Digital BW, The Print

I should keep my mouth shut because I'm not real up on create icc, but
I think BPC is built in so is always on? The other options like paper
white can be used at will depending on what is most useful at the
time. I think it's washing out your blacks because "black ink"
automatically comes on with it by default. I find it bears more
resemblence to the print on than off, but the initial shock when
turning it on is difficult. Turn away when switching it on, and come
back a minute later, it'll look more acceptable.
Regarding which output to profile, Ernst's post was most revealing.
Despite my arguement earlier than in a hypothetical sense profiling
will equalize out various initial settings or linearizations, it's
best to find a setting that prints as closely as possible "same as
source" as it will when printing with a profile. The first reason is
that it minimizes potential tonal loss. Secondly, the less work the
profile conversion has to do, the better job it will do. Lastly, it
sounds like CreateICC has trouble with reversals, so at the least your
output should progress from light to dark even if gamma is off, as you
suggest. Regarding other problem papers, you might want to play with
media settings as well.
T

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "wwodets"
<odets@c...> wrote:
>
> How are people using the Soft Proof with the Create ICC profiles?  I 
> find that (using 2.3.2) checking BPC makes no difference in the 
> appearance of the image on screen, but that selecting simulate paper 
> white washes out the black unrealistically, *particularly in prints 
> with large shadow areas.*  In high key or largely mid key images, 
> however, the BPC and simulating paper white actually improves the 
> accuracy of the preview.  So I find that the settings have to be 
> changed (particularly simulate paper white) depending on the image.
> 
> On a related issue:  Steve's last post (or was it Tyler's?) suggests 
> to me that for those profiling ABW output, what we should be 
> profiling is the "light" output which is natively much more linear 
> that the "darker," at least in the shadows.  The gamma shift on 
> the "light" setting should be taken care of by the profile.  I'm 
> going to give that a shot re the black compression issue that Paul 
> and others have been talking about.  I am hoping it will also take 
> care of some of the shadow "reversals" I have seen with non-Epson 
> papers.  V. 2.3.2 will not accept any reversals or even flat spots 
> (identical consecutive numbers), but refuses to make a profile with 
> the message: "LAB data not in order).
> 
> Walt
>