Yet Another Gloss Paper Recommendation Request

[pflower]

I am printing with an Epson P5000. For Gloss paper I have for years used either Ilford Gold Fibre Silk or the Harmon by Hahnemuhle Gloss. Different papers but I liked both of them.   I have now finished my last rolls although I still have a box of A2 GFS.  I tried the cheaper Hahnemuhle Photo Gloss Baryta 320 but I don't really like it. There were suggestions at some point that it was similar to the Harmon paper but to my eyes the new Gloss isn't nearly as good (also it curls horribly on 17 inch rolls but that is a minor concern).  It feels lifeless and bland by comparison.  And yes I did make a decent profile for it.

So there are a bewildering number of gloss papers on the market.  Canson I have never used but a lot of people swear by it, Hahnemuhle has a number of gloss papers in their fine art range, Innova gets good reviews but with all there seem to be a plethora of options.  I can see a significant period of ordering sample packs and testing, but where to start?

Any suggestions?  What I am looking for is a smooth gloss finish that will give good detail and depth to colour images (I still prefer Photo Rag for B&W).  I am not obsessive about OBAs but I have a lot of images I need to print from India and the sub continent which have intense colours, deep blacks and shadows and subtle highlights.

So anyone got some suggestions as to what I should start to look at?

Thanks

[kers]

In your case try some papers of Canson - ( like platine) maybe they have a test package. Before to order some roll.
Cansons papers are very nice i find ( like arches88- a matte paper) and Platine is a paper that stays flat easely even coming from a roll.

[narikin]

I'm a late-comer to the Red River range of papers. For years I thought it had to be Canson or Hahnemuhle for my premium printing.

Wrong!! - Many of them are the exact same papers, (see Spectrum-Viz plots, and discover the re-branding/ re-packaging of an identical product!)

Red River has a huge range, and prices are 20/25% less. Good quick shipping too.
Someone there knows what they are doing, and its great to see.

I have no affiliation to them whatsoever. Just annoyed I was a paper snob, and didn't investigate sooner!

[pflower]

I'm in the UK so I don't think, although I stand to be corrected, that there any distributors of Red River here.  So I am interested in Canson, Hahnemuehle and Innova all of which get good reviews.  I guess I just have to buy whatever test packs each company has and see what works.

[mearussi]

The paper that has the smoothest and highest gloss surface is Mitsubishi White Film. Since its base is polyester instead of paper it has no surface texture of any kind. It also has very little curl. I wouldn't suggest it for portraits but it's great for graphic high saturation images. Its drawback is the surface is very sensitive to scratching. This is the same backing that was used in Fuji Super Glossy and Cibachrome.

http://www.mitsubishiimaging.com/pictorico-white-film.html

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?q=Pictorico%20Pro%20Hi-Gloss%20White%20Film%20for%20Inkjet%20Printing&sts=ma

The other option is any good metallic paper. Excellent for high saturation graphic images but since it does have a paper backing it does have a surface texture. Many paper companies off a version but most are just Mitsubishi rebranded.

Hahnemuhle also has its own unique metallic paper and it is the only "archival" one that I know one. It has no OBAs and is on a fairly textured 100% cotton base. On some images it works spectacularly well but on others not at all (green is really punchy). It's not cheap but definitely worth a try.

https://www.hahnemuehle.com/en/digital-fineart/fineart-media/glossy-fineart/p/Product/show/5/996.html

[Tuco]

Mitsubishi White Film

They have no ICC printer profiles that I've been able to find, otherwise I'd love to try it out (probably only to find the pizza wheels on my Epson would make it a no-go)

[mearussi]

They have no ICC printer profiles that I've been able to find, otherwise I'd love to try it out (probably only to find the pizza wheels on my Epson would make it a no-go)

I first used it on my Epson 1400 without any problems. You might buy a 8.5x11 package and try it out.

[mshea]

I'm in the UK so I don't think, although I stand to be corrected, that there any distributors of Red River here.  So I am interested in Canson, Hahnemuehle and Innova all of which get good reviews.  I guess I just have to buy whatever test packs each company has and see what works.

I used the Harmon, and then the Hahnemuhle version for years and, yes, the curling was highly annoying. I switched to Innova Exhibition Photo Baryta 310 about three years ago and I've have been very happy with it. From what I've read, the OBA content is very low. Their supplied profile for my P800 is excellent, although I did produce my own which produced perhaps a very slight improvement.

[alex]

I used the Harmon, and then the Hahnemuhle version for years and, yes, the curling was highly annoying. I switched to Innova Exhibition Photo Baryta 310 about three years ago and I've have been very happy with it. From what I've read, the OBA content is very low. Their supplied profile for my P800 is excellent, although I did produce my own which produced perhaps a very slight improvement.

I agree about the excellent Innova paper. However it now seems to have been repackaged or rebranded as Olmec Photo Silk Fibre Baryta 310gsm (OLM 69), at least here in the UK. My supplier assures me that it is exactly the same paper, just in a different box

Alex