Digital BW, The Print

How does the K3 mk compare to eboni?Could someone coming from MIS
ultratone inks on an older Epson be happy with the K3 inks on a newer
x800 printer?

Chris


--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Clayton Jones"
<cj@...> wrote:
>
> Hello Patrick,
> 
> >Are the new Epson printers using the K3 inks that much better then
> >the SP2200 for instance? 
> 
> Yes and no.  As Richard has mentioned, there are many combinations of
> inks, RIPs and workflows that can produce very fine results with the
> 2200 (and other printers).  So in that sense, no the K3 approach isn't
> "better".  However, from another point of view the K3 printers are so
> much more advanced that they have completely revolutionized the
> marketplace.  This viewpoint is that of the beginner.  
> 
> For most of it's existance as a technology, BW digital printing has
> been a potential nightmare for people just getting started.  The K3
> printers have made it possible, for the first time, for beginners to
> produce good prints out-of-the-box with a minimum of fuss and bother,
> with full expectation of success, and without having to resort to the
> "high-tech" approach that requires using RIPs, profiles,
> densitometers, linearization curves and all of that.
> 
> Since the k3 printers arrived, the traffic in this forum has steadily
> lessened to about 1/2 or less.  Look at the message history figures.
> The K3 printers arrived in summer 2005 when monthly message traffic
> was routinely at 1500 or more, and occasionally over 2000.  By
> September the numbers began to fall off, and beginning in April 2006
> it stayed below 1000. The average for the first 8 months of 2005 was
> 1750/mo.  For all of 2006 it was 882/mo.  The nature of the messages
> has changed as well.  Before K3, a dominant theme was anguish and
> frustration centered mostly around dealing with clogs and struggling
> to get good results using various curves, RIPs and workflows.  Now
> there is more discussion re the attributes of various papers and inks,
> and there is a marked lack of anguish, frustration and struggle.
> 
> How have the K3 printers managed this?  It's not just the ink, but a
> combination of the ink and the ABW driver, which is sort of a built in
> simple RIP which combines the inks to create the BW tones.  We used to
> have to use a 3rd party RIP, at some expense, along with all the rest
> of the high tech approach in order to get good results, whether with
> color or grayscale inks.  Now it can be done without all that (article
> #9 at the web site below has a detailed outline of using the 2400 with
> a simple workflow).
> 
> K3/ABW isn't perfect, though, and using a separate RIP with
> densitometer and other approaches can still provide a greater degree
> of control and some degree of improvement over the results.  But at
> this point it's a matter of whether the photographer has the
> inclination and motivation to put forth the extra time and effort to
> get the relatively small degree of improvement.  But it's no longer a
> requirement.  There are legions of darkroom practitioners making the
> switch now, more than ever before, yet this forum, which has
> historically been a place to get help with problems, has greatly
> reduced traffic.  That's a huge difference.  It's a whole new world.
> 
> 
> >I have an SP2200, but haven't used it much. I'm thinking of gearing 
> >up for more serious involvement in my photography and had scound
> thoughts about the printer I currently have. 
>  
> In the above sense, K3 is better, but it doesn't mean you have to
> abandon your 2200.  It's more a matter of how you wish to go at it. 
> If you want to stick with the 2200 you'll find lots of good help and
> advice here.
> 
> There are, however, some reasons to seriously consider moving to a K3
> printer, and that is the papers.  For people using glossy papers the
> k3 ink is a huge improvement (greater dmax and less bronzing and gloss
> differential).  But there are also some new papers that are neither
> matte or glossy, but are sort of a combination of cotton base with a
> semi glossy surface which strives to replicate the air dried fiber
> based glossy (ADFBG) look and feel.  From all reports, the K3 inks
> seem to do a better job than other inks with these papers.  This is an
> emerging technology right now, and my impression is that people who
> want to get on that bandwagon need to be using K3 (someone correct me
> if this is wrong).
> 
> 
> >I came from a very traditional B&W large format background, but have
> >gone digital and trying my hand at color as well. I'm starting to 
> >pour through all the info, but there is a lot of it.
> 
> Please have a look at the articles at the web site below.  There's a
> lot of good material there, both general and specific.
> 
> Regards,
> Clayton
> 
> 
> Info on black and white digital printing at    
> http://www.cjcom.net/digiprnarts.htm
>