Digital BW, The Print

I just recieved two test prints from Steve Kale printed with the Nanochrome
inks on Photo Rag. 

I gave him a test file, using a selection of my own images along with a
stepwedge, then he made two prints using a custom QTR curve, with and
without a QTR create ICC profile. 

This is by far the best blacks I have ever seen on any matte paper. They
simply look fantastic. Deep, rich blacks with absolutely no surface
reflections or sheen.

I printed the same print on HPR with Eboni and the MIS PRO inks using the
QTR UC curves, and when held next to the Nanonchrome print the Eboni looks
flat and lifeless. 

I measured the dmax to 2.01 with my X-Rite 810, but that's not the whole
story. Visually the dmax, to my eye, appears as good as or better than what
I get with PKN and Gloss Optimizer on Epson Premium Semigloss, which I has a
dmax of 2.3. Intially I was surprised by this, because I was expecting the
appearance of the blacks to be better than Eboni, but duller than those on a
really good glossy print. I think the reason is the total lack of any
distracting reflections with the Nanochromes on HPR. If I hold glossy prints
at even a slight angle surface sheen and reflections starts to show up, and
you lose any advantage you had with the extra dmax. With matte prints there
is none of this. Obviously measured dmax is not everything.

I really, really hope these inks turn out to be archival. This is what I've
always wanted my matte prints to look like, and I would hate to get my hopes
up like this just to discover the inks are useless.

--
Daniel Staver
http://daniel.staver.no