Ilford Galerie FB graded paper

sanking · Aug 20, 2006

Anyone have experience with Ilford Galerie FB paper? I purchased a pack of Grade 2 and when I ran a BTZS test of it I found that it has an exposure scale of about 1.45, which seems very high to me for a Grade 2 paper.

Nothing unusual about my procedures. I am contact printing with a small 7.5 watt bulb and developing in fresh D72 1:2 for two minutes at 70F.

Sandy King

nlochner · Aug 20, 2006

Hey sandy,

Although it's a mainstreem paper, i love Ilford Multigrade IV Fiber paper, and despite the extended development time, and wash times, i think it has the same characteristics of glossy Multigrade IV.

If the above statement also applies to Ilford Galerie papers, than whatever you experience with glossy galerie, will be similar to fiber.

nlochner

Tom Hoskinson · Aug 20, 2006

nlochner said:
Hey sandy,

Although it's a mainstreem paper, i love Ilford Multigrade IV Fiber paper, and despite the extended development time, and wash times, i think it has the same characteristics of glossy Multigrade IV.

If the above statement also applies to Ilford Galerie papers, than whatever you experience with glossy galerie, will be similar to fiber.

nlochner

My Ilford Galerie Glossy is a fiber paper, isn't yours?

David A. Goldfarb · Aug 20, 2006

I haven't used it for a few years, but that result doesn't surprise me. I also found that it had the whitest base of the half-dozen or so graded fiber papers I tested at the time.

sanking · Aug 21, 2006

Tom Hoskinson said:
My Ilford Galerie Glossy is a fiber paper, isn't yours?

It is Ilford Ilfobrom Galerie FB, Grade #2. Definitely fiber base paper.

I am just rather surprised that it has such a long exposure scale.

It is certainly a very nice paper. Very white surface and really good Dmax.

Sandy

Alex Hawley · Aug 21, 2006

I've used it in the past, but not for contact printing. How does its exposure scale compare with J&C Nuance?

Mark Layne · Aug 21, 2006

sanking said:
It is Ilford Ilfobrom Galerie FB, Grade #2. Definitely fiber base paper.

I am just rather surprised that it has such a long exposure scale.

It is certainly a very nice paper. Very white surface and really good Dmax.

Sandy

Sandy
Some 20 yrs or so ago I used a lot of Gallerie. It will not change colour in selenium toner but the blacks will strengthen slightly.

Back then both its base and image colour were considered slightly warm compared with Seagull or Elite, and it was a beautiful paper despite the disparaging report Fred Picker gave it when it came to compete with Guilleminot Brilliant.
Mark

noseoil · Aug 21, 2006

At 1.45 it sounds pretty close to the old grade 2 azo, doesn't it? tim

David A. Goldfarb · Aug 21, 2006

It might be hard to compare directly to Nuance, since the Nuance contrast grades don't correspond very precisely to Gallerie or other papers. "Normal" grade Nuance was actually the old grade 3 Expo RF/Emaks, and "Soft" Nuance (which I don't think has been sold yet as such) was the old grade 2. When I compared Gallerie 2 to Expo RF grade 2 directly with a contrasty neg, I found that Expo RF 2 (which will be Nuance "Soft") held detail better at the extremes of the tonal range, but that probably would not be the case with Nuance "Normal" (Expo RF 3).

BBarlow690 · Aug 21, 2006

Sandy, a few years ago when I tested papers and developers Galerie consistently came out at the top or a close second. It's gorgeous, a hair more contrasty than some other grade 2s, but highly usable. Beaten consistently only by Forte Polygrade V in 'blind' comparisons.

I think parts 1 and 2 my articles are still in the subscriber area of the View Camera web site.

Sparky · Aug 21, 2006

Mark Layne said:
Sandy
Some 20 yrs or so ago I used a lot of Gallerie. It will not change colour in selenium toner but the blacks will strengthen slightly.

Back then both its base and image colour were considered slightly warm compared with Seagull or Elite, and it was a beautiful paper despite the disparaging report Fred Picker gave it when it came to compete with Guilleminot Brilliant.
Mark

Yeah, but the guy was making PROFIT off selling the Brilliant. Wish I'd seen through that - but I fell for the hype. I used a bunch of that stuff and Oriental, and I regret I didn't stick with the Galerie. Much more soul to the images!

ongarine · Aug 21, 2006

Ilford Ilfobrom Galerie FB, Grade #2 is an excelent paper souped in Neutol W even if it was not my first choice in the passed twenty years of printing.
It has an unpleasant olive tone and the scale tones is not so good as Oriental Seagull (grade 2) and Agfa Brovira (grade 2 and 3).
For the negatives I done in the 70 and 80, mostly developed in d76 or Rodinal and small part in HC-110, my choice was for the above mentioned papers plus Portriga, I printed on Galerie many different negatives for clients and work associates because they found Galerie the best paper where they negatives must be printed.
I used Selenium toner 1:15 to increase the black and it worked well with a very interesting "dark" look of the prints, no visible change in color, may be a slighly decrease of olive tones.
Take note Sandy, that my comparision was made more than twenty years ago and now printing paper are completely changed.

Rob Skeoch · Aug 21, 2006

Hi Sandy,

I use Galerie as my main paper. I usually use Grade 3, but have some 2 on hand in each of the sizes. I use Dektol to process it.
I think it's a great classic paper, nice whites, nice blacks and no compromise on quality.
Rob Skeoch
www.bigcameraworkshops.com

eddym · Aug 21, 2006

Galerie is my standard paper for neutral tones. I find that toning in selenium warms it just slightly. It's a beautiful paper.

Ilford Galerie FB graded paper

sanking

nlochner

Tom Hoskinson

David A. Goldfarb

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sanking

Alex Hawley

Mark Layne

noseoil

David A. Goldfarb

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BBarlow690

Sparky

ongarine

Rob Skeoch

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eddym

Ilford Galerie FB graded paper

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