Digital BW, The Print

Derek  -
 
The Epsons - 2200, 7600, and 9600 - with the Imageprint rip use OEM (Ultrachrome) inks, and are very dependable.  The issue with them is two fold:  1. Cost, and 2. the permanence of the b&w prints due to the fact that b&w prints from the Ultrachrome inks set will contain inks other than black.  That affects permanence compared to most of the other inksets you see discussed here.  But, the results from the Imageprint and the Epson printers is wonderful, and when printed on cotton based, acid free papers, and given reasonable care, will last your lifetime.  Some of the other ink/paper combinations discussed here will probably last several lifetimes.
 
I've been printing with the Epson 9600 for almost a year now, and have never had a clog, or even a bad print nozzle check.  Others that I know that use the 2200 with the OEM Ultrachrome inks report similar performance.  I use Imageprint, but I doubt that the rip contributes to the lack of clogs.
 
I gave away my fairly extensive dark room, in total, to a local high school in June.  I printing mostly b&w, and I'm not looking back.  I expectr that most on this forum, even those experiencing some problems, don't have a real desire to go back to the wet, either.  It's great fun, and the results can be extremely high quality.  And, it seems to be getting better every day (or so).
 
Tom Baker

Derek Hamlet <derekhamlet@...> wrote:
I have been doing chemical B & W photography for many years.  Trying hard 
not to be a luddite I decided I needed to become open to digital 
concepts.  I remain open.  Digital cameras have reached a point where I can 
do most of the same kind of things I do with a traditional film 
camera.  The advantage no film processing.  Now we get to the nub of my 
dilemana.  I know I can make photoshop do magical things that will allow me 
to replicate the kind of techniques I do in a darkroom.  The problem for me 
seems to come at the printing stage.  I've been reading along with the many 
thoughtful and highly technical experiments that folks discuss here.  As 
near as I can understand what folks have experienced and what they are 
doing the consensus is: You cannot replicate a chemical darkroom with a 
traditional printer without tweaking many different aspects of inks, ink 
jets etc.  As I read deeper I hear folks talking a lot about trials using 
these inks that involve multiple cleaning of ink delivery jets.  If all of 
this is true, I just cannot see myself switching from chemical to digital 
at this time.
Am I reading things correctly?  I don't really enjoy mixing chemicals.  My 
joy comes when, as a result of chemical mixing and the magic of the 
projector I create something that hints at what I imagined.  Then I'm in 
heaven.
Cleaning printer heads just doesn't do it for me.
So I guess my question is:  Is there a stock off the shelf printer with 
stock off the shelf ink supply in nifty little plug in modules that will 
allow me to come close to duplicating my dark room work assuming that I've 
done a good job in the image capture and photoshop manipulation.
If the answer is no, I'm quite willing to go back to the dark room and wait.
Thanks for reading.


Derek Hamlet
Victoria, B.C.
592-8590  


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