Digital BW, The Print

Nathan,

I'm not an expert in inkjet negatives, but a few comments might be helpful.

> 
> My problem is essentially a printer driver issue.  I am using an Epson
> Ultrachrome Pro
> Stylus 7600 with the MIS Eboni inkset.

Which inkset?  You don't want to use Eboni on a glossy substrate.


>  ... the "Gimp" driver that came with my OSX operating system.  For all it
> offers, it offers no
> means of definitively turning off "color management" ---which is
> apparently essential to
> producing consistantly good digital negatives.

Assuming it is the same as "Color Controls" in the Epson driver, the "color"
densities will be lighter than with "No Color Adjustment" checked.   With
the Epson driver there is no difference in the black dmax between "Color
Controls" and "No Color Adjustment."

>  ---I packed up my enlarger weeks ago, hopefully, for good.

When I did that, my interest in digital internegatives took a nose dive.

> 
> So, the problem is, in rendering a digital negative (as per Mark Nelson's
> PDN system) the
> first objective is to get enough ink on the substrate (in my case
> Pictorico OHP for printing
> on Azo Grade 3) to achieve paper white at standard exposure.

I found tiny scratches hard to avoid on the OHP substrate.  The white film
can also be used for an internegative if UV light is not needed.  (The white
is opaque to UV light.)  The white film is said to act like a diffusion
enlarger and help eliminate the problems with the small scratches.



> Are there other drivers available out there that provide a
> better alternative to the Gimp or the Standard Epson drivers for this
> purpose?  Any means
> known to any of you for getting more ink down on the substrate?

I assume either QTR or IJC support the 7000.  With those you can crank up
the ink limits until ink is literally running off the substrate.

Good luck.

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com