My first print on Archival Matte paper, ended up totally weird - because I printed on the wrong side *LOL* I had no clue how to distinguish the right from the wrong side because the difference was so small (and I had never used matte paper before in my life).

Anyway, once I used the correct side - there was this WOW feeling.

After the third attempt - the results were just gorgeous. Not the slightest hint of color. It all looked 100% black & white. And for being printed on a Matte paper - it actually had deeper D-MAX (blacks) compared to analogue / chemical / traditional photographic matte paper. The latter never gets really black in the darkest areas.

So, this was a truly awesome printing experience, I must say. The Matte paper and profile, apparently enables the Printer's photo black which is pigment based in that case (all others are dye based). Apparently the printer now uses both types of inks; pigment and dye based. Resulting into awesome shades of grays - without a hint of color tint.

I used the • Velvet Fine Art Paper setting, and enabled the special • "Advanced B&W Photo" setting in the • Epson Print layout Software. And put the • Tone setting to • "dark" (because the setting "darker" was too dark for my taste).

Sal too absolutely loved the results

The images have more local highlight contrast (better seperation of light gray tones) compared to the sigital image shown here above.

The two motives are from our honeymoon back in Aug 2017 when we got married in Stockholm. I took out the Mamiya RZ67 Pro camera, with T-MAX 400 II BW film, and the Sekor-Z Zoom 100-200/5.2 lens (which when i tested it for the first time was a real surprize: being truly razor sharp - Oh boy !) I bought that lens for below 100 € - can you imagine that ? However, it is a heavy whopper of lens (1.6 kilo ?), and requires a special lens holder.

We were shooting various portraits in the woods of snösätra/Rågsved. At one time, a thin ray of light hit Sal's face - which i thought looked very cool on him.

Day after

I have the two photo prints in a large drawer - and I am looking at them again from time to time. Just being stunned how well they (to the naked eye) turned out. And not a single color shits anywheere. It looks like a true, large black & white photo.

B&W compared to the ET-1810 printer

It does impress me, really. It is also totally different compared to the images i made with the small Epson ET-1810, which only uses 3 dye based colors + dye based black. Immediately it had a pretty strong, cool color cast. However, at that time I did not enable (nor did i know about) the special "Advanced BW Photo" setting in the Epson Print Layout Software. Perhaps it would make a difference ?

I should try that. And see how the dye based ET-1810 makes Black & White images.

Oh shoot. The software doesn't enable "Advanced BW Photo" settings with that printer. It only allows me to select "Grayscale" instead. Well, ok - i have not tested that yeet.

Let's see how that works.

Turning out ?

• Printer: Epson ET-1810 (A4) all dye based CMY+Bl
• Paper setting: Epson Premium glossy, (Scandinavian Photo glossy paper)
• Print Quality setting: High
• Color Settings: Grayscale

I realize that the first photo was indeed on the dark side when it sent it to the printer.

I am now printing a lighter version. When enabling the "grayscale" setting, the image in "black & White" turned out better compared to selecting color (but having a black & white image file). Since it is dark - the image shifts sllightly color dependent on the light source. Right now it has a homogenetic black & white look, but like a warm tone photo paper.

Which Iike and don't mind. I am sure the image will look a bit cooler, or perhaps neutral in daylight. But the result is BETTER when enabling the "grayscale setting" in the Epson Print Layout software !

the original

the look in warm / indoor tungsten light

the look in daylight, with a violett coldish tint

Looking nice... but dyes shift, dependent
on the color of the light source

As i said, dependent on the light source when you look at the photo; it shows a warm tone in tungsten light. However, the image ITSELF doesn't have any color shifts; they look uniform. But tinted from the metarism / metaforism (?) dye inks have with Black & White photo, dependent in whichcolor illumination you look at it.

It is the light source color, which affects the overall tint of the image:

Tungsten indoor light:
Looking like a warmtone black & white photo.

Daylight:
looking cold black & white. A tint of violet.
Less violet tint in warmer sunlight - but more so in bluish daylight (light coming from the blue sky)
Remids me of a selenium toned bromid (cold tone) photopaper

It is really confusing.

I have been going to these two photos, during the past 48 hours, looking at them at various times. The larger - never changes tint, regardless which light i look at. The smaller (dye based), varies all the time. Sometimes more violet, sometimes less. It is really confusing. And hard to forget, once you have seen it...

I never liked violet tints in any photographic paper in the past. usually it was the neutral to coldish photo papers, which when Selenium toner was used, got a slight violet tint. I hated it.

I loved the "nut brown" tinted images. Warm nuances (But NOT so awfully strong like "sepia" ! Just a good black & white photo, with a tiny, tiny notch of warm tone in it. Absolutely lovely).

fast photo made with iPhone - it does show the difference (ET-8850 left vs ET-1810 right) - which fluctuates in tone