Printing occurs when a marking engine deposits ink on a substrate to produce a pattern. The printed pattern can differ from the desired pattern when the marking engine is out of adjustment, the substrate and ink do not interact optimally, or for other reasons. A tone reproduction curve can be used to adjust the pattern or the marking engine so the printed pattern and desired pattern are similar. Another effect of printing is that contours can appear. Contouring can be reduced if a smooth tone reproduction curve is used. Aspects of the embodiments address limitations and flaws in the prior art by using a smoothing parameter and a smoothing matrix to produce TRCs that minimize contours.