Photo Credit: Courtesy of Canon, Epson and HP Clockwise from top left: Epson Stylus Pro 3800, HP Photosmart Pro B9180, Canon PIXMA Pro9500 (Printers not shown to scale.)

Photographers today have more choices than ever to output their work. Pigment-ink photo-quality printers have improved considerably over the last decade, and are now fixtures in many photo studios, photo labs, ateliers (companies who traditionally have produced limited- and open-edition prints for artists), homes and offices. I favor pigment-ink printers for most of the work that I print and sell, and generally recommend pigment-ink printers to others who want to produce long-lasting, and in many cases, water-resistant prints on a wide variety of materials, from glossy to canvas. That’s not to say that dye-based printers should be ignored, but we will save those for another time.

All of the printers highlighted below have multiple black/gray inks and software that improves the print quality of neutral and toned black-and-white prints. All of these printers can also produce fantastic results at less than their best quality settings (set in the driver, plug-in or RIP). Experiment to find the right combinations of speed and quality for your needs.

Canon PIXMA Pro9500
Street Price: About $750

The Canon PIXMA Pro9500 is a 13-inch-wide pigment-ink printer with ten separate ink tanks (more than any other 13-inch-wide pigment-ink printer on the market). Color prints I’ve seen made from this printer on watercolor, semi-gloss and fiber semi-gloss papers have been extremely sharp, with saturated color and very smooth transitions.

Selected features:

- 10-color Lucia pigment inks in 14 ml carts, with a wide color gamut and expected print longevity of 95 to 300 years or longer.*

- Automatic switching between Matte and Photo Black inks (based on paper type chosen in driver/RIP), with no ink usage when switching between paper types.

- Monochrome printing with the Grayscale Photo Mode and multiple gray inks produces very smooth, even-toned monochrome prints, with a variety of toning options.

- Two separate paper paths for paper sizes from 4x6 to 13x19 inches; a top-loading manual sheet feeder for light- to medium-weight papers; and a front straight-through manual sheet feeder allows for single-sheet loading of media up to 1.2 mm thick.

- Two standard connectivity options: USB 2.0 and Direct Print from a Camera (PictBridge).

- Comes with the Canon Easy-PhotoPrint Pro Print plug-in for direct printing from Photoshop, as well as printing directly from Canon RAW camera files.

- Though not available in the USA due to patent issues, in most other markets where the printer is sold, a CD/DVD tray is provided and printing capability in the driver is enabled that allows printing on inkjet-compatible CDs or DVDs.

Recommendations/Concerns: I would recommend this printer to a photographer or other artist who wants a quality 13-inch-wide pigment-ink printer for semi-gloss and matte/watercolor black and white and color inkjet prints. Having ten on-board inks means that more cartridge changing will almost surely be necessary compared to a printer that has fewer inks. The PIXMA 9500 also has ink carts with the smallest volume per cart, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that cost per print over time will be more with this printer compared to others in its class. There are too many factors that contribute to ink use over time. There is no roll-feed built-in, and paper length is limited to 19 inches, which may be an important item to consider for printmakers who want to make panoramic prints.

Epson Stylus Pro 3800
Street Price: About $1,200

The Epson Stylus Pro 3800 is a 17-inch-wide pigment-ink printer with a size and weight (43.2 lbs.) considerably smaller than other 17-inch-wide models. I’ve seen and made many prints on the Stylus Pro 3800 and find the look of both color and monochrome output on gloss and matte/watercolor papers to be sharp, with very smooth transitions and bright, saturated color. The stated output speed is also very respectable at 5.5 minutes for a 16x20-inch print in high speed (bi-directional) mode and 1440 dpi.

Selected features:

- 8-color UltraChrome K3 pigment inks (nine total cartridges) in 80 ml pressurized carts, with a wide color gamut and expected print longevity of 100 to 200 years or longer.*

- Automatic switching between Matte and Photo Black inks, with minimal ink usage when making the switch (about 1.5 or 4.5 ml of ink is used when switching, depending on whether the change is from Photo to Matte Black or vice-versa).

- Monochrome printing with the Epson Advanced Black and White mode (and three black inks) produces very even-toned prints, with the ability to adjust toning dramatically in the driver.

- A top-loading high capacity feeder can hold up to 120 sheets, from 4x6 to 17x22 inches; a second top-loading manual sheet feeder is optimized for fine-art papers; and a front straight-through manual sheet feeder allows for single sheet loading of media up to 1.5 mm.

- Two standard connectivity options: USB 2.0 and Ethernet.

Recommendations/Concerns: I would recommend this printer to a photographer or other artist who wants a quality 17-inch-wide pigment-ink printer that operates more like a 13-inch-wide model, but with much larger cartridges. The built-in Ethernet option and optional ColorBurst LE RIP are both very valuable features. There is no roll-feed built-in or available, and I prefer a closed paper tray like the one on the Epson Stylus Pro 4800. However, the high-capacity feeder, like those found on many letter-sized and 13-inch-wide printers, performs a similar function. For an additional $200, you can purchase the Professional version which includes the ColorBurst LE RIP.

HP Photosmart Pro B9180
Street Price: About $600

HP’s Photosmart Pro B9180 is a sturdy, 13-inch-wide printer with a very respectable feature set. I’ve used this printer extensively to make glossy and matte prints, and find the output to be sharp and crisp, with a wide color palette. Monochrome quality is superb, thanks to the combination of black inks used when making monochrome prints, on matte or gloss papers. The main cassette tray, which holds sheets of paper, is a great feature in my opinion for those who want to make a series of prints (as long as the paper is not too thick) without having to constantly load sheets into a top-feed tray.

Selected features:

- 8-color HP Vivera pigment inkset (using 27 ml individual cartridges).

- Inks have been independently tested on a range of papers to last over 200 years before noticeable fading.*

- Automatic switching between Matte and Photo Black inks (based on paper type chosen in driver/RIP), with no ink usage when switching between paper types.

- Main tray is able to hold up to 200 sheets of 3.5x5- to 13x19-inch paper, and a manual-feed specialty media tray can handle single sheets up to 1.5 mm thick.

- Closed-loop automatic calibration system utilizes a built-in densitometer to optimize color accuracy.

- Two standard connectivity options: USB 2.0 and Ethernet.

- Comes with the HP Photosmart Pro Print plug-in for Adobe Photoshop for direct printing from Photoshop

Recommendations/Concerns: I would recommend this printer to photographers and other artists who want a quality 13-inch-wide pigment-based ink color printer. The manual feed tray (for heavier sheets) is particularly well constructed, though sheets must be fed one at a time. I also like printing through the HP Photosmart Pro Print Plug-in for Photoshop because all of the page setup and printer controls are on one easy-to-navigate screen.

*Source for all longevity results: www.wilhelm-research.com

Andrew Darlow is a photographer, author and digital imaging consultant based in the New York City area. He is editor of The Imaging Buffet, an online resource with news, reviews and interviews covering the subjects of digital photography and printing. Portions of this article were excerpted from his new book, "301 Inkjet Tips and Techniques: An Essential Printing Resource for Photographers" (Course Technology, PTR), which covers tips and techniques for prepping, printing and displaying prints made using inkjet printers. For more information, visit the book's companion site at www.inkjettips.com.