EPSON EXHIBITION FIBER PAPER ...

EPSON EXHIBITION FIBER PAPER.... have been reorganizing my printing studio, discovered a great paper I'd forgotten.

It ain't cheap but it's beautiful. I printed a lot of B&W on it years ago (Epson 2200 printer) and closely compared it to some similar "fiber" papers....

I remember that reviews described the surface as "easily scratched" but that wasn't true. In my tests I certainly could scratch it, but that required bad handling.

If you're looking for fiber (fibre) paper this stuff is admirable. B&H might still be a good source.

fwiw I posted about Epson Exhibition Fiber mostly to demonstrate that I don't hate the Epson brand...just the Epson printers that still reportedly clog a little (but a lot less than they did for years).

What are the attributes of this paper you like?
From what I have learnt in the darkroom papers effects will affect the final print as much as other materials and equipment used during the process

We can always improve.

awty, that particular Epson paper has a gentle texture that doesn't reduce details (the way some matte paper does). As well the white is bright, but not chemically brightened (so it seems unaffected by age). I like the weight better than that of Canon Luster (I don't know who makes that for Canon...might be Hahnemeule). The Canon's luster texture sometimes leads to extra detail contrast...similar to Gold Fiber Silk, which is more expensive.

I happen to have a few hundred 13X19 sheets of the Canon, so I've got to love it. Also, bought directly from Canon or from B&H, shipping is usually free and very fast. Can't get Epson from Canon.

Maybe I'm mistaken, but I don't think comparable paper surfaces (hence appearance of print) are available from darkroom papers.

When Kodak was still photo company I occasionally used one of its very warm-toned portrait papers in darkroom and liked the non-matte, non-glossy surface too. With inkjet papers one can tone the image-area separately from the image itself...so it's possible to have a warm image area on cold or neutral tone paper and different image tone... sometimes good for portraits.