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FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

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What is a printer profile? 

A profile is a file that describes how a given printer / ink / paper combination combine to accurately display colors. Today's inkjet printers ship with profiles for their inks and that manufacturer's popular papers however these included profiles are of varying quality and accuracy. Profiles are usually installed automatically when you install the printer driver and you can use those or have a custom profile made for you by a 3rd party or buy a spectrophotometer (often several thousand dollars) to create your own.

 

Profiles have either an .ICC or .ICM extension, (depending on whether they are for a PC or a Mac), and you can easily find them on your computer by searching for files with either of those extensions.


Does Finestra Art offer printer profiles for their papers?

Yes we have profiles available for many of today's most popular professional printers. You can find them under the Products tab under Epson/Canon compatibility. We find that most of our customers get the results they are looking for using their printer manufacturer included profiles and our recommended settings below.

What print setting should I pick if not using a custom printer profile?

Paper Compatible Inks Recommended Black Ink Recommended Driver Setting
Premium Glossy Pigment & Dye Photo Black  Premium Luster
Premium Luster Pigment & Dye Photo Black  Premium Luster
Premium Pearl Pigment & Dye Photo Black Premium Luster
Smooth Fine Art Pigment & Dye Matte Black  Ultra Smooth Fine Art
Smooth Fine Art Museum Grade Pigment & Dye Matte Black  Ultra Smooth Fine Art
Metallic Gold/Silver Pigment & Dye Photo Black  Premium Luster
Decor Wall Art Pigment & Dye Matte Black  Premium Luster


 

Can I make my own printer profiles?

Yes you may but doing so requires a hardware spectrophotometer. We recommend products by X-Rite such as the i1 Photo Pro or the ColorMunki Design. Other manufacturers make systems as well and most are fine, however we do not recommend ANY products that ask you to make a subjective decision about color as everyone sees color different and the only way to get good results is with hardware calibrating to a known state.

         If you do not see your printer listed below, please visit the following link to see if the profile that you need is available for purchase. Please note that we are not affiliated with this website and do not take any responsibility for the profiles or other products that you purchase from them. Cheers and happy printing.

         https://www.color-management-guide.com/icc-profiles.html.

Why am I seeing streaking or ink across my image?

Finestra Art's papers are premium products that are thick professional products. Many printers default to standard platten gap thickness and if thick paper is not chosen in your print driver, then the print had can come in contact with the paper causing quality issues. If you experience this, please refer to your printer manual on how to adjust the platten gap or/and paper thickness. Most drivers allow you to save a thick paper setting as a default. If you are unable to locate your printer manual, most can be found online as a pdf with a quick internet search.

Why are there thin white lines in my printed image?

Should you ever experience thin white lines in a printed image or colors that seem very off, then you likely have a clogged ink nozzle on your printer. Check your printer's manual for information on running a nozzle check pattern, and if necessary run a nozzle cleaning. All information on how to do this can be found in your printer manual. *hint - The best way to keep inkjet printers in great working condition is to use them regularly. Most people find that using a printer on at minimum a weekly basis keeps ink nozzles from drying and prevents clogs. 


What is a RIP?

RIP stands for Raster Image Processor and they are used to produce a raster image (aka: bitmap) from high level page description languages such as PostScript, PDF and XPS. RIPs can be software or hardware and in many cases a RIP can improve the quality of printed output for photographic images vs. sending an image to print without a RIP. Another advantage to many RIPs is that they come with profiles for all popular media/printer combinations. The advantage of this is getting a high quality profile for any paper you are likely to ever want to use without having to generate or pay for custom profiles.


What RIP does Finestra Art Recommend?

Our favorite RIP is ImagePrint from Colorbyte Software.


What is Finestra's shipping and return policy?

Terms & Conditions: Finestra Art ships all in-stock orders within 24 hours of ordering. Orders received after 3:30pm Pacific Standard Time are shipped the next business day. We ship throughout the United States and Canada.

Ground shipping is provided free of charge within the continental United States on orders over $55. All other orders within the continental United States are subject to a shipping charge of up to $9. Orders to Canada and outside of the Continental United States are charged by location. We ship from Irvine, California and delivery times are 1-2 days for West Coast, 2-4 days for Mid-West and 5-6 days for East Coast.

All sales are final after checkout however we will happily replace any defective item with like product or a refund. Non-defective returns may incur a 20% restocking fee. Should you need to contact us please email us at support@finestraart.com and provide as much info about what you are requesting and your customer info and we will address your needs promptly. You can also call us toll free at 800-347-1202. We are not a store-front but we do have will call available: Think CP DBA Finestra Art 16812 Hale Avenue • Irvine, CA 92606. We thank you for your business and if there's anything we can do to give you a better experience, please let us know.