Keeping black text black in imported EPS or PDF files

I've got an ad file that was created in Quark 6.5. Some of the text is quite small -- Futura medium, 7.75 pt -- and is supposed to be 100% black.

Whether I open a Quark EPS or a PDF in Photoshop, the text is showing up as less than 100% black in Photoshop. I thought it might have something to do with anti-aliasing, but even the darkest parts of the characters (zooming in at 1600%) aren't solid black. And even when I turned off anti-aliasing (not a viable option, of course, but I was experimenting), the type isn't 100% black. Most of it is between 60 and 80% black.

I tried changing the black point compensation setting, but it didn't make any difference.

Is there a way to keep the darkest areas of the text solid black or should I just learn to live with this? FWIW, the publication to which I am sending the ad requests TIFFs, and the last one I sent also had the less-than-solid-black text. I'm just wondering if there's some setting that I missed.

TIA,

Marlene

When you say it is not 100% black do you mean it does not appear 100% black on screen or that a measurement of the colour (with the eyedropper) results in a lower percentage?

If the former, this is normal and has to do with colour management and the fact that 100% black is not the darkest colour you can have in CMYK (You did rasterize in CMYK, right?)

If the latter, make sure you are set to "single pixel" (in the option bar) to take you measurements.

It's the latter -- and you're absolutely right, my eyedropper sample size setting was 5 x 5. When I changed it to "point setting" I did get some solid black areas in the type.

I should have remembered that!

Thanks!

Marlene