Digital BW, The Print

Ross,
Great to hear from you and thanks for the kind words. I have recently 
purchased an Epson 2200 with The MIS UT7 Inks. At first all of my prints were lacking 
punch. They were real close but just needed some punch. The trick for me was 
to use an unsharp mask setting that adds some punch to the image without 
actually sharpening the image. I still sharpen the image. Here's my workflow:
I start out by selecting the midtones (select/Color Range) and instead of 
sample colors, I choose the midtones. I then feather the selection about 5 
pixels. Then I choose the unsharp mask. The settings are: Amount 20 Radius 60 
Threshold 0. I then go back to Color Range and select the shadows, feather the 
selection 5 pixels and apply the same unsharp mask settings (20/60/0). I started 
out applying these settings to the whole image, but I didn't like what it did to 
the highlights. I then make a Levels or curves adjustment layer. This 
technique has made my prints come to life. Sometimes I will make a selection of an 
area that could use some more punch and apply the unsharp mask settings (I call 
it defog) to just that local area. The prints are exceptional. What I like 
most about this printer setup is the many different image tones that can be 
achieved. Paul's curves allow three different sepia tones (some of the best sepia I 
have seen) as well as dead neutral, cool, and what he calls Carbon. I like 
them all. An Inkjet printer with a continuous ink system is not for everybody. 
But I've never had so much fun utilizing all the tweeks that are capable with 
this system. I apologize for the long post, but The last thing I want to say is 
I belong to a lot of forums, but this one is by far the best. Thanks to 
everyone who contributes.

Steve Burger 


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