Just printed with the new Breathing Color Vibrance Metallic - Z3100

[Jim Cole]

I ordered a 17" roll of the Vibrance Metallic after getting the announcement from BC. I received it last week, but didn't get a chance to play with it until now. This is the first paper I've experimented with since my search for a good B&W paper a few years ago when I picked Photo Rag Baryta as my winner.

Up till now, I've ignored all the new papers because the Baryta paper is working so well and I was never really interested in the metallic papers. I guess BC finally raised my interest enough to give it a shot.

All results are from my Z3100 44" printer with profiles done using the APS software from HP and the HP TC9.18 RGB Target.

Here's what I've done so far. I picked three images from my web site for the tests:

1) a brightly saturated color image of the grand canyon (Yaki Point Sunset #2)
2) a B&W image from Canyon De Chelly (White House Ruin)
3) another B&W winter image from Flagstaff (Winter Woods)

I used the first two images to decide what paper profile to use (Glossy, Glossy More Ink or Glossy Less Ink) when setting up the paper.

-Test 1-

The first time around I used the standard "Glossy" setting when defining and calibrating the paper. After building a profile using the Gloss Enhancer (GE) I made a print of each image. On first glance they looked very nice with great saturated color in image 1, very shiny and with no gloss differential on either the color or B&W image. The images did look like they needed a bit more contrast, the B&W especially looking a bit flat and also showing some bronzing at almost any angle. Both lacked a lot of the metallic zing because of the Gloss Enhancer (GE).

-Test 2-

For the second test I used the "Glossy More Ink" setting when defining and calibrating the paper. After building a profile using the GE I again made a print of each image. Both images now had a bit more pop, had better shadow detail and smoother transitions. Looking straight on, both were more or less equal to the output I was getting on my HP Pro Satin (for color images) and the HM Baryta (for B&W) and definitely a bit zingier, although not as zingy as the calibration printouts that had no GE on them. The color image was excellent, and the B&W showed virtually no bronzing.

-Test 3-

So far, so good, but I wanted to see if I could enjoy the full metallic zing without the GE. I built a third profile with APS specifying no GE. After making a third set of prints, the color image now looked even better with more sheen and still no sign of gloss differential, although there are no areas on this image that are almost white. Gotta say it looks quite nice, but for production work that is under glass, I see no benefit of paying a premium price for this paper when the Pro Satin is so good.

The B&W image looked wondeful on first glance, but the bronzing without the GE was worse. Gloss differential, surprisingly, was still non-existent, the first time I've seen results this good on B&W images without the GE.

Up until this point on these tests, all my B&W images were in the Adobe RGB color space and printed as RGB images using the complete set of inks on the printer.

-Test 4-

My final test was to print two different B&W images (#2 and #3) leaving them in the RGB color space, but selecting the option on my Z3100 print dialog to print in gray scale, using only the gray and black inks. Image #3 has a lot of sun-lit snow, so I wanted to see if the gloss differential was still missing and if printing in gray scale would eliminate the bronzing.

The good news is that there are no signs of gloss differential. The bad news is that the bronzing is still bad.

Conclusion:

I could use this paper without GE for color images and get some additional pop, but I'm not convinced that would make much difference under glass. I think my Pro Satin is still the winner for my color work.

For B&W, the paper has bronzing issues without the GE and that takes away from the extra pop the metallic paper would provide. The Vibrance does have better scratch resistance than the HM Baryta, but I like the overall look and feel of the HM. Looks like the Photo Baryta will remain my main B&W paper for a while. I do have to use the GE on the Baryta paper, but it doesn't cost me anything in visual impact.

Thanks for reading,

Jim

[Johnny_Boy]

Thanks for sharing the info. I was waiting for a review...

a couple questions.
1. Have you used any other metallic paper? How do these compare against others?
2. Did you try with the profile provided by the vendor? I was told metallic papers are very hard to get calibrated and profiled right, and it is better to use the manufacturer's instead.

[Jim Cole]

Thanks for sharing the info. I was waiting for a review...

a couple questions.
1. Have you used any other metallic paper? How do these compare against others?
2. Did you try with the profile provided by the vendor? I was told metallic papers are very hard to get calibrated and profiled right, and it is better to use the manufacturer's instead.

Jonny_Boy,

No, I haven't used any other metalic papers, so I can't compare. I also did not try the manufacturer's profile because they only offer them for Canon and Epson printers.

Maybe we'll have to wait for an Epson or Canon user to chime in with their results.

Jim

[Colorwave]

I've been using the Proofline PhotoChrome paper on my Z3100ps, which is quite likely the same Mitsubishi made paper as the Breathing Color you have been using.  I quite like it, and am astounded at the durability of the printed surface. 

I used a much lower ink limit when I built my paper presets and profiled, though.  I went with Pearl (less ink), which has an ink limit of 32.5.  The Gloss (more ink) setting has an ink limit of 46 (and the regular Gloss is 37.5). 

If they are the same paper, or top coating, at least, I would expect you to have some funky dark tones, as I seem to be able to get a very nice D-max with a lesser amount of ink.  I would also think that the finish should seem more metallic with less pigment sitting on top of it. 

Jim, you have done a lot of experimenting already, but I wonder if you might like the results more if you were using less ink?

What ink/paper settings have other people here used?

[Jim Cole]

I've been using the Proofline PhotoChrome paper on my Z3100ps, which is quite likely the same Mitsubishi made paper as the Breathing Color you have been using.  I quite like it, and am astounded at the durability of the printed surface. 

I used a much lower ink limit when I built my paper presets and profiled, though.  I went with Pearl (less ink), which has an ink limit of 32.5.  The Gloss (more ink) setting has an ink limit of 46 (and the regular Gloss is 37.5). 

If they are the same paper, or top coating, at least, I would expect you to have some funky dark tones, as I seem to be able to get a very nice D-max with a lesser amount of ink.  I would also think that the finish should seem more metallic with less pigment sitting on top of it. 

Jim, you have done a lot of experimenting already, but I wonder if you might like the results more if you were using less ink?

What ink/paper settings have other people here used?

Colorwave,

That's a valid question, although when I calibrated and profiled with the "glossy" setting which is in the middle between "less ink" and "more ink", the prints were a bit flat and lacking in shadow detail. Moving up to a heavier ink load solved both the contrast and shadow detail issues. Seems like the problems would have worsened going the other way. Granted, I did not use other presets to see what would happen. I've got a little paper left on the roll, maybe I can try one more run sometime in the next few days. Twenty feet of paper disappears quickly with a 17x20" profiling target.

Jim

[Colorwave]

Of course, I've heard many speculate as to the sources of these papers, but it is still possible that there are inherent differences, too.  The Proofline paper is 270gsm, whereas the BC and LexJet are 255gsm.  I guess only somebody that has tested them all can say if they are only superficially different or not.