I wanted to share a little more information about the specific printer that I use and love! The Canon PIXMA iP8720 Crafting Printer is my go-to. Yes, we work with Canon, but we work with them for a reason. It’s by far the best printer I have ever owned. I love the wide format and could never go back now that I’ve tried it. It’s so nice to be able to print big, up to 13×19 borderless images.
I love the Pro Luster paper. The color is absolutely incredible. You cannot tell at all that it was printed at home. Even though my wide format printer can print on smaller paper, I only buy that size and chop everything down that needs to be smaller. It’s just simpler and easier to have one paper that works for everything. I use it for DIY projects, all kinds of scrapbooking and printing photos for my friends and family.
Here are a few of my favorite past projects I used my wide format printer for–Record Frame Display, Patterned Photo Mats, countless scrapbooks and mini books.
Please feel free to ask any questions in the comments. I hope I did a good job of explaining the process, but I’m not a techie person, so if you’d like more information on any part of it, I am happy to chat with you more here! xx. Elsie
Credits// Author and Photography: Elsie Larson. Video and Music: Jeremy Larson. Photo edited with A Beautiful Mess Actions.
46 Comments
The Pro Luster paper is out of my budget. What is the next step down from that that you would suggest?
Yes! This is so helpful guys! This should up my scrap-booking game. Haha! Thank you so much. 🙂
http://annescribblesanddoodles.blogspot.com/
Hi Elsie! Thanks so much for doing this video! I have really been slacking on getting my photos into my messy book, but you have inspired me to work on it 🙂 I’m loving the grid & full size pages.. they make such a big (& cute) impact!
xoxo Chelsey
hipsterartteacher.com
Hey Elsie,
Thanks for sharing about your printer! My biggest issue with printing things at home is that I find the ink runs out really quickly. How do you find your The Canon PIXMA iP8720 Crafting Printer is on ink? How often would you say that you have to replace/refill the cartridges?
Cheers!
____
Amanda.
I have a Canon printer as well, and of all the printers I’ve owned, it’s the easiest to use. This is a really good tip, thank you for sharing!
Hi just wondering if you have presets when you are cropping your photos to specific sizes, as you do in the video? If so how do you create and save those to make it easier when cropping to specific sizes?
Thanks!
Hi. Thanx for the useful video!
I have a couple of questions if you could reply:
– why do you like matte prints the most? They look better inside of the page protector?
– does your printer require regular mantainance? Do papers get stuck? Or some parts must be changed every once in a while (except from ink of course) ?
Thanx a lot! It was very practical!
Hey Ella!
So, the larger sized paper is more expensive so the best budget tip I would say to make it last longer is to also have 8.5×11 paper and use that anytime you don’t need wide format! It’s really the size that makes it cost more, not the type/quality. 🙂
xx! Elsie
ps- Check Amazon too!
Awesome Anne! I’m so happy it was helpful!
xx- Elsie
Thanks Chelsey! I really appreciate that. So happy you’re feeling inspired!
xx- Elsie
I replace cartridges (single ones, not them all) a couple times a month. I use it several times a week. I do have to remember to be stocked up on ink, but I find that the convenience of being able to print whatever/whenever is worth the effort!
xx- Elsie
Glad you love yours! And I totally, honestly agree. 😀
-Elsie
No, I just change the sizes in the crop bar in the top of photoshop. It’s not bad!
xx- Elsie
Hi!
I like matte paper because it’s better to write on with a pen, or stamp on. I also like that it doesn’t get smudges and fingerprints as easily!
My printer is pretty low maintenance, but when I am first setting it up I always have to enlist a little help (Canon has really good support, though, so that’s helpful!) Honestly, it’s SUPER low maintenance in everyday life. I use it all the time and I almost never have an issue.
xx! Elsie
Good thing about the 30 day free trial! Photoshop is sure confusing though!
Hey Rose!
I totally felt that way when I first started, but it’s gets easier FAST! 🙂
xx- Elsie
Thanks for the video, Elsie! It was really helpful and it’s always great to hear your voice 🙂
Side note – I just checked on Amazon and the Pro Luster paper is only $35 for 50 sheets! That’s a huge improvement from $100!
I don’t know how Amazon does it!
xx!
What an incredibly useful (and well done) tutorial! Thanks you! I am a Messy Box / Messy Book enthusiast and have been DYING to fill those pockets like a pro! Thanks again! hil
Elsie,
This has been the tutorial I have been looking forward to seeing. I haven’t played with photoshop in really long time so I was feeling intimidated, but I feel like I got this. Now I can print out my vacation pics and fill up my messy book.
thanks,
jessica
I have a wide format canon pixma and I feel like I’m always fiddling with the color and the ink runs out super fast. How much maintanence do you have to do? Ie, updating the printing software, testing inks etc. I might just have a finicky printer.
Sorry Elsie – you 100% answered my question. I think my Canon Pixma Mark ii may have a. Been a dud or b. wasn’t set up properly. I’m inspired to do some more digging.
Elsie,
hello! I LOVE the “God is Love” picture you took!!!!!!!!
-Mia
Thanks for the video I am sure it will come in handy.
Hi Elsie, Thanks for the awesome tutorial. I am in the hunt for a new printer so I can do more at home printing rather then sending them off. 🙂 Also where did you get the scrapbook albums that you had in the video? They are super cute!
Thanks,
Mary
Thank you for the tips! This is so helpful
– Vicky T.
https://vickysscrapbook.wordpress.com/
Thank you! This is such a cool video 🙂 That’s such a great tip for the full size grid page. I was just wondering,
what are some of the advantages of using photoshop over various photo editing apps?
Thanks Elsie!! Like Ella I was also a little scared with the price, but the 8.5×11 is totally affordable to try! Also I have realized there is a buy 1 get 2 free until the end of month, that makes things easier for US peeps 🙂 Since I’m in Europe I’m going with your second advice, I’ll check Amazon 😉
Thank you, thank you, thank you! This was so useful. Think I need to upgrade my printer though!
Such a beautiful article Emma, thank you for sharing the instruction. I followed your blog weekly and there is no doubt anyone loves you.
Hi Elsie!
I shoot with Nikon and I love it! Have you heard anything about shooting Nikon and printing with the Canon printers?
Love this tutorial! Thank you for sharing!!
I was wondering if the Canon photo printers that you have recommended also print regular paper documents as well (I’m a student and that would come in handy), thanks!
Jessika
This is definitely a useful & timely tip! I’ll be referring to this video until I get the hang of it. Thanks Elsie 🙂
Happy Friday
http://www.lovecompassionatelee.com/thinkoutloud
Really enjoyed the video & am inspired for not just scrapbooks but other crafts too. Got lots of wedding & honeymoon pictures to put to use. Thanks for the schooling! =)
I heart your tshirt. Where is it from??
Love it and it seems super doable. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for this great video! I was wondering if you used a specific version of Photoshop for your pics. I currently am in the market for an easy to use program. And the one you were using in the video look pretty simple.
Hey Elsie! The video you made was great and very informative. Thanks for sharing your tips with us. I’m a junior graphic designer and would love to share some of my knowledge as well. During the document setup the color mode was set to RGB which is great for web. When it comes to print CMYK is the best option. The colors will print truer to the hue you want this way. I hope this is a helpful tip and I love seeing all of the creations you come up with!
I’ve read some reviews on Canon’s website that says that the printer only comes with PC installation CD. How did you install? Have you found it difficult to set up on your Mac?
Hi Elsie,
Was wondering which version of photoshop you’re using? I had photoshop in college but have been out of the loop since then and have lost touch with all the new versions- and shopping for it online is too confusing!
Thanks,
Sivan
So helpful! I’ve been wanting a printer and it’s always nice to know why other people love theirs.
Thank you for sharing it I am really looking to get a large format printer to replace my old A4 pixma I cannot find this model in the UK do you know if it has a different number/code in Europe or if there is an equivalent wide format pixma you would recommend. I really prefer to go from a recommendation from you as I know quality is important to you.
Thank you in advance
Nicolette
Thanks so much for creating this video. It’s helpful to see that creating large prints for pocket pages isn’t as difficult I originally thought. Although I don’t have a wide format printer, I’m going to try printing my photos on paper that’s larger than 4×6 (what I’m using now). I haven’t had much success printing borderless photos on this paper. My photos are always cut off slightly. Seeing your video makes me think that printing on larger paper and cutting each photo out is the better way to go.
My wife just started a scrapbook of our relationship, and all the kind of things we do together. She has a few pictures that she wants to put in it, but she is having a hard time resizing them to fit. So thank you for talking about this, and giving me some tips on how to best resize pictures. I never thought that it would be so easy. I’ll make sure I show her this right away, so that we can begin taking more pictures.
Thanks for the great video. I have a wide format printer but it is SO difficult to use with my MAC!! Is the Canon compatible with Macs??
Thank you for the great video! It helped me a lot!
Now, the only problem I have is that my printer prints my pictures a little bit too small for my scrapbook pockets. I always used the correct size so I don´t know what I did wrong.