A paper question.

[kjsphoto]

Ok,

Do most people use semi-mat for glossy Fiber Base paper?

I bought the semi-mat stuff as I thought it was more of a luster finish. It is going to take some time getting use to and I am still undecided on it.

Where do you buy your paper?

Also is semi-mat the norm or glossy the norm? What do most of you use?

Thanks,

Kev

 

[doughowk]

Ed Buffaloe has a good article on papers. I've never seen a history of photographic papers but I suspect the non-glossy varieties originated among the pictorialists. I prefer glossy - it seems more like a photograph.

 

[rbarker]

I prefer air-dried glossy FB for most things due to the increased visual contrast. I might even try the waxing technique discussed in another thread.

 

[kjsphoto]

Thank you for the link. THat was really excellent information. Very helpful and useful. I bookmarked that one.

Kev

 

[Tom Stanworth]

I'm not a gerat fan of semi-matte or matte, reserving them primarily for high key portraiture etc. For landscapes, I would not use it at all, though I do test print on it once in a while to make sure I am not missing something. Air dried, glossy FB for me.

Tom

 

[Leon]

I love the depth of gloss and i dont like matt at all

 

[Bob F.]

Ed Buffaloe has a good article on papers. I've never seen a history of photographic papers but I suspect the non-glossy varieties originated among the pictorialists. I prefer glossy - it seems more like a photograph.

There's an article on old papers at the Silverprint site: http://www.silverprint.co.uk/info/yespap.html

Their article on the history of Ilford may have something relevant to the historian... you can download the PDF from their News section.


Kev: I think it is fair to say that most people use unglazed Glossy fibre paper: I do. I tried matt finish a couple of times and could not get the hang of it (though the Alternative Processing people seem to manage it nicely!). Semi-matt & Pearl etc seems neither one nor t'other to me and I don't like the texture.

Cheers, Bob.

 

[Lee Shively]

Contrary to other opinions thus far, I prefer semi-gloss, semi-matte and matte finishes on fiber paper. In my opinion, an air-dried glossy surface is okay but not my favorite. One of the nicest paper surfaces I've used is Bergger's semi-gloss on their VCCB papers. To my eyes, it looks like air-dried glossy should look but doesn't.