Digital BW, The Print

I would generally agree with Daniel.  I like the finish of matte papers or
very silky semi-matte papers like Epson Premium Luster. I don't like glazing
on either.  If I print some of my favourite images using my current glop
setup, though, the matte prints look dull in comparison.  I don't think this
is not the same as "pop" - it's dynamic range which is a little different.
I would prefer the RC paper dMax on the matte paper because I think the
matte surface gives a more 3 dimensional feel - the "not like a photo"
thing.  All of this is very personal though.

I think we are a lot closer to good RC paper prints than we are matte paper
prints.  In my mind, a dMax of 1.6 or so simply doesn't cut it anymore for
B&W (I think it is potentially less of an issue with colour work, though,
particularly that which doesn't have large swathes of black) and I will drop
the surface finish in favour of the dMax.  With glop we are at around 2.5 on
semi matte paper without bronzing.  If we can find a decent way to get a
good protective coating over that (or replace glop with something that still
kills bronzing but leaves a better protective finish) then we are really
there - especially if we have a variety of coating finishes (matt, gloss,
semi-matte etc).  The same dMax on matte would be great but I think it is
likely a lot further away - and we still need a convenient way to really
protect matte prints without destroying that lovely surface; I am not sure
that these two aren't mutually exclusive.

I would argue our goal ought to be dMax of around 2.6 or so (with a bright
white) and the ability to frame without glazing (of course we also want the
archival quality).  In my humble opinion, any glazing largely kills a
photograph (or any other piece of visual art).


> From: Daniel Staver <daniel@...>
> Reply-To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
> Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 00:03:17 +0100
> To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
> Subject: Re: [Digital BW] DMax and Glossy Prints - Are We Kidding Ourselves?
> 
> 
>> So what is this desire of so many of us (myself included) for glossy
>> high DMax print?  Are we conditioned purely by the numerical value of
>> DMax?  Is it really worth it?  Am I trying to rationalize the
>> limitation of my 4000?
> 
> I've experimented a lot with PKN and GLOP in my 2100 lately and have
> done some thinking on this issue.
> 
> The only thing I actually like about glossy papers is their high dmax.
> Besides that one issue I much prefer matte papers in every way. I really
> don't like the reflections, and the texture and feel of the glossy
> papers I've tried just doesn't come near a good cotton rag paper.
> 
> My ideal print would be on Photo Rag with 3.0+ dmax and no flaking. To
> me the whole glossy thing is just an unfortunate compromise that you
> have to deal with in order to get high dmax.
> 
> Several non-photographer friends have also specifically preferred matte
> papers when I've printed pictures for them and given them a choice of
> paper. They've also commented on how much they like the paper, and that
> it looks "different" from ordinary photographs. I've gotten comments
> like this with both EEM and Photo Rag.
> 
> --
> Daniel Staver
> http://daniel.staver.no
>