I have found that the ink levels sent to the printer during ICC profile generation with the i1 significantly alter the print density/contrast even though the soft proof in PhotoShop indicates otherwise. It seems as though setting the inking levels is very important when generating a print profile - in spite of the fact that I though the profile generation would automatically adjust for the darkness.
Are there any standard test images available that allow good judgment of the appropriate ink levels? What is the test procedure that should be used to test inking?
I tried InkDensity.tif file (as documented in Color Management for Photographers by Andrew Rodney) and that indicates good tonal separation of all colour patches - indicating that there is no block up of ink due to the print driver.
After profiling my Canon Pro9000 dye printer with various papers using the Greta Macbeth i1 and the TC9.1b target, all prints come out overly dark and saturated. For all of these tests, PS controlled the colour management and the printer was set to no management. Lowering the inking with the "intensity" driver control seems to solve the problem.
