Tetenal Vario Fine Art paper - any comments?

[Kevin Caulfield]

I just bought a packet of 30 sheets of Tetenal TT Vario Fine Art SW (I think FB) paper in the 7 x 9.5 inch size. Any comments or opinions on this paper would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.

 

[Maine-iac]

I just bought a packet of 30 sheets of Tetenal TT Vario Fine Art SW (I think FB) paper in the 7 x 9.5 inch size. Any comments or opinions on this paper would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.

I used this paper extensively while living in France. It's really Agfa MCC repackaged under the Tetenal name, but usually considerably cheaper. I got identical results from it and from Agfa. Here in the U.S., it isn't sold under the Tetenal name, so I'm forced to buy the Agfa, but it's my standard paper of choice for most of my work.

Larry

 

[Kevin Caulfield]

Thanks for the info, Larry. I did one test print on it last night, and I'd agree that it seems to respond very similarly to Agfa, so your observation is right.

 

[blackmelas]

What developer?

What developers/dilutions have you used with Vario fine art? I've tried Ilford Multigrade 1+9 and Neutol 1+7 in two separate printing sessions and I was getting fairly flat results across the mid-tones from good negs with well separated tones. This weekend to remedy this I was going to try Tetenal developers; Centrabrom and Dokumol both individually and split grade developing...

James

 

[Kevin Caulfield]

I used Ilford Multigrade 1+9 also. My print is on the Standard Gallery, posted today, "Gibson's Steps".

 

[skahde]

Tetenal carries two different fibre papers from two different manufacturers. Tetenal Baryt Vario = Agfa MCC, Tetenal Vario Fine Art = Kentmere Fineprint VC.

Stefan

 

[Kevin Caulfield]

Thanks, but...What is it's Tetenal Vario Fine Art Baryt? Is that Agfa or Kentmere?

 

[blackmelas]

I used Ilford Multigrade 1+9 also. My print is on the Standard Gallery, posted today, "Gibson's Steps".

Very nice Kevin! Not flat at all. I'm inspired to give it another try.
Best regards,
James

 

[Kevin Caulfield]

Very nice Kevin! Not flat at all. I'm inspired to give it another try.
Best regards,
James

Thanks, James. I'm pleased to be inspirational.

 

[skahde]

Thanks, but...What is it's Tetenal Vario Fine Art Baryt? Is that Agfa or Kentmere?

Sorry, one "Baryt" got lost in translation . Once again:

TT BARYT Vario = Agfa MCC
TT BARYT Vario Fine Art = Kentmere Fineprint VC

Stefan

 

[George Papantoniou]

Sorry, one "Baryt" got lost in translation . Once again:

TT BARYT Vario = Agfa MCC
TT BARYT Vario Fine Art = Kentmere Fineprint VC

Stefan

I tried Baryt Vario for the first time Wednesday and my first impression is that it doesn't look like Agfa MCC. It seems like a really decent VC paper, with good tonal separation and lacking the "hard highlights" that some other VC suffer from.

I'll try to print more of it today and tomorrow and now that you've mentioned it I'll make a comparison test with Agfa (if I've got any).

 

[skahde]

I tried Baryt Vario for the first time Wednesday and my first impression is that it doesn't look like Agfa MCC.

This may well be the case. Agfa MCC changes quite a bit in appearance with developer (warm/cold) and drying. When dried hot the base gets warm to chamois, whereas dried cold MCC is just off-white. My impression is that in addition MCC changed a bit from about 2000 to 2002/3.

In TT's home country their sources for papers is an open secret (TT Vario Comfort is Ilford MG IV RC, TT Vario Ultra is Agfa MCP). Besides that I'm using TT bary vario and Agfa MCC side by side depending on format and they are interchangable in my hands, never used the cold tone paper (TT baryt vario fine art), though.

Stefan

 

[Maine-iac]

Sorry, one "Baryt" got lost in translation . Once again:

TT BARYT Vario = Agfa MCC
TT BARYT Vario Fine Art = Kentmere Fineprint VC

Stefan

This is helpful. It was the TT BARYT Vario that I used in France, hence the Agfa. I actually think that the Fine Art might originally have been the same as Ilford Multigrade, but that it's been farmed out to Kentmere now by Tetenal, probably when Ilford underwent its bankruptcy hiccup.

Larry

 

[George Papantoniou]

I have to apologise, to Stefan first of all, because I found out that I was wrong.

After extensive testing (I just had to do one test strip...) I found out that TT Baryt Vario and Agfa MCC are the same paper... I just wasn't familiar enough with the Agfa product to see it from the beginning... I spoke to a friend that has visited the Tetenal plant, though, and he told me that he has seen the production happening there. Could that mean that it is Agfa that repackages the Tetenal paper ???? Or is it only my friend that was misleaded by the Tetenal people, making him think that they fabricate the paper themselves ?

 

[Tom Stanworth]

Another factor for people who like big prints is that I have seen the Tetenal FB paper advertised in 27x20, which sounds a lot better than the stubby 24x20 size to me.

 

[skahde]

I spoke to a friend that has visited the Tetenal plant, though, and he told me that he has seen the production happening there.

If your friend was able to actually see how they made the paper, its sensitivity must have been way below that of any Agfa paper I know of . Seriously, Tetenal does a lot of cutting and packaging from bulk rolls, and this was probably what your friend saw. Tetenal definitely doesn't do any coating on their own. As we are on it: TT Baryt Vario aka Agfa MCC is also available in rolls 101,6 cm x 10m but may not allways be in stock at Tetenal.

Stefan

 

[George Papantoniou]

If your friend was able to actually see how they made the paper, its sensitivity must have been way below that of any Agfa paper I know of . Seriously, Tetenal does a lot of cutting and packaging from bulk rolls, and this was probably what your friend saw.

Well, he saw people with big brushes coating the paper...

So, you say here that Tetenal didn't ever make ANY one of their papers ? Is that why Art Sepia looked to me so much like Kentona ??? What about WORK RC, was it Ilfospeed ?

 

[skahde]

So, you say here that Tetenal didn't ever make ANY one of their papers ? Is that why Art Sepia looked to me so much like Kentona ??? What about WORK RC, was it Ilfospeed ?

I don't know if Tetenal ever made any paper on their own and at what time they stopped. All I know is that as of today they dont. Maybe rjr can dig up some more info for us if we ask kind enough.

Stefan