subject: How to Print Lab-Quality Photos from your Canon Printer [print this page] How to Print Lab-Quality Photos from your Canon Printer
With more and more people printing photographs from their home Canon printer, it's important to learn special tricks of the trade that will ensure top-quality photo prints. In order to make the most of your Canon photo printer, take a look at these exclusive photo printing tips.
Make Use of the Auto Edit Option
A vast majority of Canon photo printers, plus a number of Canon inkjets, have an auto edit feature that edits a photo for you. These printers also offer a preview screen, where users can view what their printed photo will look like and make any necessary changes. From brightness, gamma, and pink eye removal, use your Canon photo printer's auto fix features to do the tedious editing work for you.
Use the Correct Paper
One of the most common home photo printing mistakes is printing photos on plain paper or cheap photo paper. Simply put: the better the paper, the better the print will look. Also consider the type of paper you want to use: glossy or matte. And lastly, be sure to set your Canon photo printer for the type of paper you're using. Although some printers can automatically detect paper type, it's not always reliable.
Check Ink Levels
If you print a photo that looked great on your Canon printer's LCD but didn't look great once printed, check your ink cartridge levels. We all know how expensive replacement ink cartridges can be. That's why many Canon users purchase remanufactured Canon cartridges for their personal photo printer. Remanufactured Canon cartridges cost half the price of retail cartridges but produce the same quality prints. Now, you can print as many pictures as you like without worrying about the cost!
Compressed = Depressed
Most digital cameras use a compressed JPG format, which loses details every time you save the photo during editing. To avoid losing your photo's quality, turn off the compression default on your camera. If you cannot, once you transfer the image on your computer, save the image as your photo editor's default format without compression.
Experiment with Direct Printing
Some digital cameras and Canon photo printers allow several direct printing options. You can print directly from your camera or from USB keys. If your camera and Canon printer allows both options, test both to see which yields the highest-quality photo. Even though you're printing the same photo, these two direct printing methods can have noticeable differences in terms of color, brightness, and detail.
Don't Edit Originals
Always make changes to a copy of the image, not the original. Whether your edits include cropping, playing with contrast, or applying special effects, it's always a good idea to edit a copy. That way, if you make an error while editing that you cannot change back, you'll have the option to start over with the original.
Most importantly, have fun when learning the best ways to use your Canon photo printer! The more you know, the better your Canon photos will be!
