Digital BW, The Print

Martin wrote:

>The original Piezo/Sundance inks warm even if
> left in a box but is very paper dependent.


Antonis wrote:

>... I am not complaining about "fade" or "warming" overall,
>which we have learned to live with. ...

We should not have to live with warming.  I think is it just a sign of inks
that have not really made the grade.

Some fading seems inevitable at this point.  However, the best of the
inksets hold the warming to a minimum.  I'm sure the inksets will slowly get
so good that the fading issue will ultimately be so trivial that it is just
ignored.  However, for today, avoiding sun and glass -- better yet glass or
acrylic with UV absorption -- is the best bet.

Frankly, I use cheap acrylic and have MIS VM-S and FS-N quads on my
refrigerator door.  The main threat I see is physical damage, and one coat
(three passes) of a protective spray takes care of that.  (It does not
retard fading or warming, or otherwise affect the look of the image.)  The
photos on my refrigerator look great.

One other point regarding the PT-K and it's warming/fading -- the driver may
make a difference.  On the one hand, one advantage of a RIP is that one can
hold the black ink down to the darkest levels, thus hiding warming in the
depth of the shadows.  On the other hand, if the transition between the inks
is too abrupt -- not feathered appropriately -- the faster fade of the black
ink will cause a more sever cross-over and possibly posterization.  This
would be especially true if the transition took place too soon -- in too
light a tone.  So, how one manages the dark gray (mostly cyan-position ink)
to black transition is likely to make a difference with respect to how much
the warming/fading of the PT-K affects the image.

Paul
http://www.PaulRoark.com