A liquid supply mechanism includes: a supply pathway that supplies liquid to a plurality of ejection sections each ejecting the liquid from nozzles; a branching path that is branched off from the supply pathway and through which the liquid circulates; a buffer unit that is disposed in the branching path and that lessens pressure fluctuations occurred in the liquid in the branching path; and a changing unit that changes a pathway to the buffer unit so that the changing unit shuts the pathway to the buffer unit during maintenance for discharging the liquid from the nozzles of the ejection sections. The liquid discharged during the maintenance is greater in quantity than the liquid discharged during normal operation.