Digital BW, The Print

Paul,
Is this pertinent to 1160 users (with the sepia>neutral inkset)? or 
do I stick with the curves I got from you some time back ?
thanks
Frank
> I have fine-tuned some of the curves for the 3000 (PC) for the first
> production sample of MIS VM-Sepia inks.  I'll send them to this 
forum and
> MIS for posting.
> 
> On the sepia end of the inkset's range, the standard VM-cool curve 
did not
> take full advantage of the sepia ink potential.  Thus I've made a 
curve that
> would be similar to the "cc" (cold-cold) curve that some have for 
the
> standard MIS VM inkset.  It simply ads more toner than the 
standard "cool"
> curve.  The sepia color is essentially the same as the samples that 
have
> been posted on this forum.
> 
> The name of the 3000 (PC) sepia curve is VM3kpS-Blf-V-Sepia.  The 
settings
> I'm using for this include Back Lit Film media, Vivid mode, and 
AdobeRGB
> (1998).
> 
> 
> On the neutral end of the VM-Sepia's tone range, I've made a new 
curve that
> fine-tunes the existing ones to deliver a neutral print.  For this, 
my
> target was the tone of my lightly-selenium-toned Kodak Polymax Fine 
Art
> fiber-based silver prints.  The silver-print mid-tones I read with 
the
> X-Rite spectrophotometer (densitometer) are very neutral with a 
slight bias
> to magenta and to "cool" (cyan density being equal to or slightly 
above the
> yellow density).  In the shadows, the tones get a bit cooler as 
they get
> deeper.
> 
> With the MIS VM-Sepia inkset the end points are set by the paper in 
the
> highlights and by the black ink in the deep shadows.
> 
> With EAM, the paper reads C=0.04, M=0.04, Y=0.02 (or 0.02 units 
cool, with a
> magenta bias). So, the highlights are going to be slightly cool.  
(Note that
> an aged EAM with it's brighteners burned-out has a reading of 
C=0.04,
> M=0.04, Y=0.05 -- slightly warm.  But note also that my silver 
print also
> yellowed slightly after only 100 hours in my fader.  Longer term 
tests of
> silver prints are waiting until I get around to making comparable 
21-step
> test prints.  Now I just have to take similar readings off actual 
prints.)
> 
> The MIS VM black is typically 0.03 units warm (yellow density more 
than cyan
> density).  This is the major deviation from my selenium-toned 
silver prints.
> 
> So, with the end points defined by the paper and black ink, here is 
what
> I've been able to get as a "neutral" MIS VM-Sepia print.
> 
> Like the paper white, the 5% patch is 0.02 units cool; the 10% - 
25% patches
> are 0.01 units cool.  The 25% reading is C=0.29, 0.29, 0.28.  
(Compare the
> silver print reading of C=0.33, M=0.33, Y=0.32.)
> 
> From 30% to 70% the test patches are neutral, with cyan = magenta = 
yellow.
> In some readings the slight magenta bias shows up, but it is mostly 
beyond
> the X-Rite's accuracy to consistently read the bias.  At 50% the 
readings
> are C=0.61, M=0.61, Y=0.61.  (Compare this to a similar reading of 
my toned
> silver print: C=0.58, M=0.58, Y=0.58.)
> 
> At about 75% the roll-off to the slightly warm black starts 
slowly.  The 80%
> & 85% patches are 0.01 units warm, 90% & 95% are 0.02 units warm, 
and 100%
> is typically 0.03 units warm.
> 
> The curve that I wrote that achieved the above is called VM3kpS-Blf-
V-N.  It
> is closer to the standard VM "medium-warm" (MW) curve than to 
the "warm" (w)
> curve.  The gray ink in the system is the same as the FS-N ink, 
which should
> be re-named the FS-cool ink.  The production FS-N is actually 0.03 
units
> cool at the 50% patch.  With the typical VM "warm" curve the cross-
over from
> the slightly cool midtones to the slightly warm deep shadows is too 
abrupt
> for my tastes.  Between the warm black ink and the sepia toner, I 
was seeing
> the cross-over in test strips from the 3000 (though not so much 
with the
> 1160 -- every printer type may be different).
> 
> With the VM-Sepia "neutral" curve for the 3000, my goal was to 
match my
> silver prints as much as can be done with the inks that are 
available.  The
> surface differences are the main visual differences, but those 
disappear
> when the matte paper is put under glass.  The deep shadow tones are
> different, but they are essentially hidden by the darkness of the 
tones.
> So, overall, I think the match is quite good.
> 
> Paul
> http://www.PaulRoark.com