor is a compact version of the Durst Rho 600. It comes equipped with proprietary Quadro Array printhead technology for color-accurate images at true 600-dpi resolution. Though it was designed primarily for rigid substrates, the unit prints directly onto virtually any surface up to 62 inches wide and 1.58 inches thick at print speeds of nearly 200 sf/h. Photo Lab Equipment Roundup Durst’s Lambda is a laser-based, large format output device used in many commercial labs. Lambda can be upgraded to the current version,” says Howard. “Most of our Lambda customers now have Durst Rho printers, which are big UV printers.” The Rho 800 Canon U.S.A.’s imagePROGRAF iPF8100 printer includes 12 color LUCIA pigment ink, formulated to reduce graininess, minimize bronzing, and resist scratching and fading. The iPF8100 automatically switches between black and matte black while printing. Users simply select the paper type and the printer will use the correct black to optimize print quality. The black ink produces high quality prints on photo glossy-type media while the matte black ink produces high contrast prints with deep black on media such as fine art paper. The printer’s dual printhead system is engineered for speed and advanced image production. The Epson Stylus Pro 7880 wide format inkjet printer, which can be added to any Fujifilm Frontier system, creates mounted poster prints up to 20x24 inches. “We’re successfully serving both the retail and professional lab markets with this product line,” comments Tom Curly, director of marketing, imaging division, Fujifilm U.S.A. The unit boasts eight color ink technology, Epson UltraChrome K3 inks, featuring Vivid Magenta pigments. Fujifilm supplies the complete line of inks and papers for the Epson Stylus Pro 7880, including Fujifilm Inkjet Media Photo Paper Satin 270 and Fujifilm Inkjet Media Photo Paper Glossy 240. The HP Designjet Z6100 is the most recent addition to the HP’s line of Z series printers. “It’s a production capable product,” states HP’s Wolf. According to HP, the Designjet Z6100 printer series is ideal for print service providers (PSPs) and technical customers looking to create high impact prints. The printers produce photo and fine art pieces, exhibition graphics, POP displays, drawings, maps, presentations, and short term outdoor signage. The printer is available in 42- and 60inch models and delivers more than 500 feet in one hour. The Z6100 utilizes HP Vivera pigment inks, which deliver water- and fade-resistant prints. Noritsu America Corporation’s LPS-24 PRO large format silver halide printer is designed to print on a wide variety of image sizes from five by seven to 24x100 inches for portrait and commercial professional labs. Dual magazine capability allows both 12and 24-inch magazines to be loaded simultaneously. Processing capacity ranges from approximately 27 prints per hour for a 24x36-inch print to approximately 51 prints per hour for a 12x180-inch print. Océ North America manufactures the Océ Arizona 250 GT large format flatbed printer with UV curing, the first printer to use VariaDot imaging technology. “This allows it to achieve near photographic quality with only four colors,” states Tom Giglio, national sales support manager, Océ North America. The company recently announced a roll-to-roll option for the flatbed. With the roll media option, users can print www.digitaloutput.net Custom Backdrops Chris Lui owns and operates 14 fully digital Yuen Lui Studios in three states—CA, OR, and WA—that specialize in portrait, school, and wedding photography. “We’re a unique business,” states Lui. “We’re large enough to have our own photographers as well as our own lab, so we only print work from our own portrait photographers—about 40. We service more than 40,000 customers per year.” The studio currently works with two Epson wide format printers, a Stylus Pro 9600 and 9500, to print its high end family portraits. Both printers were purchased when the models debuted a few years ago. “We thought they were a great option as opposed to our chemistry machine. Our chemistry printer outputs up to 20x24 inches; the Epsons print up to 40x60 inches. We use the Epsons to create a lot of photographic canvas prints here. We print a lot of 24x30-inch and 30x40-inch wall portraits, and once in a while we get a request for a 40x60-inch.” The lab also utilizes four digital chemistry printers. “We keep our eyes on all the new equipment whether it’s Epson, Fujifilm, or Kodak. But at this point, I hope I don't have to buy a new printer soon,” confesses Lui. “We find Epson Stylus Pros to be relatively inexpensive, so every time a new model comes out we’re looking to upgrade. The prices, which range between $5,000 to $10,000, are a lot lower than $100,000 high speed machines.” Besides printing custom wall portraits for its studio clients, Yuen Lui Studios uses its printers to make custom backgrounds. “We prep all the artwork in Adobe PhotoShop,” says Lui. “We print two sizes, a 44x90-inch background and a 120x120-inch background that’s pieced together with three prints.” Lui typically uses a photograph as a base and then manipulates it in PhotoShop to “make it a little more artistic. We also design some backgrounds from scratch.” 14 digital Yuen Lui Studios in CA, OR, and WA specialize in portraits and background design like the one shown here. 28 Digital Output July 2008 http://www.digitaloutput.net http://www.digitaloutput.net

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Digital Output - July 2008

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