> Can’t print on glossy paper

After following the manufacturer’s setup instructions and installing its software, my Epson ET–4850 printer doesn’t want to print photos on glossy paper. It works fine using the plain paper setting, but trying to change that fails. Is the printer faulty, or the software?

In the great majority of cases, if a printer supports AirPrint, you’re better off installing it through macOS than using the manufacturer’s own driver software. If you’ve already installed Epson’s software, you should first shut the printer down, disconnect it, and remove that using the uninstaller provided with it. Then open the System Preferences > Printers & Scanners pane; if your printer is already listed there, select it and click the ‘–’ to remove it.

When that’s complete, restart your Mac with the printer still disconnected. Once your Mac is up and running fully, and with an internet connection, connect the printer, turn it on, and once it has initialized open the Printers & Scanners pane again. Now click the ‘+’ to add your printer back, following the steps there to set it up fully. You may find that macOS has to download some additional software for this, which should happen automatically when required.

To make it easier to switch between printer and paper settings in the Page Setup and Print dialogs, once you’ve found suitable settings, save them as a Preset within the dialog.

Only if you’re unhappy with the features available from the standard macOS AirPrint driver should you try installing Epson’s drivers. Before you do that, you’ll need to remove the printer from the Printers & Scanners pane.

It’s much quicker to print if you build yourself presets for all the print settings you’re likely to use.