Budget Fiber Paper

I'm looking for a budget fiber paper that's not the Arista brand. Was wondering if anyone had any suggestions. Just from looking on Freestyle I see that Kentmere, Adox, Fomabrom, Fotokemika, and Oriental are all cheaper than the Ilford paper (with some of those being pretty close to the prices of Ilford, while others have more than a $20 difference for a pack of 100). Any suggestions appreciated.

I've used Arista Fiber paper and it's pretty good. I think it's made by Foma. Give it a try before you come to any conclusions.

Mainecoonmaniac said:

I've used Arista Fiber paper and it's pretty good. I think it's made by Foma. Give it a try before you come to any conclusions.

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I have a 100 pack of Arista that I've been printing on and I don't seem to like it that much. I think it may be because I bought the semi-matte version and it has absolutely no shine to it. I kind of want to experiment with other papers though despite that fact. Maybe I'll buy some glossy Arista and see how I like it.

Try Adorama's house brand of papers. They're very good, or at least I like them. They have a cooler tone than the Arista.EDU papers from Freestyle. Though they are different, I like them both, and the prices are about the same. Adorama has sample packs at very reasonable cost. Couldn't hurt to try.

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I'd check out some Fotokemika Varycon or Adox MCC110, though they are notably more expensive than they were as little as a year ago (or whenever the MCC came out).

Oriental is really not bad for the price either. To my recollection, it has only gone up about $5 - $10 a box in the past five years, while the Ilford has gone up about $25 - $30, well past the point of ridiculousness, IMHO. The Oriental used to be a "splurge" item for me, with MGIV as my standard paper for only $50 a box. But now it is the other way around...except that to me, there is nothing special about the Ilford that makes it worth splurging for.

Thanks for the responses. It's good to hear that there's nothing about Ilford that makes you want to splurge for it. I checked out the house brand of Adorama and although it only had a few reviews on their website, all of those reviews were very positive - and it's even cheaper than the Arista brand. The Fotokemika and Adox seem to also be good contenders considering the price, although it's a significant different between Arista or the Adorama paper. Suppose I'll do some more research.

I'd say if you're looking for a standard neutral tone paper that's cheap Oriental is great, very very similar to Ilford MGIV. If you're looking for a warmtone paper, nothing compares to Ilford's MGWT but that is certainly not cheap!

This is a tough one, because 10 photographers being asked about their preference in whatever will give you 20 different answers.

Ilford is worth it, that's my opinion. I also like Oriental, a lot, and I buy both. If cost is the main issue, that's fine and there's lots of choices...prices are on all websites.

The advice to get a few small sample packs is very good - you'll find a paper YOU like working with and be able to match it with the price you want. Good luck.

I've used Fotospeed paper in the past, simply to get away from the *usual suspects* when it comes to fibre-based paper.

http://www.fotospeed.com/B-&-W-Papers/catalogue/11/

aaronmichael said:

I have a 100 pack of Arista that I've been printing on and I don't seem to like it that much. I think it may be because I bought the semi-matte version and it has absolutely no shine to it. I kind of want to experiment with other papers though despite that fact. Maybe I'll buy some glossy Arista and see how I like it.

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I bought some Foma Matt paper and the blacks are not appealing to me. Glossy looks much better. What I would do is to buy small packs of 5x7 and do a side by side comparison. Fine what you like and stick to what you know. As for me, I like warmer, glossy papers.

all matt papers, including semi -matt have a low dmax which means the blacks are "dull", the paper is great for handcoloring, for that reasons and the fact it has more tooth

I've been using some of this from freestyle:

Foma Fomatone Classic VC FB Cream Base Warmtone 11x14/25 Glossy (131)

Quite warm and creamy (creamy being a paper tint, not a description of image detail). Nothing dull about it though. It's too warm for snow scenes, but it still as a multitude of uses.

aaronmichael said:

.....I checked out the house brand of Adorama and although it only had a few reviews on their website, all of those reviews were very positive - and it's even cheaper than the Arista brand.

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Our paper is made in the EU where we have a high quality facility, making and coating the papers for us.

Photographers have commented that "the Adorama Variable Grade darkroom paper has brighter whites and richer blacks than Ilford’s MG4 - at a HUGE saving!”

I hope this helps, but please don't hesitate to contact me directly if you need any advice - or after-sales support.

HelenOster said:

Our paper is made in the EU where we have a high quality facility, making and coating the papers for us.

Photographers have commented that "the Adorama Variable Grade darkroom paper has brighter whites and richer blacks than Ilford’s MG4 - at a HUGE saving!”

I hope this helps, but please don't hesitate to contact me directly if you need any advice - or after-sales support.

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Thanks Helen. I think I'll purchase a sample pack and see how I like it. For the price it can't be beat really.

Thanks to everyone else that replied. I wasn't aware of the fact that matte and semi-matte papers have a lower dmax - that's interesting. I don't mind if the paper is neutral toned or has a slightly warmer tone. Although I do like a nice almost pure white border. However, cost is the main deciding factor here and it looks like the Adorama brand and Oriental are two great contenders for that.

If you want the Foma Fomabrom 112 or Arista.EDU Ultra semi-matte (which is the same paper) to shine, you have to tone it. That's the only way I can get the highlights to seem really crisp, and getting deep blacks. However, when you do tone it, in sulfide and selenium toners, you get REALLY deep blacks, and some soaringly beautiful highlights. You may not like the colors, but it does help tonality a lot.
Also, the paper has a silly long tonal scale, so you need negatives of high contrast to make good prints.

It is also very interesting to use to bleach back the picture and re-developing in lith developer.

This paper is pretty much all I print on anymore. I've learned how to use it to my liking and to tune my negatives for it, and once you get there, it's superb. Attached pictures split toned in thiourea and Kodak rapid selenium toner.

- Thomas

Thomas Bertilsson said:

If you want the Foma Fomabrom 112 or Arista.EDU Ultra semi-matte (which is the same paper) to shine, you have to tone it. That's the only way I can get the highlights to seem really crisp, and getting deep blacks. However, when you do tone it, in sulfide and selenium toners, you get REALLY deep blacks, and some soaringly beautiful highlights. You may not like the colors, but it does help tonality a lot.
Also, the paper has a silly long tonal scale, so you need negatives of high contrast to make good prints.

It is also very interesting to use to bleach back the picture and re-developing in lith developer.

This paper is pretty much all I print on anymore. I've learned how to use it to my liking and to tune my negatives for it, and once you get there, it's superb. Attached pictures split toned in thiourea and Kodak rapid selenium toner.

- Thomas

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Thanks for the reply Thomas - and great photographs. I'll keep that in mind for personal use. I don't know how to tone but I'm sure I'll learn soon. Unfortunately I don't think we're allowed to tone for the classes I'm taking (what I'm using the paper for), but I'll ask my professor next time I have class.

aaronmichael said:

Thanks for the reply Thomas - and great photographs. I'll keep that in mind for personal use. I don't know how to tone but I'm sure I'll learn soon. Unfortunately I don't think we're allowed to tone for the classes I'm taking (what I'm using the paper for), but I'll ask my professor next time I have class.

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If you are using this paper untoned I recommend using a high contrast paper developer such as Dektol undiluted.
Also, learn how to process your negatives to an appropriate contrast level, you may have to change how you expose and process your film to get the most out of it.

I am the kind of person that is convinced that good results can be had from all of the commercially available papers. You may have to work it a little, and the Fomabrom paper takes a fair bit of work in the beginning to get used to.
The beauty of it is that when you make prints that are really soft, the texture of the surface and its lack of reflection can give you results unobtainable with other papers. It depends on what you want. Using something like Ilford MGIV matte will probably be less frustrating to begin with, and it is probably a better paper technically.
Basically, you get what you pay for in terms of user friendliness. The Foma 112 will cause you to chuck more sheets when you start using it, compared to using Ilford MGIV matte. But once you know how to use it, you won't think twice about it and your hit rate will be high. It takes more of you as a printer to make good prints with it.
Send me a PM if you want more specific info on how to use it.

Good luck!

- Thomas