1. A method for forming a halftone image on recording media, the method comprising: providing a recording head comprising a plurality of individually addressable recording channels; operating the recording head to form a plurality of image swaths, each of the image swaths being formed during a separate scan over the recording media; identifying a plurality of locations within a representative unit cell of the halftone image; determining a quantified value for each location, wherein each quantified value is determined based at least on a sub-scan misalignment associated with a proposed merging of two image swaths at the location corresponding to the quantified value; selecting a merge location from the plurality of locations, the merge location corresponding to a desired one of the quantified values; operating the recording head to form the halftone image on the recording media while merging a first image swath and a second image swath at the selected merge location within a first unit cell of the halftone image; and comprising determining a screen angle of the halftone image, and operating the recording head to merge the first image swath and the second image swath at the selected merge location within the first unit cell in the event that the screen angle is determined to be 0 degrees or an integer multiple of 45 degrees.