Gradation Curve for Advanced Black & White Mode (ABW)
SKU:
105161
€45,00 EUR
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Correction Curve for Black & White Printing in Epson® “Advanced Black & White Photo” Mode (ABW Mode)
Optimal Tone Control in Advanced Black & White Mode – Even with Third-Party Papers
When printing black and white in the Advanced Black & White (ABW) mode of modern photo and large format printers, ICC profiles cannot be used—making targeted tonal adjustments to the selected paper impossible. The printer driver only allows the selection of the manufacturer’s own media types, such as those from Epson®, whose properties do not translate well to alternative or third-party papers.
This often leads to suboptimal results with high-quality FineArt or third-party papers: overly harsh contrasts, flat midtones, or an overall unbalanced tonal range. Our solution addresses this challenge—enabling precise, media-optimized black and white prints with maximum control over the final result.
IMPORTANT NOTES:
The product offered is a tone curve file in the .acv format, compatible with Adobe® Photoshop. To apply this file, the Adobe® Photoshop software is required. It is possible that other software may support Photoshop-compatible tone curve files, but at this time, we are not aware of any.
The created curves are designed to optimize the grayscale or tonal distribution of a print in the grayscale or black-and-white mode of a photo printer. For example, Epson refers to this mode as “Advanced Black and White Photo” These curves are not ICC profiles!
Each tone curve is individually tailored to a specific type of paper.
Correction Curve / Tone Curve for the Advanced Black & White Mode (ABW)
A tone curve to optimize grayscale values in photo printing, perfectly tailored to the characteristics of your FineArt paper.
Your Problem
You print in black and white using the Advanced Black & White (ABW) mode of your photo or large-format printer, but miss the ability to directly influence the tonal distribution — especially with regard to the paper you’re using?
Every paper type has its own properties: some handle heavy ink loads well, others do not. In the printer driver, you’re forced to select from preset Epson paper profiles — no other options are available. As long as you’re using an actual Epson paper, this usually works fine.
However, things change when using third-party papers: these often differ significantly in texture, surface, and ink handling. Yet, the driver still uses the tonal distribution for the selected Epson paper. The result: tonal values are not properly matched to your chosen medium.
Another drawback: ICC profiles cannot be used in Advanced Black & White mode. A color-neutral, paper-optimized tonal control via color management is therefore not possible.
Our Solution for You
You print a grayscale measurement chart provided by us, following precise instructions. This chart must be printed on your chosen photo or FineArt paper using the exact same settings you’ll later use for your black-and-white photo prints via the Advanced Black & White mode. This step is absolutely essential!
As part of our service, we read the values of the printed chart and transfer the data from the measurement file into a tone curve file (.acv). You then load this curve in Adobe Photoshop and apply it to your image before printing.
This adjusts or corrects the tonal values in line with the characteristics of your paper. Your grayscale print will now feature tonal distribution that is optimized for the media being used.
Once your image file is edited and ready to print, you simply open the curves dialog and apply the custom curve we created. This ensures the tonal values are printed in a way that’s optimized for your paper.
From now on, your black-and-white prints are no longer a matter of luck.
Blog article on our ABW-Service
Further information on our service "Gradation curve for expanded black and white mode (ABW)" can be found in this blog article on our website.
What's next after ordering?
Once payment for your shop order has been confirmed, the file package for the curve creation will be sent to you via email.
Print the measurement chart included in the package according to the enclosed instructions. Send the printed chart to us by post. We will usually create your ACV correction curve on the same day we receive your chart.
The curve file will then be sent to you as an email attachment.
The curve creation package contains the following files:
- The measurement chart as a TIFF file for printing (please print on A4 paper)
- The order form for curve creation (PDF)
- Instructions for printing the chart and applying the curve using Adobe Photoshop
Please note!
Send the printed test chart(s) to us within 30 days of your webshop order so that the correction curve can be created in a timely manner.