Digital BW, The Print

Hello Keith,

>I just picked up some matte paper that was labeled Premier Matte.  It
>did not specify Matte BW on the label.  Instead, it was labeled
>Premier Matte.  I cross-checked the specifications from the Premier
>site and it matches the 210gsm exactly.  Was the Matte BW known
>previously by this name?

Sorry, I don't know for sure, but the names seem interchangeable.  One
of the greater mysteries in this business is figuring out Premier
Art's paper names.



>Clayton, what characteristics did you find with this paper?  

Well, pretty much what I listed in my original post:  smooth, bright
white, cool toned, 2-sided, alpha cellulose, 210 gsm, relatively
inexpensive, top-notch dmax.  


>I have been looking for a BW paper for some cool tone images and 
>have been dissatisfied with what I have tested so far.  I print 
>on a 2400 with the K3 inkset and am very pleased with my prints.

"Cool tone" is relative, of course, when using a variable tone ink
system.  Basically it means a given K ink will be rendered cooler on
this paper than one of the commonly used warmer tone papers which make
up the majority of matte papers.  So an ABW setting that is moderately
warm on VFA might look neutral on this paper.

One of the problems with using a cooler ABW setting on a paper that
has a warm paper color is that the highlights will look warm and won't
match the darker zones.  So most cool tone papers tend to have a
whiter base color and often have BW in the name.  You can pretty much
count on any "BW" paper being cool toned, although they vary in degree.

Regards,
Clayton


Info on black and white digital printing at    
http://www.cjcom.net/digiprnarts.htm