Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Ultra Smooth

[NeedToKnowMore]

give me the good and bad on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Ultra Smooth. printing with an Epson 9800.

thanks

[Alan Goldhammer]

It's a very good paper and probably the matte paper that I use the most on my Epson 3880.  It has small amounts of OBA in it but not enough to cause any problems that one sees with larger amounts of brightening agent.  The surface is as the name suggests, extremely smooth.  The paper performs well on both color and B/W and I've printed a nice follow of images from our 2010 blizzard in B/W.  Like all Hahnemuhle cut sheets it does tend to curl on storage and one needs to address this when printing to avoid head strikes but this is the only down side.  If you are printing off rolls this should be a non issue.  There are ongoing studies of print permanence for this paper at the Aardenburg website.

[NeedToKnowMore]

thanks Alan. that's good news to my ears. i was beginning to wonder if any one here used this paper. i bought 2 rolls of 44 inch and 2 - 24 inch rolls.
i have been using Epson's ultrasmooth but B&H hasn't had any 44 inch for the last month.

[I.T. Supplies]

If you're looking for the Epson Ultrasmooth Fine Art in 44", we have them in stock.  The item number is S041783 and will show on our site.
We also have "Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Ultra Smooth" (put this description in our search bar).  Majority of all sheets were discontinued from the 20 and 50 pack and Hahnemuhle went to 25 on about 95% of their papers.

Chris W

[mshea]

I've used Ultra-Smooth for quite some time on my 3880 and, like Alan, had a few head strike problems until I began printing with wider margins. I prefer matte paper with minimal texture and so, this has been my favorite, for both B&W and color. Too bad it's only available in smaller batches now:(.

Merrill

[aaronchan]

HFA Ultra Smooth Photo Rag is a good paper.
The only down side of this paper is it is very sensitive.
I've done a few prints before with this paper in southern China and this paper gets to turn yellow within 3 months.
I've contact Hahnemuhle and they have said that this paper is very sensitive, and recommended me to spray the HFA protective spray on top of it.

aaron

[NeedToKnowMore]

Merrill, i print and sell my own photos and like smooth vs. texture. myself i haven't printed B&Ws.
the question pops up when Aaron said -The only down side of this paper is it is very sensitive.- -turn yellow within 3 months-
have you seen this?
do i need to spray my prints?
 

[mshea]

Sensitive? Interesting. I just looked at a bunch of prints, many over a year old, and saw no hint of yellowing. But then again, quite a few were on display for only a month or so. It might be worth posting a query as to people's experiences with HFA spray.

Merrill

[howardm]

it might be that in S. China, given their terrible air quality, that there are lots of airborne pollutants (ie. sulfur based) contributing to the problem.

[NeedToKnowMore]

searching the net i see only old articles on yellowing. feeling better now.