Which is better, Glossy or Matte for Photo Printing?

[Nifty]

bobglen97, great post! That was info that was up to par with some of our "InkJet Masters"

Welcome to the forum.

 

[bobglen97]

I currently use a canon i950 with media street (formerly inkgetgoodies) inks and carts.....I print 200-300 8.5 x 11 borderless photos per month. My first printer for photos was a canon BJ600, mostly used for making brochures and enlargements from scanned prints. After 3 years I had worn that printer out, but had been introduced to some (lots) free samples of very high quality inkjet photo paper. I tried an Epson printer next, but was not happy with the ink costs or clogging, but it did print better than the BJ600 (when it did not clog), so when I moved to all digital, I picked up a canon i550.

My current glossy paper preferences are listed below:

If cost were no object, I would print exclusively on NCR Professional series high gloss photo paper. 12mil/80lbs/305g 100+ brightness.
This is a "super gloss" finish that has the depth of a hand rubbed, laquer paint job, and excellent color reproduction. I have found nothing else like it, but even buying it by the carton at Sam's club it costs about 0.55/sht.

My next favorite is Kodak Ultima paper....you have to adjust the printer controls a bit to eliminate pooling of black inks, but it has an excellent high gloss finish, good feel to it, and excellent color reproduction.....too bad it costs 0.40-0.42/sht.

Ilford classic gloss is right up there with Kodak Ultima, but comes in at 0.50/sht (with shipping).

For everyday printing I now use the Kirtland (made by ilford). The gloss is high, it has excellent color reproduction, but feels a bit thinner than the the standard Ilford classic. But...the price is right, and it is a very nice paper.

I have used both the Epson Glossy paper (sold at costco) and the Kodak premium gloss before the Kirkland paper was available. While they both provide very nice prints, the gloss finish is much duller, especially when compared with the papers listed above.

 

[Nifty]

I currently use a canon i950 with media street (formerly inkgetgoodies) inks and carts.....I print 200-300 8.5 x 11 borderless photos per month.

bobglen97, I'd sure be interested to know what your printing so much. Are these flyers / marketing materials? For the majority of these 200-300 prints are you using Kirkland?

Thanks!

 

[bobglen97]

I currently use a canon i950 with media street (formerly inkgetgoodies) inks and carts.....I print 200-300 8.5 x 11 borderless photos per month.

bobglen97, I'd sure be interested to know what your printing so much. Are these flyers / marketing materials? For the majority of these 200-300 prints are you using Kirkland?

Thanks!

90% is photos......I currently have about 15,000 images (90 GB) on file...most of it not printed.....using Kirkland paper and bulk ink my cost per letter size print is about 0.24. So it really does not cost much more than 4 x 6 prints from a lab, and it is not much more than I used spend on 4x6 prints from 35mm. I have always done a lot of shooting for my personal use, but now the output is always letter, rather than 4x6 and only the shots I choose. The output from my cameras is 3200 x 2400, so there is minimal cropping when printed on letter size.

I store my prints in acid free, clear, archival sheet protectors in 2" binders and have not had any issues with fading (some are nearly 3 years old). For display work (and print sales) I use costco for prints up to 12 x 18 ....with their pricing I see no benefit in purchasing a large format printer. For larger prints I use Shutterbug Digital Photo (http://www.shutterbugimages.com/).

I do some commercial work (portraits, model/actor portfolio, graduation and project installation documentation) on the side to support "my habit". I use the inkjet prints primarily as proofs, but they also work well for model's portfolios, headshots and compcards, as these are not "displayed", and need to be updated yearly anyway, and it saves the client a lot of money. The Kirkland gloss is very suitable for this application, producing very nice B&W 8x10 glossy.

Greeting and special occasion cards are another application where inkjet printing is suitable for the finished product.

If you are interested in seeing some of my work, I have galleries at.....http://www.pbase.com/bobglen97

Bob

 

[bobglen97]

Luster and Matte surfaced papers.

Since I do not do many prints on luster paper, I have only tried 2, and settled on Ilford Classic Pearl early on. The Kodak Premium Satin worked ok, but the Iflord produced superior results in terms of color accuracy and "depth". The fact that Ilford classic pearl is a resin coated paper also weighed heavily in it's favor, as it produces a longer lasting image, though it should be handled by the edges when it comes out of the printer and allowed to "dry" without stacking.

It does not show fingerprints, and there is no ink rub off. Aside from prints where someone prefers a luster finish, I primarily use it for wallet size photos and also for my personal business cards (which display a reduced size photo on them).

For matte surface prints, I have settled on Epson Matte Paper Heavyweight. It is resonably priced, and can be found on sale for $10/50 sheets. At 44lb, it has a somewhat "light" feel to it, but accepts photos well. The advantage to it's light weight is that it is excellent for custom cards, as it is easy to fold. The back accepts ink well (for inside the card) and the average person will not notice the slight difference in brightness between the two sides. I typically will increase the ink print density when using this paper, to give more punch to the image (I am using dye inks).
I purchase the appropriate size envelopes from Office Depot at $7.00/100.

I am interested in trying the Epson enhanced matte, and will probably pick up a package next time I find it on sale.

I tend to stick with things that I find work for me (and my personal tastes), so there are many fine papers out there that I have not used. I did use some Red River Paper Frio gloss 7 x 10 cards last year and was pleased with the results, though some color adjustments were needed. I am interested intrying thier 78lb 12 mil Utra Pro Gloss to see how it compares with the NCR.

Bob

 

[drc023]

I think you'll be pleased with Red River Ultra Pro. I use both the gloss and luster. I haven't tried the 78# but the 68# UP is excellent.

 

[rjr3684]

I have just ordered the red river sampler pack of 13x19 photo paper for $24.95 . I will report results as I use the paper.

For those interested the kit provides 2 each of the following papers (total of 22 sheets):
http://redrivercatalog.com/samples/13x19sampler.htm

66lb. Polar Gloss 65lb. Premium Matte 2-sided
66lb. Polar Satin 76lb. Premium Matte
68lb. UltraPro Gloss 64lb. Aurora Art
62lb. UltraPro Satin 76lb. LuxArt
47lb. Premium Matte 64lb. Dourian Art 2-sided
50lb. Premium Matte 2-sided