ABSTRACT
Some inkjet printer manufacturers have improved the reproduction of mid-tones in their printers by introducing ‘light’ versions of each ink. Yes, ‘light black’ does exist, though the name sounds like a contradiction in terms. However, its use gives smoother tonality and better tonal coverage than black-only printing. The latest inkjets use three ‘black’ inks to improve coverage and give very fine quality black-and-white prints. The alternative is to mix equal quantities of cyan, magenta and yellow inks for each shade of neutral grey required. The colour inks are replaced by tinted versions of black ink, which are mixed during printing, under the control of the printer driver, to give a full range of prints from warm tone (with yellow/brown blacks) through neutral prints to cool tone prints (with blue blacks). Replacement ink sets are more economical when bought as a continuous inking system with large bottles of ink rather than as ink cartridges.
