Unesco, your post brings the following to mind:
“The question is if you really want to have maximum neutrality?”
I’m still trying to develop a useful qualitative understanding of “maximum” neutrality (to use your term) and whether it really is visually superior (i.e. as a practical/aesthetic matter) to a neutrality that is instrumentally “off” but not eye-perceptibly “off”. Are there no circumstances where a BW print would look neutral even though instruments would say it isn't "maximally" or perfectly neutral? While I am seriously curious about these thin
+ Attachments and other optionsgs, I’m unable to undertake the meticulous work I think would be required to get an answer to this. I depend for now on threads here and readings elsewhere.
Perceptual feel would be the best for you, but requires quite a lot of tries and errors. E.g. I do no like Piezography Neutral ink prints, while Selenium set is superb for me (subjectively).
“Have you tried warm/cool prints (still monochrome) or duo/tri tones?”
No, these are areas of BW printing in which I have not been interested, except for some casual trials when I first got my printer.
I do not mean duo-toning as color RGB image and then print it with icc profile, but to do it on the last stage of printing process of
monochrome image. this is higher level of mastering B&W prints. not easy, usually people discourage themselves after some initial tries. it requires precise and good curves for each color tone you want to use, and then to mix them in appropriate proportions for highlights, mid-tones and shadows. QTR allows for it. results can be outstanding.
“It should be remembered that paper white tint have influence on final neutrality.”
Aside from a paper’s overall (and often desirable) aesthetic effect from it’s tone (e.g. a warm baryta vs. a paper that is cold from OBAs), I am curious whether you are referring to an effect I am familiar with from oil painting where, if you have an oil-rich glaze or a light scumble over a toned ground, the ground will show through and contribute to the perceived tone, but a thick opaque paint layer of whatever tone will hide the toned ground. Is this analogous to what you are referring to? Is there a “maximum” neutrality achievable in a BW print by developing a profile that would take the translucency/thickness of the deposited ink into account in order to “counter” the increasing effect of the paper’s tone as less and less ink is applied in the light tones?
In my way of thinking about it, any effect of the paper's tone is a given, and the question is only whether the ink that is printed is neutral (visually or perfectly) across the full range of tones.
yes, comparison to oil glazing is a good one (I have a lot of experience with that ancient technology). Especially, Piezography or similar sets are good material for it where there are very light inks, semi transparent - so you can steer the look of the print by selection of appropriate paper (white). Of course, this effect is also present with K3 Epson inks.
I think it is possible to achieve max neutrality for given inks and paper on the full range from black to white, but it is not an easy task. I was trying to do so, but stopped several times in the middle, discovering look which is not pure-neutral but having very attractive look (subjectively again)
