Digital BW, The Print

Results from a recent gloss/semi-gloss paper screen that I have conducted
are posted in the files section:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint/files/Paper%20Dat
a/

The file is glossypaperscreen.pdf

I tested 14 different glossy and pearl papers:

Brightcube Gloss 
Brightcube ProPhoto Silk
conetech Glossy 
Epson Colorlife 
Epson Photo Paper 
Epson Premium Glossy
Epson Premium Luster
Hawk Mountain Sharpwing
Kodak Ultima Satin 
Kodak Professional EI Premium Photographic Glossy Paper
Kodak Professional EI Premium Photographic Satin Paper
Lumijet Geniune Pearl
Red River Ultra Pro Satin
Tetenal Spectra Jet

I used piezo inks with the piezo driver with the Epson Photo Paper profile.
I'm in the process of running the best of these papers with the MIS FS-N
inks using both the piezo driver and the epson driver.  So far results have
been very comparable with the different ink set.  Reciprocity may vary
slightly with the Epson driver, given that different quantities of inks may
be used for a given gray level.

After printing gray wedges and a test image twice, I sprayed one image with
four quick coats of Krylon UV Resistant Spray (1305) and remeasured the dmax
and checked smear.

GENERAL COMMENTS
Contrary to many comments on this list, there are many glossy papers that
work relatively well with Piezo and MIS FS inks.  I noticed very little
bronzing with the papers that I used and for the most part only the Kodak
papers had problems with reticulation using the piezo driver.  That said,
none of these papers passed a 24 hour smear test, until they were sprayed.
ALL the papers passed the test after they were sprayed.  It is also critical
to but your printer on the low printhead setting and carefully do print hear
alignment.  Gloss papers are not as forgiving as matte papers.  You may also
have trouble with pizza wheels.  Make sure the paper is flat when you print
it.

As you see from the data file unsprayed dmax ranged from 1.63 to 1.91 while
sprayed dmax ranged from 1.79 to 2.18.  None of the papers got worse when
sprayed with Krylon.  I have seen dmax's decrease with Gepe sprays in the
past.  The krylon is cheap and easy to apply.  By far the easiest papers to
spray are the Pearl/Luster/Silk papers that have a rough texture.  The
sprays on these papers are in visible and do not change the surface.  In
contrast the glossy papers take on a pebbled finish after spraying...thus
its probably best to go with the textured papers.  The kodak papers are the
hardiest to spray because they show imperfections in the spray
application...showing gloss slicks and other sections that are more pebbled.

The prints varied in color warmth.  This is roughly captured by the b
reading from the LAB measurements with my spectrocam.  I measured the 50%
gray patch from the 21 step wedge. The higher the number the more warm the
print.  The prints in the 5-6 range are pretty warm;however, the prints made
with these papers using the MIS FS-N ink set and the piezo driver are
beautifully neutral.

By way of cross reference, there are additional silk/luster/pearl papers
that will probably  perform similarly.  For instance Brightcube's Eclipse
line of gloss papers including their duet and semi-gloss papers have the
same surface coating as the prophoto silk but offer heavier weight paper.
My guess is that the Generations Luster paper would also be a good bet.

Hope this helps...I'd be glad to answer questions.  I will try to scan
several sample gray wedges in the next several days and post so that people
can see examples of the warming.

Robert