Before I flake on this and not pass this on...here is a brand new idea that is worth sharing with all of you. If you are working on an illustration in either Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Illustrator, think a little before you start work. Think about how this piece will be reproduced. If you are inevitably going to print a flat four color process palette, consider creating a "reinforced black" (which means in place of just a single hit of black, you run color directly under the black you are using...giving the black areas full color coverage under the black which results in a deeper, darker, richer black. Mix up a special black for this use:

"When you want an area of solid black within a document, 100% black (K) will not result in a solid, saturated black. You should use rich black, which is made by mixing other colors of ink with black ink to produce a much darker, deeper black on press than can be achieved by using black ink alone. To create rich black on pieces printed by a printer that prints strictly process, your CMYK calibration values must be 50% Cyan (C), 40% Magenta (M), 40% Yellow (Y), and 100% Black (K)."

And, it really works. Gorgeous.

But, if you are just working with output from your epson--and planning on framing the piece--this is inconsequential. But if you are ever planning on printing the piece, this reinforced black is a "secret sauce".