Digital BW, The Print

Thanks for the great information, Martin.  It really helps to give me 
an idea where I'll stand in relation to wet darkroom work.  Overall, 
I'm beginning to get the impression that I'll be quite satisfied by 
inkjet printing as long as I'm willing to accept it as its own 
medium.  Of course, only looking at prints and doing my own 
experimentation will tell (neither of which I've done yet), but I 
mainly just wanted to get a sense of where B&W inkjet printing was at 
before making the commitment myself.  I had given some thought to the 
other options you outlined, but quickly realized that inkjet printing 
would be just the workflow I'd dreamed of, so long as I was 
comfortable with the results.  I think it's safe to say that I've 
received enough assurances and am ready to commit.

Thanks again,

Mike


--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Martin Wesley" 
<mwesley250@e...> wrote:
> Mike,
> 
> Just to give you a reference point I did some Dmax testing on 
silver fiber
> paper in 1992. I used a 4x5, 21-step Stouffer step wedge negative 
to make
> 8x10 enlargements on Kodak Elite #2, Ilford Gallerie #2, #3 & VC, 
Zone VI
> VC, and Oriental VC. Some were selenium toned and some were not. 
All were
> air dried. At the time I measured the density across the steps 
using a
> MacBeth densitometer and I have rechecked the measurements recently 
with a
> X-Rite 811 Densitometer.
> 
> Without selenium toning the silver prints have a Dmax of 1.9 to 2.0 
and with
> selenium toning the Dmax is 2.1 to 2.3. Above 2.0 the difference is 
very,
> very slight and above 2.1 I cannot visually see a difference 
myself. I would
> suspect that glossy RC silver paper would be a bit higher.
> 
> With inkjet printing you can get to the 1.9 - 2.0 range but only 
with dye
> containing inks on RC paper. The results are great but you have to 
like RC
> papers and be willing to accept the limited print life of the dyes. 
The
> other alternative is to use carbon pigment inks on matte papers 
which will
> give you Dmax values in the 1.5 to 1.7 range. This is probably 
comparable to
> what you would get with matte silver fiber prints and a stronger 
Dmax than
> you get from platinum/palladium prints.
> 
> My best advice is to approach inkjet B&W printing as a new medium 
and don't
> try to compare it to silver printing. They are both great but 
different and
> each has its own look. Like Paul I have come to really like the 
quality of
> the inkjet prints on quality matte paper.
> 
> If you want silver fiber prints from digital files this can be done 
by
> making a digitally produced contact negative for use in the 
darkroom. The
> examples I have are indistinguishable from traditional silver fiber
> enlargements. Unfortunately you will not find much info on these 
techniques
> on this forum but if you are interested in making contact negs 
check out:
> 
> http://www.danburkholder.com/
> 
> There are laser printers that print digital images directly to RC 
color
> paper or silver fiber paper. Unfortunately the silver fiber version 
is only
> available in Europe and the equipment is intended for a service 
bureau or
> photo lab with prices in 6 figures. You can also have your digital 
files
> output on a film recorder to produce a negative to use in an 
enlarger. Going
> digital does not necessarily mean going with inkjet but it is the 
most
> popular path due to the affordability of the equipment.
> 
> Martin Wesley
> http://www.carolyn.cc/Guests/MartinWesley/pages/MW_01.html
> http://www.borderless-photos.de/guests.html
> 
>  
> * -----Original Message-----
> * From: Mike [mailto:mfractl@h...] 
> * Sent: Tuesday, October 21, 2003 7:37 PM
> * To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
> * Subject: [Digital BW] First post here, DMax question
> * 
> * 
> * 
> * First off, this is the first time I've posted here, so hello to 
> * everyone.  I'm just, finally, making the switch from film to 
digital, 
> * and an unexpected by-product of this shift is that I'm 
rediscovering 
> * my love of B&W in the digital domain.  This certainly seems to be 
a 
> * great group for me to check out, and I assure you all that I'll 
be 
> * doing a number of searches through the archives to pick up tips, 
so 
> * I'll attempt to avoid asking at least some of the questions that 
have 
> * been asked numerous times before.  Nonetheless, there's one 
question 
> * on my mind at the moment, and I thought I'd throw it out.
> * 
> * I've been reading the news about the upcoming Epson 4000, and 
I've 
> * read that it's supposed to acheive a DMax of 2.1 on glossy media 
and 
> * 1.69 on matte media.  Though I'm no expert on this subject yet, 
I've 
> * read that the 2200/7600/9600, with the Ultrachromes, acheive a 
DMax 
> * of 2.0 on glossy media and 1.69 on matte.  Obviously, this 
suggests a 
> * higher DMax on glossy for the 4000.  And, considering that my 
> * upcoming foray into digital B&W will involve a search for the 
best 
> * DMax, I find this interesting.  (Though I don't know how a 
printer 
> * using the same inks/media is supposed to acheive a higher DMax on 
> * glossy media... maybe by mixing some Matte Black in with the 
Photo 
> * Black, since both inks will be available at once?)
> * 
> (snip earlier)