Digital BW, The Print

John,
Thanks for the great review.
Regarding Epson k2 inks with QTR, is this a custom create profile or 
standard?
SteveB 


--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "john dean" 
<deanwork2003@...> wrote:
>
> I have done the beta tests of Silver Rag along with many other 
people
> around here and here is a synopsis of what I found out.
> 
> I agree with the previous posters on this toppic Keith Johnson and
> Ellie Kennard (you can search these archives as well as the digital
> large format list for their comments), that it is a very interesing
> and innovative paper.
> 
> I actually liked it even better than I had thought I would and, my
> clients are already wanting me to do work for them on it. For me it 
is
> a huge step beyond rc. Like Keith, it is the kind of thing that 
makes
> me want to reprint past work with it. It is strikingly close to the
> old Agfacolor fiber based type c media that was abandoned after
> everything went rc. And, I always loved that surface and opulance.
> 
> 1. In tests on the Epson 2400 K3 machine, the black and white work 
was
> perfect using the ABM mode, very neutral, intense blacks, and no 
gloss
> differential or bronzing at all, none. The color gamut for a color
> tests was excellent. This inkset and this media is a perfect
> combination. This would be my first choice, definitely. Its a 
breeze.
> 
> 2. Much to my surprise the color tests with Ultrachrome K2 and the
> 9600 using PK and the Crane supplied SR profile was also really 
nice.
> By really nice I mean more of a brilliant expanded gamut than the 
same
> file printed on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag with a custom profile and much
> blacker blacks. I am not doing scientific measurements or dmax 
density
> plots but direct visual expriments. Of course the rc gloss papers 
with
> PK also give you a better gamut and dmax than matte rag media so 
this
> is no surprise.
> 
> As to gloss differential with the color 9600 prints it is almost
> invisible, it has the very very slight relief effect of a dye 
transfer
> print, you really have to look for it under strong light at a 
specific
> angle. I did a 16x20 without spraying it and it is gorgeous the way 
it
> is. With Premium Luster Epson I ALWAYS have to either spray or
> laminate the work because of the gloss and bronzing problems.
> 
> 3.What surprised me also was that I was able to do some nice black 
and
> white prints using QTR and the 9600 PK on the Silver Rag. But, only
> after spraying with Premier Art spray. When I first printed the 
print
> I was able to achieve a nice neutral print easily, with fantastic
> tonal range and dmax but the gloss differential and shadow bronzing
> was pretty major (like all the gloss papers printed this way). I 
tried
> spraying the monochrome prints with K2 with the Lascaux spray and it
> didn't change anything for me. But when I tried some using Premier 
Art
> the bronzing went away totally and the gloss differential fell in 
line
> with the color work, which is to say you have to look very very hard
> to see the relief image at all (like dye transfer prints). The print
> color with QTR is controlable enought to produce neutral, warm, and
> probably sepia work on it.
> 
> 4. Finally, I tested SR with the Piezo Tone K6 neutral inkset on my
> 7000. The image did stick with no rub off, the tonal range was
> outstanding even without any kind of curve made for this media, the
> color warm neutral, almost exactly like Portriga Rapid. However, the
> gloss differential and the bronzing in the maximum back areas was
> totally horrible. No spray helped. To be fair though this is a matte
> black in that inkset with heavy carbon content, and this paper was
> definitely designed for PK. Also with a rip and channel partitioning
> to control the amount of ink being laid down in the deepest blacks, 
it
> might be possible to use this inkset for it, but you would have to
> substitue somekind of photo black in there and who knows what that
> would do to the carefully worked out consistency of the neutral 
color.
> I'll leave that test to others. But if I were Inkjet Mall I would
> certainly be seriously considering this possibility because the
> combination would be awesome if possible. Apparently the Cone Quads
> don't stick at all and are not workable.
> 
> Now the texture. I like it fine. It is to me somewhere between an
> Epson Semi Gloss RC surface and the dye transfer color fiber paper
> mentioned before. Once flattened the prints lie flat for me, and 
curl
> on a roll the same way a gelatin silver paper would. Of course the 
rc
> glossy papers curl a lot too. With the prints that I sprayed with
> Premier Art spray this very slight texture is amost totally smoothed
> out, and then you really have a darkroom gelatin silver look, if 
that
> is important to you. This texture being a very slight luster, is not
> the kind of mechanical texture you get with Premium Luster or Type C
> luster which is run through a texture machine. It looks more natural
> to me.
> 
> We will have to work a few months with this media to explore it 
fully
> but so far I'm impressed and wish I had it 7 years ago. The only 
thing
> we don't know about this coating is its potential longevity. In 
order
> for me to start really cranking out tons of work with it I want to
> learn someting substantial in this regard. Lets hope Crane is 
working
> on that now.
> 
> John
>