Printer Woes, New Lighting- Patreon Newsletter June 27th (Patreon)

Large Format Printer Woes:After nine long years of constant use, and three moves (two cross country), my large format printer, a Canon Pixma Pro 9000 MK II, has given me its final error code.  Canon is no help- this printer is LONG discontinued, and the ink is getting pricy and hard to find, so it's time for a replacement.  Unfortunately for me, buying a printer to replace my large format, heavyweight art paper, dissolving blueline printer is a challenge that can't be easily placated with Youtube videos and Amazon reviews- it takes another weird traditional media artist who likes working digitally to solve this kind of problem.

There are two expensive investments in my studio equipment that I really can't work without.  The first is the abovementioned large format printer, the second is my large format scanner.  I use this printer for just bluelines- I don't print zines with it, I don't do prints with it- but even so, it sees near-daily use.  From bluelines on Bristol for marker art to bluelines on heavyweight watercolor paper, this printer is the secret behind my work method, and it's the reason I could even do watercolor comics.  Without it, I'm at a standstill.

The last time I bought ink (about a month ago), I saw the writing scrawled on the wall in Canon printer ink- the ink was getting difficult to find, and I couldn't buy singles, just the whole color gamut.  So I figured that I'd have to start investigating large format printers soon anyway.  I was hoping I could get all of Chapter 9 printed, but unfortunately, the old girl died midway through a print job- three pages printed, the fourth hadn't even started when it gave me a B200 error that I couldn't solve and suggested contacting Canon.  

For the curious, Canon's support is basically non-existant.  I would have loved a quick online chat to find out if it's even worth attempting to repair my printer and which printer is the successor to the Pixma Pro 9000 MK II, but uh, that's not an option.  I COULD agree to pay to phone chat, but I have a feeling that would have just been good money after bad, especially since my needs are so specific.

Needs to:

Print large format

Print heavyweight art papers in large format

Flatbed printing- no curving the paper

Ink needs to be water-soluble

Fortunately, I've already gotten several leads from generous comic artists willing to share their secret sauce.  There are a couple likely looking Canons- one at a pocket-breaking $1.3k, one much more reasonable at around $300, a possibly promising Epson (if it can take watercolor paper), and a Brother.  I've been down the 3 in 1 Brother route before and had it break after a year of normal use, so I'm leaning more towards Canon or Epson, as my original Pixma lasted so long (and suffered so much abuse), and my large format scanner is a beast of an Epson.

For my fellow comic artists and traditional media artists curious about printers, here are my options:

PIXMA iP8720: https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/products/details/printers/inkjet-single-function/ip-series/ip8720

PIXMA PRO-10: https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/products/details/professional-large-format-printers/professional-inkjet-printers/pro-10

EcoTank Photo ET-8550: https://epson.com/Clearance-Center/All-in-One-Printers/EcoTank-Photo-ET-8550-All-in-One-Wide-format-Supertank-Printer---Refurbished/p/C11CJ21201-N

I'm lucky enough that two of the recommendations are from fellow artists willing to test them a bit and let me know if they'll meet my weirdly specific needs.

I ended up purchasing an Epson Eco Tank Photo ET 8550 for around $700 from Amazon.  While it seems like the printer itself might be on the way out, ink is available in bottles or cartridges, so I hope that I'll get another 10 years out of this printer.   I'm going to record a review of the printer once it comes in July 6th!

New Lighting in the Studio:

We've been working on adjusting the lighting in the studio so that it's bright enough for recording, but not like sitting on the surface of the sun.  Joseph did a lot of research into ceiling light, and decided to install LED track lighting.  It definitely pumps out a lot of light (and heat!), and we could finally remove a few of the lamps I had circling my drafting table.  We also switched out our ugly, low-hanging chandelier for a ceiling fan, and while I appreciate not banging my head on the glass bulbs every time, I'm kinda shocked by how little light this ceiling fan puts out, especially compared to literally every other ceiling fan I've ever had.

7" Kara Day

7" Kara Day is coming up- July 1st (7/1).  I'm planning something special (in addition to working on Chapter 9), so keep an eye out for more details!  Speaking of July 1st, if you know any artists interested in pursuing artistic education, particularly artists interested in storytelling like comics, animation, or picture books, please tell them about the NATTO Scholarship I'm hosting with Joseph!  Signing up is easy, and we're awarding three small cash prizes to help with classes, materials, or just cost of living!

  You can learn more about the NATTO Scholarship here: https://nattosoup.com/scholarship

Work in Progress:

If this piece seems different from my usual art, it is- it was painted as a collaboration with my past self.  My father passed away from lung cancer in 2009, and part of dealing with my grief meant putting energy into making this illustration.  The original was a digital art piece, but this is a screenprint from the same year.  It belongs to my aunt, who planned on getting it framed this year, and I offered to paint it first.

Since the subject matter is so different from what I usually create, I recorded the process and will share it soon!

While working on finishing up Chapter 9's rough corrections and printing bluelines, I painted a few Lilliputian Living illustrations.  This one turned out particularly cute!

For my friends who celebrate the 4th of July, I created a stashbuster tutorial for easy and fun fireworks!  I need to  record the voice over for this and get it out to yall ASAP! 

And another cute Lilliputian Living color illustration in progress.  The kitten, for those curious, is Dax!  The reference photo was taken during my Ida evacuation- he's much bigger now! 

Backer Exclusive & Early Access:

Early Access: Using Watercolor Techniques in a Painting- Watercolor Crash Course Part 6: https://www.patreon.com/posts/early-access-in-67926778

Early Access: Handling Paint & Water Control Tips- Watercolor Crash Course Part 7: https://www.patreon.com/posts/early-access-7-67927009

New to the Public:

Tuesday, June 21st : Not So Black and White:  Derwent Charcoal Paint Pan Set & Schmincke Kohle Watercolors Unbox & Swatch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2I8k0jSRYaU (watercolor paints, watercolor paint review, unbox & swatch)

Sunday, June 26th: Easy! Summer Seashore Stashbuster: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8VP8CCC9O8 (watercolor, watercolor tutorial, watercolor painting, watercolor art)