current favorite papers?

[NikosR]

A little known fact about Hahnemuehle Photo Rag paper is that the Duo variety apart from being printable on both sides as its name implies is actually quite smoother than the plain Photo Rag and Photo Rag Satin and Bright White.

So if anyone has tried Photo Rag and found it to his liking but would prefer a smoother surface, it would be a good idea to try the Duo.

I wonder why HM do not make this distinction clear in their documentation.

[jjlphoto]

I would definitely try the Crane Museo Silver Rag paper when is is formerly released the end of February.  I have been printing on beta samples of this paper and my guess is that it will become my main paper in the future.  [a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=57019\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

?? I thought this paper had been out since summer or so. I just bought an 8-1/2 x 11 pack from Adorama. Didn't know it is beta paper. Anyone care to elaborate on this?

[filip baraka]

?? I thought this paper had been out since summer or so. I just bought an 8-1/2 x 11 pack from Adorama. Didn't know it is beta paper. Anyone care to elaborate on this?
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=89876\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

Was beta in 2005;) this is old thread with some new messages
everything is ok with your paper;)

[itb]

Happy new year to you all.

Is anyone familiar with Permajet paper ( permajet.com), how "archival" it is, Dmax etc.
I have been using an Epson 2100 for the last three years, mostly printing with the matt black on matt paper ( bonzing problems on glossy and semiglossy paper) Have been taking a good look at the new Epson 3800.

ITB

[Brian Gilkes]

One of the allied projects is testing a much wider range of papers than I was using previously.
This currently includes Awagami Inbe (Japan) and papers from Cartiere Magnani (Italy) and Lana (France).
As results come through I will post if the list is interested.
Cheers,
Brian
Brian Gilkes
Pharos Editions

[excerpt/quote]
Well it's over a year, so about time I posted something.
At the time I wrote the above I was trying various papers with the photo black in the Epson K3 . inkset. None of the above came out well , with DMax quite low. The matte black ink improves approx 0.3 n DMax. Of coated matte papers I am currently using, DMax is between 1.5 and 1.6 for Hahnemuhle Photo Rag; Crane Museo, Museo II, Max;  Awagami Bezan and Okawara;and Lana  Lanajet  In general the smoother the paper  the wider the gamut, but once profiled the differences are really only apparent with files wider than Adobe GRB (1998). Okawara is a beautiful random fiber handmade paper with a pronounced texture (not pattern, like the machine made papers), yet it still comes in at 1.54, with a white only 0.03 darker than HPR, which has OBAs.
 Somerset Velvet  comes in around 1.4 which is not too hot. What impressed me, and Les Walkling who did the hard sensitometry , was how well many of these papers came out. Most of the profile modification was necessary in the cool colours , especially cyan. This is an ink problem, not a paper one, thoughit should be said Hahnemuhle Photo Rag performs very well and currently forms the technical standard for matte papers. I hope to test on a HP Z printer  to see if this assists in the cyans. The fourth black may push the DMax further.
We have also tested other papers such as Schutt and Buxton , but these are special purpose papers, and not really of interest to most people on this forum.With dynamic range and colour gamut comparable for many papers, and here I also include Arches, BreathingColor and Moab, the choice will be often on how a particular surface complements an image. Cost is also a signficant factor with handmade papers running around 8x good machine made papers.
It's like everything else really...
Cheers
Brian,
www.pharoseditions.com.au

[Kirk Gittings]

Brian,

I am getting dmax of 1.68-1.70 with Epson K3 pigments with Crane Museo Max and only 1.58 with H Photo Rag, printing a step wedge. The visual difference is great too. As matter of fact amongst mat papers the only one with a higher dmax than CMM is Velvet Fine Art. I suppose there may be an issue with densitometer calibration or how the inks are layed down via profiles (or how test is done). I am curious, what is your testing method?

Thanks

[Brian Gilkes]

Kirk,
Very interesting. I can provide more details off line as I am not priveleged to generally release my methods in detail.
I can say I use a custom made test chart, read with a Spectroliner and interpret with modified software including Profile Maker and Profile Editor. I try to lay as much ink as possible whilst retaining maximum shadow tonal seperation. It may be that this concentration on deep tones has pulled the CMM DMax back. I will definitely look into this further. Further the profiles aim to clarify colours, making them more luminous.
I have quite a bit of experience with HPR , having used it for 2 1/2 years and created around 6 specialised profiles for it. I have only been printing on CMM seriously for  couple of months, so am not confident I have extracted it's full potential yet. I would say though, that  prints on CMM with the current profile are visually producing some of the most accurate renderings I have seen. B&W using all 8 K3 inks (not Advanced B&W, which clips) is absolutely neutral.
Cheers,
Brian,
www.pharoseditions.com.au