first thing to do is to check if your print heads are clogged or need cleaning. run the utilities, print the test pattern, and make sure everything is working correctly. I'm betting this is a much more likely culprit than printer settings and paper type.

Definitely run the head cleaner and if that does not solve it, do a deep clean. Make sure that matte photo paper is selected as well as your paper type. I also set mine to manual color then set to light. Otherwise it always looks a bit too dark on my Canon.