Ilford's Galerie line of inkjet model is popular with a growing number of imaging professionals. But, according to Ilford's Brian Zimmer, Galerie users tended to ask for two things: 1) an easy way to get more predictable results without losing a lot of media to trial and error; and 2) wide-format rolls. Ilford has recently responded to both of these requests.
Custom Printer Drivers: To achieve more predictable results on a variety of popular desktop inkjets, Ilford is the first media manufacturer to furnish custom printer drivers along with its media. The software, known as Galerie Professional Printer Drivers, is available for printers from Canon (S830D, S900, and S9000 models), Hewlett-Packard (990, 1220, 7150, and 7350 models), and Epson (890, 895, 950, 1290, and 2200).
After the software has been loaded into the computer and Ilford Galerie media has been loaded in the printer, the user sends the image to a printing device labeled as the Ilford Galerie Printer and clicks on the icon of the selected media type. Because each printer driver and setting has been will customized for each Ilford Galerie media, the system should automatically yield a better-quality print.
The Galerie print drivers also provide information about print status (e.g., how far along the print is and how much ink remains in the cartridges.) And, it's not necessary to open any image-editing software to print the file. Users can simply drag-and-drop files ready to be printed onto a desktop icon on the printer driver and the file will print.
Wide-Format Rolls: Initially introduced in sheet form for desktop inkjets, Ilford's two smooth, resin-coated photobase papers (Smooth Gloss and Smooth Pearl) are now available in 24-, 36-, and 44-in. wide rolls. The papers feature microporous coatings for instantly dry prints with either dye or pigmented inks. (Ilford: www.ilford.com)