Printing help please

[newbie4]

Good morning
I am new to this and any help would be much appreciated. I am working with Photoimpact XL image editing and cannot get a decent print, printer is Epson WF2010 using ciss. I have tried all sorts after much reading and video watching but still cannot get a decent print. I have followed City Ink videos and adjusted the settings but still no joy. Prints coming out very pale and lacking colour. I am not very techy so any help in a way I can understand would be much appreciated. Do I need to get Photo Impact? HELP!!!!

[webtrekker]

Does Photoimpact allow the use of ICCprofiles? If you don't know what I'm talking about then that might be the problem.

If you do have an ICC installed and set up correctly then note that sublimation prints always look faded and off-colour on the paper but look fine when pressed. Have you pressed anything yet? Mugs, t-shirts, etc?

[newbie4]

Thanks for the reply. Photoimpact does not seem to allow ICC profiles so wondering whether to get photo shop.
Have pressed a t-shirt but not impressed, came out the same as the print, pale and lacking colour.

[InkExpress]

The ICC will help with colours, but often pale colour on fabrics is down to the paper. So it is worth trying a specific high release paper before making a final judgement. The other thing to look at is your t-shirts, my favourite sublimation t-shirts are Subli-Plus (XP520) from Xpres, I have also tried Gildan which are good. I find the Xpres shirts to be very good quality and the difference compared to other lower quality t-shirts even with the same ink and paper is quite shocking.

If you need software to support ICC and colour management try GIMP which is free, or Serif Afinity which is around £50.00. I love PS and use it daily but I wouldn't fancy purchasing it myself (we pay monthly through the business account)

Please see the photos below that demonstrate the difference between the two papers I sell on fabrics (all produced with the same printer, ink, software, heat press, product - just a different paper)

Alex

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Canvas_cushion_test.jpg (87.01 KiB) Viewed 7 times

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Canvas_cushion_test.jpg (87.01 KiB) Viewed 7 times

[newbie4]

Hi thanks, have installed Gimp and things are getting better but still not there yet - will keep trying. Any more tips or help would be appreciated.

[InkExpress]

No problem, definitely consider a high release paper. It makes a world of difference

Alex