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Ilford.....RC Deluxe Vs RC Portfolio

pentaxuser

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Not that I have noticed but there is a large difference in price in the U.k. OK, Portfolio is heavier.Does that justify the price difference? I don't know.

pentaxuser
 

tedr1

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I have samples of these two papers, the image tone looks the same in both, the paper base white tone also seems to be identical, the Portfolio paper is much heavier.
 

rrusso

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I've only used one version of Ilford's portfolio paper - for postcards - but I didn't notice a difference as far as image quality when compared with the standard weight paper.

If I had to guess I'd say that the portfolio paper is merely thicker, maybe to better withstand frequent handling?

The descriptions do list the surface finish as being "44M" for the Deluxe paper, and "44K" for the portfolio, but I don't know what that means.
 
OP
OP

CMoore

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Yeah...glad you mentioned the 'K' and 'M'.....i also noticed that, and i also do not know what it signifies.
 

kreeger

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To my eyes, MG Portfolio color looked the same to me compared to regular MG, which is Medium Weight base stock. Portfolio is Double Weight, and to my eyes Pearl is the same. That's the only one I have tried so far. I did a test where I printed the same image with both papers together and they were too close to call.
 

Craig

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I love Cooltone. I much prefer it to regular MGIV. Developing time has an effect on tone, the longer you leave it the stronger the tone. There used to be a cooltone developer as well, sadly discontinued now.

Obviously the tone's desirability depends on your subject, but for what I do I really dislike warmtone papers, the colder the better for me.
 

images39

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I've used the Cooltone for photos of metallic objects with nice effect. For example, I used it for photos of a sports car with metallic silver paint finish, and it was effective for that. I haven't used it for landscapes or portraits, and not sure if would.

Dale
 

Craig

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I mainly do landscapes, and particularly for mountains in winter it is effective. Also effective for male portraiture too.
 

MattKing

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I really like the RC Cooltone. It even tones well in toners that give you a warmer tone.
 

LarsAC

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There is also Warmtone RC paper with two surfaces. Lots of choices.

I used MG iV RC glossy so far, but tried Portfolio in matte for the postcard exchange and like the surface more than the glossy one. Image tone is similar as already mentioned by others.

Lars
 

MattKing

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Tony-S said:
I'm curious what toners you use with this paper, including dilutions and times. Thanks, Matt.
Click to expand...
I'm afraid I'm not going to be much help here, because my approach to toning the RC Cooltone has been almost entirely unscientific.
I've used Selenium of course, which emphasizes the cool tone.
The paper also gives rich warm brown/blacks with Kodak Sepia II toner. I tend to tone partially, varying the bleach time to adjust the amount of colour change. I also use bleach that is moderately diluted, and replenish the bleach regularly. And a Sepia first, selenium after split can be very attractive..
The paper also responds in an interesting manner to Berg Brown toner - which gives a different colour if you change the toning time.
Sorry about the lack of rigour - I tend to "play" when the toning baths are involved.
 

Tony-S

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Good enough, thanks for your response. Do you believe your process adds archival quality to the RC prints? I have Berg's Brown already but I've never used it with this paper.
 

MattKing

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Tony-S said:
Do you believe your process adds archival quality to the RC prints?
Click to expand...
I have no idea, and don't really worry about it, as lonng as it doesn't impair longevity.
The archival quality comes mostly from properly fixing and washing the prints. The RC substrate has advantages and disadvantages when it comes to longevity - it is more resistant than fibre paper to some types of physical damage, but may interact with some chemical and environmental factors (EDIT) that fibre paper is resistant to.
Toning tends to reveal incorrect fixing and washing, so in that way it does help.
 
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