# Photo Paper advice



## STEMI_RN (Sep 21, 2013)

I just bought a Canon Pixma Pro-100 thanks to the incredibly good deal post rebate (printer and paper cost me $80) and I'm looking for some advice/suggestions on paper. I had to buy a 50 sheet pack of Canon SG-201 Semigloss 13"x19". So far, I like it for everyday printing. I'm looking for something a little higher quality for gallery quality prints. (mostly landscape/nature. Not a lot of portraits) Don't mind spending the money for $3 a sheet for really fine paper. What can everybody recommend. Also if anybody has any recommendations to replace the canon paper for a little less money, I'm open to those suggestions too.

Thanks for the help.


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## privatebydesign (Sep 21, 2013)

I use Epson printers and pretty much do everything on Ultra Premium Lustre 260.

But I can't recommend getting some sample packs highly enough, I had great fun trying loads and playing with printer profiles before settling for the Premium that came highly recommended from several sources.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=sample+packs+photo+paper&N=0&InitialSearch=yes&sts=ma&Top+Nav-Search=


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## golubiewac1 (Sep 21, 2013)

+1 on the sample packs. For a top quality paper I use Museum Etching, sold by Canon and Hahnemuhle.


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## eml58 (Sep 21, 2013)

All my printing is done with Museo Paper, Portfolio Rag, Silver Rag & Fine Art, they do cut sheet in most sizes, I use cut sheet but also Rolls as I print on an Epson 4900. Excellent paper, much better than the Canon/Epson Papers I feel, but it is more expensive.


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## alexanderferdinand (Oct 4, 2013)

Its fun and exciting checking out papers.
Enjoy this and you will find "your" kind of paper.
My favorites: Hahnemühle Fine Art Baryta 350g/sqm; Tecco, the 300g Baryta, Glossy the Epson papers are good with my Epson.


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## Middleman (Aug 4, 2014)

If you're looking for gallery quality output, my favourite papers would probably be Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Bright White 310, Bamboo 290 and Fine Art Pearl 285. For extra glossy they have a new paper out now called Photo Silk Baryta 310 which looks a lot like Ilford's Gold Fibre Silk and has an extremely smooth surface and firm back/texture making it ideal for really nice portraiture work. I used to use a lot of papers also from Konica (QP Gloss/Silk) and Ilford also (Omnijet) but the resins used in the products weren't really ideal for longevity (they began to yellow quite quickly) so I eventually dropped them...


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## JustMeOregon (Aug 5, 2014)

Everyone that prints enough of their own photos these days will eventually discover Red River Paper.

http://www.redrivercatalog.com/

I'm responsible for the care & feeding of an Epson 4900 and I'm not at all shy about spending money on quality supplies. I print _a lot_ and these guys offer top-notch quality and the best customer service in the business. Period.


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## mackguyver (Aug 5, 2014)

JustMeOregon said:


> Everyone that prints enough of their own photos these days will eventually discover Red River Paper.
> 
> http://www.redrivercatalog.com/
> 
> I'm responsible for the care & feeding of an Epson 4900 and I'm not at all shy about spending money on quality supplies. I print _a lot_ and these guys offer top-notch quality and the best customer service in the business. Period.


+1 on Red River - I always found it to be an excellent match for my Epson printers. I ditched the photo printer for many years (waiting for color profiling to catch up) but bit on the Pixma Pro 100 deal as well a year or so ago for my personal printing.

The best paper I've found for the Pixma is the Canon Pro Platinum paper. I'm more of a matte paper guy, but I have to say that the Pro Platinum produces some amazing glossy prints and comes close to the metallic prints in terms of depth & color saturation. Keep an eye on Canon USA's store for deals - last year I purchased several packs of the Pro Platinum 8x10 paper in a buy one, get four free deal with free shipping and extra paper (4x6 packs) for spending over $50. I spent $67 and got nearly $600 in free paper. Really. I have enough paper to last me many, many years now! 

Now if they'd just do the same thing with the ink, I'd be all set, but I think there's some kind of conspiracy going on here ;D


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## scyrene (Aug 5, 2014)

Depends what you're after. I love Canon Photo Paper Pro Platinum (various sizes) for high gloss prints. Their semi-gloss paper is good for slightly less shine. Hahnemühle papers are also great - you can get mixed tester packs to see which you prefer.


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## mdmphoto (Aug 14, 2014)

I got that canon paper deal last year too - got a bunch of premium pro letter- and 4x6: it seems to be an end-of-year event. Anyway, I have an epson 3800 and use epson exhibition fibre, premium luster, ultra-premium presentation paper matte, and canvas (old product, haven't had a chance to try the new canvas products), mostly. I did like Ilford Gold Fibre Silk, but now that they're gone I lean on the exhibition fiber while still hanging on to my last few sheets of the Ilford for special projects. The exhibition fibre finish is similar to the ilford gold fibre: they're both baryta papers that feature a muted sheen, as opposed to a gloss, finish, a very muted texture, and work well for color and BW photo prints as they have a great dynamic range.
I've been using Red River Polar Pearl metallic, and like the print results, but am curious about longevity; info on the web seems mostly ambiguous. Prints have a cool-white metallic sheen to them that makes my landscapes, cityscapes, and architecture shots seem 3D-ish. Red River offers a buffet of different papers in various sizes, including post- and greeting cards. In some cases they also compare their papers to other more well-known brands' offerings. I am intrigued, but as I said, I would like some definitive word on longevity. 
Anyway, I got to the papers I use after trying many, and many other papers; some by suggestions from people I knew, some suggestions from people at esteemed sites like this one, some from marketeers' spiels, and some 'cause they were on sale at local shops, like the dear departed Calumet Photo.
I'd be open to suggestions from others for types of papers that might yield my kind of results, then diddle around with the different brands and marketing jargon on my own - other than avoiding anything that is universally considered to be crap; i.e. "photo paper" from office-product warehouses...


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## Famateur (Aug 15, 2014)

mackguyver said:


> JustMeOregon said:
> 
> 
> > Everyone that prints enough of their own photos these days will eventually discover Red River Paper.
> ...



Ditto here. I didn't even have a printer yet (but I knew I'd be looking), and when that paper deal came along, I stocked up. Then I got the Pixma Pro-100 with the rebate and paper deal from Adorama in June. The rebate just arrived this week, so when all was said and done, I ended up with 250 sheets of Canon Pro Luster 8x10 paper (~ $175), 50 sheets of 13x19 Canon Semi-Gloss (~ $35) and the Printer (~ $389), a combined value of about $600, for a grand total of about $70.

So far, I'm loving the prints. Took some figuring to get the color management right between the printer driver and Lightroom, but I think I have it figured out now. Holding up a portrait of my daughter to my calibrated IPS display, I was giddy at the result.


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