Hi I have used Photoshop for many years for making photo graphics, and I have enjoyed using the application. A couple of months ago I bought a new printer, Epson ET 8550, and until now I have primarily made pictures of size A3+ (329 x 483 mm) and just printed them I full size with good results. Right now I make pictures of size 30 x 40 cm and want to print them on A3+ paper in the exact size, but the resulting print has a different size. Because of my problems, I have made the following 3 tests. I want to print a Picture of size 30x40 cm. So I create a PS document of that size. The only content of the picture is a thin frame made as a Select (CMD+a) and an inside 2 px black stroke. In the print menu I select “Super B/A3 borderless” and Paper Type Premium Semigloss. The measure of the printed frame is 30,5 x 40,8 cm.I suspected the choice “borderless” to be the reason why the resulting frame is larger than expected. Next I print the same document, but now without “borderless”. The measure of the printed frame is 29,3 x 39,0 cm.I make a new document of size 20x30 cm and I print it with the same print parameters as in test 2. The measure of the printed frame is 19,5 x 29,3 cm. So none of the prints are correct, and I don’t understand it :-(. I couple of days ago I made a similar test print on A4 paper, where the document size was 10 x 20 cm. This time the right frame size was printed. As a last thing, I did as in test 3, but on A3 gloss paper instead of A3+ Semigloss. This time the resulting frame has the right size. To me it seems to be a problem with the A3+ format. But who is responsible, and how to fix it? I hope somebody can help me. Steffen Dyhrberg

Participating Frequently

Question

Problems with printing on A3+ size paper on Epson ET 8550 printer

Forum|Forum|1 year ago
January 27, 2025
3 replies
3725 views

Hi

I have used Photoshop for many years for making photo graphics, and I have enjoyed using the application.

A couple of months ago I bought a new printer, Epson ET 8550, and until now I have primarily made pictures of size A3+ (329 x 483 mm) and just printed them I full size with good results. Right now I make pictures of size 30 x 40 cm and want to print them on A3+ paper in the exact size, but the resulting print has a different size.

Because of my problems, I have made the following 3 tests.

I want to print a Picture of size 30x40 cm. So I create a PS document of that size. The only content of the picture is a thin frame made as a Select (CMD+a) and an inside 2 px black stroke. In the print menu I select “Super B/A3 borderless” and Paper Type Premium Semigloss. The measure of the printed frame is 30,5 x 40,8 cm.
I suspected the choice “borderless” to be the reason why the resulting frame is larger than expected. Next I print the same document, but now without “borderless”. The measure of the printed frame is 29,3 x 39,0 cm.
I make a new document of size 20x30 cm and I print it with the same print parameters as in test 2. The measure of the printed frame is 19,5 x 29,3 cm.

So none of the prints are correct, and I don’t understand it :-(.

I couple of days ago I made a similar test print on A4 paper, where the document size was 10 x 20 cm. This time the right frame size was printed.

As a last thing, I did as in test 3, but on A3 gloss paper instead of A3+ Semigloss. This time the resulting frame has the right size.

To me it seems to be a problem with the A3+ format. But who is responsible, and how to fix it?

I hope somebody can help me.

Steffen Dyhrberg

macOS

D

David_Hussey4470

Participant

Common Problems & Fixes

1. Printer Not Detecting A3 Paper

Fix:
- Make sure A3 paper is loaded in the rear paper feed (ET-8550 only supports A3 from the rear feed).
- In your printer settings on the computer:
  - Go to Printer Properties > Paper Size, and manually select A3 (297 x 420 mm).
  - Make sure Paper Source is set to Rear Feed.

2. Wrong Print Area / Scaling Issues

Fix:
- In your print dialog (from Word, Photoshop, etc.), ensure:
  - Page Size is set to A3.
  - Scaling is set to 100% or Fit to Page, depending on what you want.
- Check document/page setup in the software you're using to make sure the canvas is A3.

3. Margins or Cropping Problems

Fix:
- EPSON ET-8550 supports borderless printing, but you must enable it:
  - In printer settings, check the Borderless option for A3 size.
  - Some apps (like Word) override this—use apps like Adobe Acrobat, Photoshop, or the EPSON Print Layout app for better control.

4. Print Quality Issues

Fix:
- Make sure you select the correct paper type (e.g., Plain Paper, Premium Photo Paper, etc.).
- Run Print Head Alignment or Nozzle Check from the printer’s maintenance menu.
- Use high-quality or photo setting for detailed A3 printing.

5. Paper Jams or Feeding Issues

Fix:
- A3 paper must be flat and loaded properly in the rear tray.
- Fan the paper before inserting, and don’t overfill the tray.
- Make sure the paper guides are snug against the paper.

🖥️️ Software-Side Troubleshooting

Update Drivers: Make sure your EPSON drivers are up to date:
Use Epson Software: For A3 prints with complex layout, use Epson Print Layout or Epson Photo+ apps.
Check Application Settings: Your app may default to A4 – always check and change to A3 in Page Setup or Print Settings before printing.

S

Steffen DyhrbergAuthor

Participating Frequently

Thank you for the fine detailed list. I have done it all and I am now waiting for answer from Epson 🙂

NB, colourmanagement

Community Expert

Ive been having this same issue and it is very frustrating. Simply trying to print on an A3 sheet and if I do borderless its expanded way too much and if I do border printing its actually scalled smaller than the file size I am trying to print. The fix of scaling to 102.56% has been working for me but wouldnt it be nice if the printer simply printed at the file size you sent it?

Thanks for the suggestions here.

@dan_vahalla an Epson printer has set borders (you can see them in print settings) unless you use edge to edge which then, frustatingly, expands the image

I hope this helps

neil barstow colourmanagement - adobe forum volunteer,

colourmanagement consultant & co-author of 'getting colour right'

See my free articles on colourmanagement online

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davescm

Community Expert

On most printers, selecting 'Borderless' printing results results in a slight scaling up of the image. That is to prevent white edges showing if the paper is slightly misaligned. I don't know about their Mac drivers but on Epson's Windows drivers, when choosing borderless there is an Expansion option, which can be set to Autoexpand or Retain Size. Retain size stops the scaling but at the risk of those white edges showing.

This is why many commercial prints are made with a bleed area, i.e. an extra area of image around the print, which is trimmed off when the paper is cut to final size. That allows for any misalignment in the printing process.

Dave

S

Steffen DyhrbergAuthor

Participating Frequently

Thank you Dave for your explanation to the use of borderless printing.

In my test 2, I don't select borderless, and the print size is still not exact as it is when I print on A3 or A4 size paper. So I still have a problem and as far as I can see there is not a posibility to set detailed options as you show me.

But thank you for a fast response.

Steffen

davescm

Community Expert

It sounds like there is some scaling going on within the Epson print driver. Unfortunately, as a user of a different Epson printer (SC-P5000) on Windows 11, I am limited in what I can test here.

Hopefully, someone with an Epson printer on a Mac may be able to help.

Dave

Common Problems & Fixes

1. Printer Not Detecting A3 Paper

2. Wrong Print Area / Scaling Issues

3. Margins or Cropping Problems

4. Print Quality Issues

5. Paper Jams or Feeding Issues

🖥️️ Software-Side Troubleshooting

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