1440 dpi on Epson 1200

[Morrie Gasser <morrie@thegassers.com>]

<x-flowed>Try as I might, I have not been able to detect any difference between 
720 dpi photo printing and 1440 dpi printing on my Epson 1200, except 
that 1440 takes a lot longer.  On an extremely sharply focussed 
photo, there's no difference to my eye and none visible to an 8x 
loupe.  Can anyone say why there should be any reason to use 1440 dpi?

Also, I tried to duplicate the sharpness of a photo made with a 
medium-format camera.  I have an 8x10 print which I scanned at 600 
dpi and printed on the Epson.  I used a pretty good scanner (Epson 
Expression 636). There is a definite decrease in sharpness between 
the original and the copy, visible to the eye.  It seems like medium 
format film and photo paper has the capability of recording higher 
resolution than the 1200 can print, so the printer doesn't quite 
replace the darkroom for exacting work.  Of course, I realize that 
scanning the negative is preferable to scanning the print, but when I 
can't even capture all the detail in the print, I don't see that 
scanning the negative would give me better resolution in the final 
output.

However, in my collection of 8x10s made with 35mm film and my old 
enlarger, I haven't been able to find a single print with sufficient 
detail to tax the 1200.  Modulo the possibility that I have an 
inferior lens on my 35mm camera or  enlarger, my conclusion is, if 
you're shooting 35mm and your goal is prints 8x10 or larger, the 1200 
is as good as the darkroom.  If you're shooting medium format, then 
you still can't beat conventional photographic materials with this 
printer.  I imagine 4x6 prints of 35mm film could be sharper on 
photographic paper than on the printer, but most people don't look at 
smaller prints with such a critical eye.
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