Digital BW, The Print

I've started Black Only printing on an Epson C86 (OEM inks) and find
that my prints on Epson Enhanced Matte and HW Matte are very warm
compared to my screen images. Any suggestions ? Thanks.

> I've started Black Only printing on an Epson C86 (OEM inks) and find
> that my prints on Epson Enhanced Matte and HW Matte are very warm
> compared to my screen images. Any suggestions? 

Matte blacks tend to be warm.  Carbon is warm by nature, although the C86
black appears to be a hybrid carbon-dye ink.

MIS Eboni is the most neutral of the pure carbon matte blacks that I know
of.

I personally find that Black Only printing doesn't give me either the tones
or smoothness I want in my photos.  That is why we use lighter inks in the
midtones.  For the neutral light inks we mix color pigments with the carbon
to neutralize it.  The commercially available inkset that will give you
smooth neutral prints in a C86 is the MIS C86 "EZ" inkset.  I use it quite a
bit.  See my notes on it at
http://home1.gte.net/res09aij/C86-EZ-UT-Readme.htm .

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com

mfriedberg wrote:

> I've started Black Only printing on an Epson C86 (OEM inks) and find
> that my prints on Epson Enhanced Matte and HW Matte are very warm
> compared to my screen images. Any suggestions ? Thanks.
>
>

There's two solutions. The first is to use a coleder paper, like Moab 
Kayenta, which is what I do, which offsets the (very) warm OEM ink. The 
second is to replace the OEM black ink with MIS Eboni, which is only 
slightly warm.

I actually do like the warm prints from the OEM inks, but I may just be 
strange that way.

-Adam