Digital BW, The Print

I've been experimenting with fiber-based inkjet papers using ABW K3 PK
in an Epson Stylus Photo R2400, I figured I'd share my results.

These are the papers I've tried and the basic numbers I've
measured using PrintFix Pro:

				Dmax	Dmin	Lab (Dmin)
Museo Silver Rag		2.54	0.04	96.48, 0.42,1.17
Innova FibaPrint US Glossy	2.50	0.05	95.45, 1.59, -1.36
Harman Glossy FB Al		2.37	0.03	97.61, 0.63, -0.20
Moab Colorado Glossy		2.36,	0.05	95.49, 1.69, -2.35
Moab Colorado Satine		2.39,	0.05,	95.30, 1.87, -1.74
Ilford Gold Fiber Silk		2.43,	0.02,	97.90, 0.92, 0.16


In terms of sharpness, Harman Glossy FB Al and Ilford Gold Fiber Silk
are extremely close, doubtlessly the result of both being baryta papers. 
The Museo Silver Rag appears to be the least sharp of them, softening
detail quite a bit.

All of the papers exhibit some gloss-differential with the K3 inkset;
this comes as no surprise since the ink itself provides some gloss.
Subjectively, I'd say the papers are largely equivalent in this respect.
Of course, gloss differential is most noticeable in areas of highlight
with no detail; even a very thin layer of ink brings down the 
differential substantially.

Museo Silver Rag stands out as having a unique surface texture, with a
very fine pattern of striations running across the paper.  Harman Glossy
FB Al is very glossy and seems to have a slight bit of a sheen.  The
Moab Colorado papers are just what the names suggest; the Glossy paper
is reasonably glossy and the Satine a little less so; both papers are
smooth fiber.  Innova FibaPrint UltraSmooth Glossy is a little glossier
than Colorado Glossy.  The Ilford Gold Fiber Silk seems to have the most
"natural" FB surface.

The numbers tell the story in terms of surface tone; Ilford Gold Fiber
Silk is *slightly* on the warm side of neutral, Silver Rag is pretty
warm, Harman Glossy FB Al is *slightly* cool and the other papers all
appear a bit blue in direct comparison.

My personal conclusions:

The two baryta papers stand out from the group; I prefer the very
natural appearance of the Ilford paper over the slight sheen of the
Harman paper.

Museo Silver Rag is a special-purpose paper, perhaps best-suited for
traditional portraits where some softening of detail is desired and
the warm base lends a traditional look.

My favorite paper of the group is Ilford Gold Fiber Silk, which
pleasantly surprises me since it is also substantially less expensive
than the other papers.

Speaking of expense, I haven't added-up how much I've spent on paper
for this test and I don't think I want to :-)  The good news is, none
of the papers are clunkers - I'll use them all up eventually, though
Silver Rag will go more slowly since it's really a special-purpose paper.

Dana