Digital BW, The Print

Clayton, have you tried Red River's Polar Gloss paper? I'm using it 
with the Epson 2000P BO printing, very slighty warm and deep rich 
blacks. I'm ashamed to say it, but these are surpassing my 4x5 prints 
on Agfa MCC111 (developed in LPD 1:1). The digital print is very 
close to the Agfa but with a little better three dimensional feel.

YMMV,

John

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Clayton Jones" 
<cj@c...> wrote:
> Hello All,
> 
> The purpose of this is a search for a replacement for PhotoRag.  I
> love everything about PR except for the flaking.  Even though I rub
> the paper and use DustOff religiously, there is still the occasional
> flake that ruins a print with a solid black background (of which I
> have quite a few).  Wasted time, ink, and paper.   I would love to
> find a substitute.
> 
> Here is the result of a paper test of Epson Velvet Fine Art (VFA) 
and
> Premier Hot Press (PHP), as compared to PhotoRag (PR), using Eboni 
ink
> with BO printing (Eboni looks different on different papers).
> 
> Paper Color -
> VFA - Bright white, similar to PR.    
> PHP - Slightly warmer than PR (has no OBA's)
> 
> Eboni Ink Color - 
> VFA - Much warmer than on PR, almost as warm as Matte Black ink on 
EEM
> PHP - Slightly warmer than on PR (not much).
> 
> Note: so here we have a warmer paper color with a cooler ink color
> (PHP compared to VFA).  Very interesting.
> 
> 
> Texture - 
> VFA - A mildly textured paper            
> PHP - As smooth as PR to the touch, but in a different way.  Looks
> pebbly under the loupe, where PR looks smoother.
> 
> Affect on BO mid-tone dots - 
> VFA - midtones appear grainier than on PR
> PHP - midtones appear grainier than on PR, similar to VFA
> 
> Contrast - 
> VFA - Very similar to PR.
> PHP - Less than PR, print looked weaker, but was able to correct it
> easily with an adjustment curve.
> 
> Note: An advantage of using PR for final prints when using EEM for
> proofs is that little if any change is needed to the image.  Using 
PHP
> for final images means an adjustment curve must be applied every 
time.
> 
> Dmax (eyeball estimate)
> VFA - A bit less than PR, but looks excellent.
> PHP - Very close to PR, very slightly less, if any.
> 
> Over all look and feel - 
> VFA - In some ways looks richer with more depth than PR.  Very 
pretty,
> but I don't care for the warmer ink tone and the texture is
> distracting.  I prefer a smooth surface.  Too bad, because it's
> beautiful stuff.  I may use it for certain images.
> PHP - Much closer to PR look and feel, but needs contrast
> curve tweaks to match PR.  Prints still have that beautiful BO
> luminance, even with out the OBAs.  Also, PHP is printable on both
> sides.
> 
> Bottom Line - 
> So far, PHP is the winner.  I don't mind the slightly warmer paper 
(no
> OBAs, many think this is a plus), because it stays close to Eboni's
> cooler ink tone on PR.  It's really nice.  
> 
> I'm still looking, any suggestions?
> 
> 
> Regards,
> Clayton
> 
> Info on black and white digital printing at    
> http://www.cjcom.net/digiprnarts.htm