The C86 with the EZ carbon pigment inksets make B&W prints that are as lightfast and, on acid free paper, archival as the most expensive systems available for home digital printing. For letter size digital B&W printing there is no better value.

Ink Characteristics

The EZ inksets can print on matte or glossy papers as long as the appropriate black ink is installed. MIS Eboni matte black is for matte papers, and MIS Photo black is for glossy paper.

The tones of the images printed with the C86 can be varied from neutral to warm by installing different combinations of the EZ-N and EZ-W cartridges.

Grayscale images are printed using the Epson driver, where the profiling needed to match the printing characteristics to the paper is accomplished using the Epson driver adjustments. As such, any application that can handle images can print high quality B&W images with this system. So, while photographers will want a good image editor, publishing programs and even Word can print using this EZ inks.

Settings

If Photoshop is being used, Color Settings (Edit, Color Settings in Photoshop; leave at defaults in Picture Window) ��� be sure the Gray Gamma is 2.2. When printing, see that no other profiles are embedded in the file.

For all applications, be sure the driver is one loaded from an Epson disk or downloaded form the Epson webpage. The drivers that are built into Windows are not complete.

Epson Driver Properties

Print Quality ��� Best Photo; High Speed can usually be checked.

Color Management ��� Color Controls, gamma 1.8 unless stated otherwise.

Media Type ��� Matte paper ��� Heavyweight for all matte papers. For glossy papers, the media type may vary. See below.

For matte papers, have Eboni matte black ink installed. The slider and gamma settings are recommended starting points. Trying different adjustments might result in a more accurate monitor to print match. Gamma 2,2 prints darker than Gamma 1.8. The Brightness and Contrast are the most useful of the sliders and are self explanatory. Too aggressive use of these sliders will result in loss of shadow separation.

As an example of what one can expect from the gamma settings, the OEM DuraBrite ink on Epson Enhanced Matte (EEM), using the Matte paper ��� Heavyweight paper type has a 50% midtone visual density of 0.60 with the default gamma of 1.8. The EZ inks on EEM with the same settings has a 50% density of 0.53. However with the gamma set to 2.2, the EZ ink 50% density is 0.62. (A higher visual density is darker.)

While the EZ inks on EEM with the 2.2 gamma setting print very much like the OEM DuraBrite inks at 1.8 gamma, both has rather blocked shadows with these settings. I prefer more open shadows and a longer tonal scale. The settings below reflect this preference for more open shadows. However, if one���s monitor also compresses the shadow tones, one might opt for leaving them that way on the print.

Media Type is Matte paper ��� Heavyweight for all matte papers, unless specified otherwise. The alternative of Plain paper may band slightly.

All of the papers below are cotton based and archival except for Epson Enhanced Matte.

Epson Enhanced Matte ��� Sliders: Brightness +3, Contrast -15. EEM has a paper life of just over 100 years in good storage conditions according to the Wilhelm Research accelerated aging tests. As such, in good display conditions, the pigments and image will outlast the paper. While this paper is not archival, it makes an excellent image and is the value leader for non-archival printing.

Hahnemuhle PhotoRag & PermaJet Portrait Classic ��� Media Type is Matte paper ��� Heavyweight & Gamma 2.2. Sliders: Contrast -10 to -15, Brightness 0 to -2. This paper has the best dmax, and prints very well, but tends to have some flaking and a sensitive surface.

PermaJet Alpha ��� Media Type is Matte paper - Heavyweight. With Gamma 1.8 it prints with somewhat light midtones, but a long tonal range with good shadow separation. With Gamma 2.2 the midtones are darker and the shadows more compressed. Gamma 1.8 with slider Brightness -5 has shadow tones similar to Gamma 2.2 but with lighter midtones. This paper contains no optical brighteners and has a very good dmax. Related papers Omega and Delta can use the same curves and have some brighteners, with Delta being the brightest, but still neutral. These papers exhibit little if any flaking.

PremierArt Fine Art Hot Press ��� Gamma 2.2, Sliders: Y -25, C +25. The convex side of the 205 weight version prints smoother than the concave side. The heavier PremierArt Fine Art papers and Epson UltraSmooth typically use the same settings. These papers have no optical brighteners and exhibit little or no flaking.

When printing on glossy paper MIS Photo Black ink is recommended. However, Epson OEM DuraBrite ink and MIS Universal black also work.

I recommend spraying most glossy papers with PremierArt Print Shield after they are dry. This largely eliminates the bronzing (differential color reflections) that afflicts most glossy papers. It also increases the dmax and makes the surface of the print waterproof. It can actually be cleaned with a damp paper towel.

The settings for the following papers are recommended starting points. You may be able to get a better match to the monitor with other adjustments.

Epson Glossy Photo Paper - Media Type is Glossy Photo Paper. Sliders: Contrast -13. This reasonably-priced paper has the fewest digital artifacts like bronzing, although its thinner weight causes some waviness in areas with lots of dark tones.

Kirkland Glossy Photo Paper ��� Media Type is Glossy Photo Paper. Sliders: Contrast -12. This is a Costco private label version of Epson Glossy Photo Paper. It has a slightly better dmax and just a hint of bronzing. This paper produces an excellent image for a very modest price.

Epson Premium Semi-Gloss papers ��� Media Type is Durabrite Glossy. The Epson Premium Glossy, Semigloss, Luster and Semimatte papers are rated by Wilhelm at >200 years in terms of storage life. They may be the most (or only) archival glossy papers. Usually the Semigloss, Gloss and Luster papers use the same settings. Spraying the finished print with PremierArt Print Shield increases the dmax, nearly eliminates the bronzing, and makes the paper water proof so that it can be cleaned with a damp paper towel.

Ilford Galerie Smooth Pearl ��� Media Type is DuraBrite Glossy. This paper is more economical than the Epson Premium Semigloss, but is not as archival. The dmax is slightly more, but the very high dmax just after printing will decrease over the first day or more. As with the above paper, I recommend spraying with PremierArt Print Shield.

Where to Learn About B&W Printing

For an open forum where B&W digital printing is discussed, join the B&W Digital Print forum.

Enjoy,


Paul
www.PaulRoark.com