Ink Options OK, so trying new paper is fairly inexpensive, and pretty much risk free. Trying out third party inks in your printer; now that’s another story. There are plenty of ads for ink cartridge refill kits, or low cost generic replacement inks, but this is one area where you don’t want to take chances. Not only do you run the risk of wasting expensive paper, but there is a real chance of ruining your printer. There are a couple of options that I’ve tried that have provided consistently good results—in some cases even better than the original inks. Two things to keep in mind when trying third party inks are the need to completely flush out the old inks, usually by printing several test pages (although you can use cheap paper for this), and the possibility of voiding your warranty. Check your owners manual if this is a concern for you. I’ve never had a problem switching back and forth between ink brands, but I can’t guarantee that everyone will have the same luck. This is another reason to stay away from the cheap no-name products. Pantone ColorVANTAGE inks (www.colorvantageinks.com) are available for a select set of Epson printers at this time (Pantone is working on versions for other manufacturers, but didn’t have release dates when this article was written). The ColorVANTAGE inks are pigment based with a wider color gamut or range that is normally found only in dye inks. Why is this important? Pigment inks tend to have a much longer display life than dye inks, which is especially important when you sell your photos. The Pantone ColorVANTAGE inks are a complete replacement for your original Epson inks, and when used with the free Pantone profiles give excellent results, especially with landscape and black and white prints. If you use an older Epson 1270 or 1280, this is a great way to upgrade your print quality. I was very impressed with the color and quality of my prints when using the ColorVANTAGE inks. Pantone offers a number of paper profiles for the ColorVANTAGE inks which are free to download. Pantone ColorVANTAGE inks are a high quality pigment ink replacement for several Epson printers. Media Street (www.mediastreet.com) has the Niagara Continuous feed system as well as prefilled and empty cartridges for their Generations inks. If you do a lot of printing, the bulk feed system can quickly pay for itself by reducing ink costs up to 90 percent. The Generations G-Chrome inks are excellent replacements for Canon and Epson printers, and like the Pantone ColorVANTAGE are full pigment inks for longer display life (over 100 years according to Wilhelm Research). The product that has me the most excited for my type of printing is their new Generations QuadBlack ink. This set uses two blacks along with four gray inks for true black and white quality. Using the Quad Tone RIP (Raster Image Processor), you can select warm, cool, neutral, or split tone prints. This ink is so good, I bought an Epson R200 that is dedicated to black and white printing with the QuadBlack inks (disclosure: I am a Media Street Mentor. I don’t receive any financial benefit from promoting their inks here, and would have said all the same things regardless. Bottom line, it’s an excellent product that I use with great success). When combined with the Generations GQ paper, the results are museum quality. The only drawback at this time is the number of supported printers—no wide format prints yet. Media Street also offers a wide range of papers in various finishes that work well with their inks and the original inks included with your printer. Media Street’s Niagara Continuous feed system can reduce ink costs by as much as 90 percent if you print in volume. For best results with any paper or ink, be sure to use the correct printer settings and paper profiles. This is especially true when using third party products. I encourage you to try some of the products listed here if you’re looking for a new look to your prints.