Digital BW, The Print

Tyler Boley wrote:

>--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Clayton Jones" <cj@c...> wrote:
>snip...
>  
>
>>Are they more opaque than other pigment sets?  I think of opaqueness
>>as being caused by full coverage of the paper, where BO get's it
>>luminance/translucence from allowing bare paper to show...are you
>>thinking of something different?
>>    
>>
>
>No, we're talking about the same thing, and it's an interesting issue to me. I think the whole 
>concept of multiple density K inks and partitioning them to their apropriate part of the tonal 
>scale is pretty much the antithesis of what you like about BO printing <G>.
>Yes, a LOT of covereage. The more partitions and inks you add, the higher the dot count 
>everywhere, in all parts of the scale.
>So, if we allow the probablity of coverage or the lack of it being responsible for the 
>luminousity you prefer in BO prints, then K7, with more coverage than ever before, may just 
>be the least interesting development in mono inkjet printing for you yet!
>I think it will be very interesting to hear what you think of how they look.
>Tyler
>
>  
>
If the grey inks are diluted versions of the black ink then the amount 
of pigment per greyscale step shouldn't be higher than the same 
greyscale step has in a 3 or 4 grey B&W inkset. The dot distribution 
will reach 50% area coverage per ink sooner in the K7 inkset but detail 
loss due to bleeding will limit total coverage per ink as well. The 
coverage of print area per head is hardcoded and more nozzles (per head, 
or more heads) will contribute more to even coverage than having bigger 
dots. I have been quite skeptical about the quality gain when this 
inkset was announced. This is based on intuition and without any 
experience of the K7 inkset or having seen samples of the process. 
Nevertheless.

There's a wide variety of tone reproduction methods possible between 
continuous tone and halftone like the older printing processes have 
shown. Collotype, woodbury type at one end of the scale, plain halftone 
printing at the other end of the scale. All of them having their own 
characteristics. I doubt whether the K7 method is better in consistency 
from day to day. Collotype and screenless offset printing were/are 
difficult processes to control, I fear it will not be different with an 
inkjet type continuous tone printing and why seek that theoretical 
continuity when droplet sizes are so small already. If I had to print 
with 7 grey inks I would probably select two ranges of grey inks ( 4+3) 
that overlap one another. More nozzles to disguise the inconsistencies 
of the heads and the partition points in the 4 grey inkset falling at 
other places along the curve than those of the 3 grey inkset. The 
weaving and dithering of the printer taking care of good coverage. I 
would expect a quality improvement and more consistency to both quad and 
K7 insets but nothing dramatically better. QTR would drive this double 
range nicely. Another set could have 2 and 5 grey ink ranges but with 
the objective to have a gradual choice between a (semi) BO and extended 
quad. A multigrade quad. The new range of Epsons with 180 nozzles a 
head, improved weaving, nice droplet size ranges, better consistency  by 
firmware linearisation and again higher resolution will make it hard to 
get better results from K4,5,6,7 inksets.

Neutrality has been discussed already. There will be a standard for 
neutrality otherwise no ICC profiling could exist. Like with Munsell's 
color scales it is based on panels of viewers and the mean or average 
number computed of many subjective choices. That's an excellent way of 
getting a standard and it also says something about the limits of 
standards. Age, gender, taste, physical and emotional condition, 
cultural background, lighting conditions, environment, etc will color 
that neutrality to the subjective viewer again.

BTW, I think we call Clayton's luminosity in BO printing just "graphic" 
over here. Referring to the black only printing of woodcuts, linocuts up 
to conventional raster screening in autotype or offset. Gaining more 
"graphic" quality if the dots are more dense, coarser and the paper 
whiter. This may look like a simple method of printing but its looks you 
learn to appreciate more and more in the graphic arts, probably in 
contrast to the ever improving resolution and color gamut of the newer 
systems. Even with the almost invisible dot sizes of the latest Epson 
printers BO can still have that "graphic" quality.

Ernst