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TomHackettPhotography
Known Participant
June 22, 2022
Question

Prints suddenly darker than last time

  • June 22, 2022
  • 4 replies
  • 1919 views

Prints I made today are noticably darker than the last time I printed, especially in shadow areas.  Before jumping to the conclusion that my monitor is too bright, please hear me out.  I have been printing with acceptable results for several years, including last week.  The only changes made since then have been:

Upgrading to Photoshop 23.4.1
Replacing the matte black ink cartridge.

My environment also includes MacBook Pro (15 inch, 2017) running macOS Monterey version 12.4 and Epson Stylus Photo R1900 (old, but quite reliable).  I am using Hahnemühle Bamboo and Canson Edition Etching (with similar results for each).  My monitor is calibrated regularly, and I soft proof before sending images to the printer.

Just to make sure my monitor had not suddenly lost its calibration of taken it upon itself to adjust the white point automatically, I copied the PSD file to another computer (desktop, also calibrated, running Windows 10 and the corresponding release of Photoshop), and did not see any darkening on that system.

My hunch is that something screwy has gone wrong with the matte black.  Fortunately, a new cartridge is due to be delivered tomorrow.  I can test to see if that makes a difference.

Meanwhile, I wanted to ask if anyone else has seen something similar with Photoshop 23.4.1.

Any other suggestions will be appreciated.

This topic has been closed for replies.

4 replies

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Alyson555
Participant
August 26, 2022

My prints just suddenly became darker using an Epson 3880. The exact same digital file I printed recently is now printing darker (not much darker, maybe about 1-2%). I have not upgraded any software. Epson technical support ran me through some tests involving changing print settings (which did not fix the problem), and suggested I call Adobe. I googled my problem and found this discussion. I have been using the same paper (Canson Platine) with the same Photoshop print settings for years, including in the past few weeks of printing a set of images that are suddenly printing darker.

 

The stats:

Mac OS 10.14.6

Photoshop 22.5.5

Printing on Canson Platine (a cotton rag with semigloss coating), using "Photoshop manages color", Canson's icc profile, Media Type: Premium Photo Paper Semigloss

 

I wonder if TomHackettPhotography ever found a solution, and if anyone here has any ideas for a fix. My nozzle check is fine, which the Epson tech thought indicated that it is not a problem with the printer. But my Photoshop has not changed, so I am stumped.
I downloaded digitaldog's sample image and printed it. It does not look particularly dark to me. So my big problem and mystery is that when I reprint digital files from the past weeks, with no settings changes, they are a little bit darker all of a sudden.

Any thoughts on this mystery would be appreciated.
Thank you in advance!

A
Alyson555
Participant
August 26, 2022

Hi,

I'm "replying" to my above post because I can't find an edit button for it. But what I wanted to alter is the description of the problem. After printing another test of another recent image, yes it's a bit darker, but it's also somewhat shifted in color--a bit warmer, just a bit. But this makes me want to add to my report that I recently replaced the Light Cyan ink cartridge (Epson 3880, Ultrachrome K3 inks). Even though nozzle checks were fine before and after this replacement, it's the only thing that has changed in my system, so I wanted to add it to the mystery-solving clues.

 

NB, colourmanagement
Community Expert
NB, colourmanagementCommunity Expert
Community Expert
September 1, 2022

Thank you so much for your reply, Neil. I look forward to checking out your colour management articles. 

 

The more I have printed since getting this shift the more I'm convinced that it was the changing of the light cyan ink that caused it. The darker aspect I think is probably because part of a nozzle was clogged, just as you suggest. 

 

I've downloaded the Adobe test image and will use it in the future to help keep things consistent (given that I now think you can miss problems with the simple nozzle check). Thank you again for your help.

 


Alyson, my pleasure, I hope my articles will help you with this and maybe further issues

 

 

I hope this helps
neil barstow, colourmanagement net :: adobe forum volunteer:: co-author: 'getting colour right'
google me "neil barstow colourmanagement" for lots of free articles on colour management

    NB, colourmanagement
    Community Expert
    NB, colourmanagementCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    June 24, 2022

    If it worked well before and it's now dark, then something must have changed.

    That's not going to be Photoshop 

    Are you sure it’s the same image?
    Try this Adobe RGB one as a test

     

    ::INK AND MEDIA::

    If your cartridges are genuine Epson then, that is unlikely to be the culprit.

    Is it media from a reliable source?

    'Cheap' copy shop/office supplies retail media can change as they will switch to the lowest cost supplier. 

     

    ::SETTINGS::

    Are you using the same ICC profile in "Photoshop manages color" AND selecting the right [same] media in the driver. 

    Media options do alter the printed appearance, sometimes significantly.

     

    OR if using "printer manages color" are you selecting the right [same] media in the driver. Media options auto select the ICC profile in the background. 

     

    Has the screen brightness changed? Do you calibrate regularly?

     

    I hope this helps
    neil barstow, colourmanagement net :: adobe forum volunteer:: co-author: 'getting colour right'
    google me "neil barstow colourmanagement" for lots of free articles on colour management

     

     

      T
      TomHackettPhotographyAuthor
      Known Participant
      June 25, 2022

      Thanks to all who responded.  The most useful change I made was to creaate a new curves adjustnent layer to reduce shadow contrast.  I did this after replacing the MK cartridge, recalibrating the display and cleaning the nozzels seemed to have little effect.  The curves adjustment seems to have worked, but I'm still not sure why.

      TheDigitalDog
      TheDigitalDog
      Inspiring
      June 25, 2022

      On a color reference image, a curves adjustment is not a fix. 

      Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management/pluralsight"
      Trevor.Dennis
      Community Expert
      Trevor.DennisCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      June 22, 2022

      Hi Tom

       

      I got as far as reading Epson Stylus R1900 and remembered my own unhappy experiences with that printer. Try Google with Epson R1900 dark prints and prepare to be overrun with a deluge of hits.  I never did get my problems resolved despite spending a fortune on custom profiles etc.  Andrew has a lot more experience than me with printing, so he might have some thoughts, but that was my experience.  The bottom line for you is that it was working OK and now it isn't.

      TheDigitalDog
      TheDigitalDog
      Inspiring
      June 22, 2022

      Something on the print end changed; Photoshop can't (doesn't) alter this without user input. Could be the ink indeed. You might remove each and gently shake the cart's, and of course, do a nozzle check.

      You should always test output using good color reference images designed for that task. The color reference images RGB values are such they are set for output and are editing and display agnostic. Test the output this way and examine for the same color issues so we know it's not your image specific issues causing the problems:


      http://www.digitaldog.net/files/2014PrinterTestFileFlat.tif.zip

      Author “Color Management for Photographers" & "Photoshop CC Color Management/pluralsight"
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