Best Inkjet Paper?

[wes_hickey]

Forgive the broadness of my question...but...What do you consider to

be the "best" inkjet paper to achieve acurate results. I'm using my

Epson 1280. I only ask b/c I've recently discovered that the reason

I was getting horrible shadow detail from my 1280 was b/c I was

using their "best" glossy photo paper (premium photo glossy). I

tried printing some of my same pictures on Olympus Premium Photo

Glossy and gained back all of the shadow detail, but lost some of my

saturation. So I'm now on a quest to try and find what the "best"

paper is.

 

So...with that said...what do you guys use to give you the "best"

results. (I know, I know...best is subjective...but you see what

I'm getting at).

 

Thanks in advance,

Wes

[mark_jacobs1]

It's all about one's own preference. For me (using Epson 1270), my current favorite for color prints is Ilford Classic Pearl. It performs very closely to the Colorlife paper except it does a lot better job with yellows in my opinion.

[introp]

<p>It's been awhile since I've done color regularly, but I really like Ilford's Galerie Smooth Pearl (the red box) because I could also use it with pigmented inks. It has a wonderful look and feel. Supposedly Classic Pearl's (black box) coating isn't "instant dry" so doesn't suffer from so much gas fading like the Smooth Pearl does, but is only compatible with dye inks (such as your Epson 1280 inks). They're both relatively cheap in quantity (around $0.50 per sheet in 8.5x11), comparable to Epson's PGPP.</p>

<p>For double-sided, I like Brightcube's (now Red Rock's) Duet Gloss, but I've never tried that for color prints. BC's Semi Matte is also a fairly nice paper. On that note, you may want to pick up a few sampler packs of paper from a place like inkjetgoodies.com -- they're a cheap way to learn what is out there.</p>

<p>As for shadow detail, etc., you may find that with any ink&paper combination beyond what the driver supports natively, you'll need to develop some basic adjustment curves to get the output to look like what you see on your monitor (or in your mind). Just print test strips and nudge the curves around in PS until it looks right. Not enough shadow detail? Just drive up the transfer curve a little faster down in the shadows.</p>

<p>Best wishes and enjoy.</p>

[scott_eaton]

Boy, this question really depends on what type of printer you have and paper surface you prefer.

 

For heavy matte/art based printing on both dye and pigment based printers the best I've seen is either Somerset Velvet, or Hahnemuhle torchon and rag. Nothing can touch the dimensionality and texture of those materials. Velvet is the easier to work with and doesn't seem to show all minor printing defects like the Hahnemuhle papers do.

 

For semi-gloss I have yet to see anything in the same caliber as Epson Premium Luster, which is identical in texture to E surface photo papers. I hate satin type papers to no end.

 

For glossy - nothing. I've never seen a glossy ink-jet print I've liked as well as a glossy photograph, nor one as neutral, nor one that didn't look fake and say "hey, I'm an ink-jet print". They all seem to suffer from sort of color shifting regardless of brand, or amplify tracking marks and other defects. However, I've produced many matte/cotton based ink-jet prints and semi-gloss ones that are indistinguishable from conventional photographs (color and B/W), if not superior in many respects. Have yet to approach this quality level with straight glossy ink-jet prints, so I gave up.

 

I need to also warn many of you that some of the paper combinations you are using have some serious archival issues. Basically any coated paper like the Ilford or Olympus is going to be risky with dye based inks, and virtually any full gloss medium.

 

About as close to nirvana as I can get would probably be Epson Premium luster with Epson Ultachrome inks followed closely by the fine art papers on any old Epson. I'm still frustrated at the lack of a paper that has the surface look of glossy fiber based B/W paper. For this reason alone I'm tempted to start experimenting with coating my own papers to get the look I want.

 

As a response to above, the Olympus paper is diffusing the ink more which is simply making shadow areas less dense. I guess this will work, but coated Epson papers tend to produce the best saturation and richest colors, so in truth it's your curves or profile settings that need to be adjusted. If it works, use it though.

[bernhard]

What Scott said. I have seen his prints on Somerset paper with my own eyes and they simply took my breath away.

[dsc]

Hi Scott,

 

for purely selfish reasons, I think you should purchase an Epson 2200 ... I did 2 weeks ago and am aMAZed at the color print quality: knocks my old 870 out of the room (on Epson Premium Luster).

 

B&W is the problem. I'd love to learn from you how to get decent B&W's out of the standard Epson inkset ... I'm getting *very* annoying metamerism problems.

 

Oh yeah: in respons to the question: Premium Luster all the way!

 

Best,

[steve_bingham]

There IS NO BEST. However, I prefer Ilford Smooth Pearl for the 1270, 1280, 1290 series. No big reflections, nice feel, and an excellent D-Max.

[steve_bingham]

Also check out Somerset fine art paper, distributed by Epson!

[Robin Smith]

Wes

 

There is really no answer here. I actually like Premium glossy and think that for saturation and impact it takes some beating - for display behind glass I think it is the best. But matte type papers as well as Somerset are nicer to handle and look at unmounted and in a portfolio - they have a quality that in many ways is nicer than the Premium Glossy, but if you put them behind glass they loose impact. For black and white I think a matte or rag is essential. I have yet to see a glossy or even a semi glossy paper that really works in black and white. But these things are all a matter of taste.

 

I think it also fair to say that just because you know there is shadow detail does not mean your print will realistically be able to show it - it is all part of the compromise due to the reduced reflectance on any print. The trouble with scans (and you have the same issus with R-type prints from slides too) is that not everything is necessarily transferable without making the shot look weird and much worse. You have to make a choice. I always say that your viewer has no idea of what is in the shadows and usually does not care - so do not sweat it. What really counts is the overall impression of the image.

[ted_marcus1]

I'm very happy with Epson Heavyweight Matte on my 780 (same ink set as your 1280). It has very nice, saturated color and plenty of shadow detail. Other advantages are a long predicted life, and price-- it's Epson's cheapest photo paper. I tried all the papers in the Red River sampler, but found the best results on Heavyweight Matte.

[scott_eaton]

<I>for purely selfish reasons, I think you should purchase an Epson 2200 </i><P>You need not try to convince me of that. Nothing on coated paper from an ink-jet really blew me away...until I started seeing what the Ultrachrome based printers could do. The only conventional color process that is left for me is Fujiflex. The newer Epson's pretty much put the nail in the coffin for everything else.<P>AND, the new printers are reasonably archival on coated media. Ilford is advertising a display life of something like 10years for their coated papers mixed with dye printers, which means you can cut that in half under real world display conditions. No thanks.

[ken_hubbs]

I have not had a chance to review example prints myself, but I have heard that the 1280 does better than the 2200 on Epson Premium Photo Glossy - apparently the 2200 has more of an uneven glossy look to it. Can anyone explain this - i.e. which printer is better on Premium Photo Glossy?

 

Also, by saying that the Ultrachrome based printers surpass everything but Fujiflex, does this mean that these printers surpass Crystal Archive Type C glossy? Let me know what you think - thanks.

[al719]

I've tried Olympus glossy on my Canon I9900 with good results. Their silk paper takes the

color saturation right out of the picture.