Printer options unavailable when...

Hi all,

I have a problem with the interface between Lightroom 2 (version 2.4, running in 64-bit mode on my Intel Apple Mac with Mac OS X 10.5.8 (Leopard)) and my printer driver, an Epson Stylus Photo R800.?I can see looking through the forum that there have been a lot of printer-related issues, but none as far as I can see which seem to cover my particular issue.

In Lightroom's Print module, after setting everything up, selecting the correct ICC profile for the printer/paper etc. I click on the 'Print...' button at the bottom of the right panel to launch the printer dialogue.?My problem is that the crucial options I need access to in this printer dialogue, namely 'Print Setting' (to set media type and print quality) and 'Color Management', (to turn off printer colour management) - are disabled.?To be exact, these options have a line through them as if they were crossed out.?'Print Option' and 'Extension Setting' are similarly disabled, whereas 'Layout', 'Paper Handling', 'Cover Page' and Scheduler' are all available.?(See attached JPEG screenshot.)

If I try to select one of the unavailable options such as 'Color Management' I see the following error message on screen:

''The bundle 'Color Management' could not be loaded because it does not contain a version for the current architecture.?Contact the bundle's creator here for the latest version: Color Management 3.09, Copyright (C) SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION 2001-2005. All rights reserved.''

The strange thing is, if I print from Photoshop CS3, there is no such problem: 'Print Setting' and 'Color Management' are not disabled, and I can make the settings I want.

The colour of the prints coming off the printer are way off if I print from Lightroom, whereas from Photoshop, they are great - I assume because of the above problem (I cannot turn off printer colour management in Lightroom, whereas I can in Photoshop).

I am assuming it is some problem in the interface between Lightroom 2 and my printer driver, but I find it strange I don't have the same problem in Photoshop.

I have re-installed the latest printer driver downloaded from Epson's site many times, following Epson's instructions to the letter to delete old drivers from my machine, all to no avail.?

I would really like to print from Lightroom rather than Photoshop, as I really like the simplicity of the Lightroom Print module.?Can anyone throw any light on this??Any help or ideas gratefully received!

Thanks

Ian

Printer options unavailable when...

You need a 64-bit version of yoru printer driver. Might need to poke around

on the Epson USA web site to find it, or possibly explore other Epson

support sites around the world (e.g., Epson UK, or Epson Australia) to see

if they have a 64-bit version of the R800 driver. If not, then you'll have

to run LR in 32-bit mode.

My

problem is that the crucial options I need access to in this printer dialogue,

namely 'Print Setting' (to set media type and print quality) and 'Color

Management', (to turn off printer colour management) - are disabled.?/p>

Printer options unavailable when...

Thanks for the helpful and very fast reply - that solved my problem.

Unfortunately, Epson have told me that there is no 64-bit driver available for this printer.?Time to buy a new printer!

Just save a printer/driver preset from any 32-bit app. Then apply that preset when you printing from LR running as a 64-bit app. It is only the interface that is the problem. It should print fine, at least it does with Canon printers.

Was DYP, thank you for that suggestion - it works, and I can now print fine running Lightroom 2 in 64-bit mode.

Incidentally, I have just realised that am a little confused by the discussion here about 32-bit/64-bit printer drivers vs. the option in the Lightroom 2 Print module to select 16-bit rather than 8-bit output.?Is the 8-bit/16-bit output selection in Lightroom 2 something separate from the 32-bit/64-bit printer driver issue? (I assume it is.)?If so, would someone kindly explain it to me?

My present understanding is that Lightroom's 16-bit output option in the Print module gives expanded dynamic range (i.e. finer gradations in tone, colour etc.) on printers which support 16-bit printing.?That makes sense to me, as I understand that more bits means more data can be stored, which in turn means more tone and colour detail can be transmitted to the printer.?I am aware that my older Epson Stylus Photo R800 does not offer 16-bit printing, so I am unable to take advantage of this, and am forced to print in standard 8-bit output from Lightroom's Print module. I also understand that Lightroom 2 is an application that is able to be run in 64-bit mode, as opposed to 32-bit mode, which I believe delivers better application performance assuming there is sufficient RAM available in the machine.?But where does the 32-bit/64-bit printer driver come in to it?

Thanks for any enlightenment anyone is able to offer.

Ian

... Is it that the printer driver needs to be 64-bit to 'mesh' with a 64-bit application, but the printer is capable of handling data encoded as either 8-bit or 16-bit?

The printer driver must be 64 bit to work with a 64 bit aplication. This has no baring on the image bit size. Some printers claim to be able to benefit from 16 bit image files (I have seen no evidence that it actually makes any difference so am very cynical about these claims). However if your printer manufacturer makes this claim for their printer then send the 16 bit version of the file as it will contain more subtle colour graduations (no wider gamut).

ambienttroutmask wrote:

The printer driver must be 64 bit to work with a 64 bit aplication.

My present understanding is that Lightroom's 16-bit output option in the Print module gives expanded dynamic range (i.e. finer gradations in tone, colour etc.) on printers which support 16-bit printing.?

Thanks for your response, Jao.

I think I've got it now.?To borrow an analogy from Bruce Fraser:

height of staircase (dynamic range of print) = number of steps (bit depth)?x?height of each step (gradation size)

So if dynamic range is constant, the 16-bit output must theoretically gives finer gradations. (Although you make the point that you probably won't see a difference in practice.)

Your reply threw up one other question for me.?You stated:

''In Lightroom there might be a conceivable difference if you print with letting the printer manage color. In that case Lightroom sends the file in prophotoRGB''

I thought ProPhoto RGB was the default colour space for Lightroom.?In what colour space does Lighrtroom send the file to the printer if you do not let the printer manage colour??(I understand that you can stipulate which colour space a tiff or psd file is sent to e.g. Photoshop or another external application in Lightroom Preferences.)

height of staircase (dynamic range of print) = number of steps (bit depth)?x?height of each step (gradation size)

Jao,

Thanks very much for the comprehensive and helpful answer.

Ian