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Author Topic: Comparing a few papers for bw printing  (Read 4761 times)

JohnBrew

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Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« on: October 09, 2015, 01:42:22 pm »

I thought some of you might find this interesting. While I've long printed on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Baryta & Iflord Gold Fibre Silk, in a constant search for improving my game so to speak, I acquired some new papers which had been mentioned in print and by referral.

So the candidates are as follows and in the image are numbered left to right.
1. Moab Juniper Baryta
2. Ilford Gold Fibre Silk
3. Breathing Color Vibrance Baryta

All papers are over 300 gsm with a baryta surface on a fiber base. All claim no OBA's. ICC manufacturer profiles were used for each paper. Image was taken with a D810/Zeiss 55 1.4 (Otus) and under a 5K light.
 
1. Moab. Least reflective. Warmest.
2. Ilford. Highest d-max (at least to my eyes)
3. Breathing Color. Most reflective and whitest.

My conclusion is that all papers are more than acceptable. All of us have specific desires in a finished print and I feel these papers offer good options. And before someone jumps in and mentions Harman, yes, I have printed many times with Harman and it is a gorgeous paper for bw, but it has several downsides which have been related in other threads.
« Last Edit: October 10, 2015, 08:28:36 am by JohnBrew »
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KeithR

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #1 on: October 09, 2015, 06:12:40 pm »

Can I ask, which inkset? Epson color or third party such as Piezography or MIS? Have you tried any of the Canson papers?
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Rob C

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #2 on: October 10, 2015, 06:27:41 am »

Don't know about the papers, but it's a very interesting image!

Rob C

JohnBrew

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #3 on: October 10, 2015, 08:25:53 am »

All Epson inks.
I tried the Canson several years ago. To me, it seemed quite similar to the IGFS.

Thank you, Rob. "Dante oversees the wine tasting." Leica M, 50 Summilux ASPH, wide open.

elliot_n

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #4 on: October 10, 2015, 08:30:41 am »

I'm surprised by the variety in tonality. Is this a quality of the papers, or the supplied profiles? It would be interesting to see how these papers printed with identical printer settings.
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howardm

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #5 on: October 10, 2015, 09:57:31 am »

well, the Canson is 99% the same as IGFS so it's not surprising.

Goldilocks says:
I also am surprised by the range of tonality.  If I had to pick, it'd be somewhere between the Moab (too warm) & IGFS (too contrasty).  The BC looks pretty weak overall.  At least based ONLY on the posted comparison.

JohnBrew

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #6 on: October 10, 2015, 01:38:23 pm »

The BC shows some breakup due to it's reflective properties and the lamp I had suspended over the papers. So maybe that's my fault.

Indeed, printing all papers with the same ICC profile would be interesting, but then which ICC profile to use?

Sbarroso

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #7 on: October 14, 2015, 02:15:17 am »

Ilford Gold Fibre Silk does not claim absence of OBAs. Indeed, it has a small amount of OBAs.
The most similar paper from Ilford that is OBA free (as they claim) is the Ilford Gold Fibre Gloss, which was introduced last February (2015), according to their press release.

Best,
Santiago

TylerB

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #8 on: October 14, 2015, 01:04:02 pm »

it's very difficult to separate the performance of the paper from the nature of each profile, particularly with regard to the hue of the neutral axis, and subjective observations like contrast or lightness/darkness issues. Each profile, primarily made for color space conversions, for use with the RGB driver and particular media settings, may be made with different creation software, and with different priorities selected by the creator. These profiles also, very likely, vary in quality.
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Jimmy D Uptain

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Re: Comparing a few papers for bw printing
« Reply #9 on: October 17, 2015, 09:25:06 pm »

Thanks for taking the time.
I tend t like the GFS myself, though my roll is depleted. I do have the Canson alternative but haven't printed on it yet.
Thanks again
Jimmy
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