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The allure of black-and-white photography has been growing along with
interest in digital photography. While the techniques for converting
color images to monochrome images have been generously shared among
photographers, the means to easily and consistently produce neutral
black-and-white prints with inkjet printers has been challenging.
This has changed over the last several years. Printer and ink
manufacturers are producing products that offer photographers the
ability to create stunning black-and-white prints with minimal to no
color casts and reduced metamarism, ensuring there are no color shifts
as the prints move from one type of light source to another.
The major photo printer manufacturers (Canon, Epson and
Hewlett-Packard) have increased the number of inks used by their
high-end inkjet systems, including light cyan, light magenta and
different densities of black and gray, to create printers that can
produce more accurate colors and smoother transitions, especially when
printing black-and-white images. The inclusion of different densities
of black and gray inks has reduced the need for printers to use their
color inks to create the varying degrees of gray necessary to render
the subtle gradations of tones that we’ve come to expect from
black-and-white photographs.
Photographers now can produce neutral prints with reduced fuss, even
without requiring an independent RIP (raster-image processing), a
customized hardware or software component that promises an improved
color-managed workflow between the computer and the printer. Often
available as software that replaces the driver that comes with a
printer, a RIP is optimized for different makes and types of paper,
thereby increasing accuracy and consistency.
As printers and inks enter a new generation, we can expect the art of
black-and-white imaging to continue its renaissance filled with
beautiful and stunning prints. | 
