A hefty card stock for mounting photographs

 I have searched the world over for a decent thick cardstock to mount my photos on. I finally found the perfect paper. It is:

Accent Opaque White Cardstock

This is a very substantial cardstock. Works well for making cards. I use it  to mount my photos on. It is made by international paper and is available at various outlets.

• EXTREMELY HEAVY-WEIGHT CARDSTOCK - At 97 bright white, our 120lb. Cardstock is brighter and thicker than other card stocks and features a smooth surface resulting in crisp, vibrant prints with minimal show-through

I love this paper.

I use a spray adhesive to mount my photos on this paper. A J-Roller comes in handy to ensure good contact is made although hand pressure works as well. I trim to size using a paper trimmer.

Red River Paper 45lb Zeppelin SemiGloss Double Sided Inkjet Paper Review

The 45lb Zeppelin SemiGloss Double Side paper from Red River is a beautiful paper. The paper has a smooth luxurious feel. It prints very well on my Canon MG6200. I have just received this paper and I think I am going to love it for making photobooks. The paper is rather thin, but I see no bleeding from images on either side to the other. I have used only the 8.5x11 size.The paper is not super white. A very nice paper and highly recommended.

Review: Photo Printing on Wassau White Metallic Cardstock

I purchased some Wassau white metallic cardstock from Office Depot a while back. I thought I would try printing photos using the paper on my Canon inkjet printer. The plain paper sparkles in the light on the print side. The reverse side does not have the metallic finish.

The first two items I printed were dark and while the glistening effect is nice, the contrast is low and these prints were not anything special. Next I printed a lighter less contrasty print of a butterfly (shown below). I thought it came out pretty good. You will not get highly saturated contrasty prints with this paper. You will get a shimmering dreamy image that is suitable for use in some situations.

I set my printer up for medium glossy. I did not adjust any of the other settings. You might get more contrast by upping the saturation (increasing the ink levels). I didn't try this. For certain images and applications this paper is worth a try.

I searched for the Wassau metallic paper online and really couldn't find much on it. It appears that Wassau sold it's specialty paper division to an investment firm in June, 2013. I don't know when and how the paper will be marketed now.

Scan of image printed on Wassau Metallic paper

Using Caffenol as Paper Developer

I have been doing some darkroom printing with Ultrafine VC ELITE Glossy Variable Contrast RC Paper. I have printed from film negatives, inkjet negatives, laserjet negatives and paper negatives. I typically develop with Dektol, but was interested in trying Caffenol. I like the coffee stain look on the prints and I don't have to worry about disposing of the developer. And it's relatively cheap. Last night I made a couple of prints from a paper negative printed on laser printer. I developed in the following solution:

8 oz water
2 tsp washing soda (Arm and Hammer)
4 tsp instant coffee

I exposed for approximately 1 sec. I was amazed how quickly they appeared in the developer, less than 1 min. I washed under water for about a minute then dipped the paper in fixer for 2-3 minutes.

I like the look of the results and must do more. 

Caffenol Developed Print from Inkjet Negative - Prometheus Moth

Brownish Staining on Cyanotypes

I have been making a few cyanotypes recently. I have successfully made cyanotypes before. But now, I seem to be consistently getting brown staining for some reason. The staining is on the entire image - light and dark areas inclusive. I am using paper negatives whereas I was using film negatives before. Some of the paper negatives have been oiled. My setup is as follows: I have a glass base. I lay the sensitized paper on top of the glass. I lay my negative on top of the sensitized sheet. Finally I cover with another piece of glass and develop in my UV exposure unit. I have tried different papers with similar results. The interesting thing is that where the paper negative has not covered the sensitized paper, the paper develops into the rich Prussian blue I would expect for the entire image. Does this process not like my paper negatives? I will try a film negative and report the results. Has anyone had similar results?

Papers for Cyanotypes

I have used the following papers with success for cyanotypes using the old and new processes. They are listed in my order of preference.

1) The Langton Prestige - Daler Rowney - Hot Press, 140lb, 300 gsm - very smooth finish. Able to maintain details.

2) XL Series - Canson - Cold Press, 140lb, 300 gsm - very smooth, more sensitive to exposure than #1

3) Montval - Canson - Cold Press, 140lb, 300 gsm

4) 300 Series - Strathmore  - Cold Press, 140lb, 300 gsm - rougher surface, not capable of as much detail

5) Watercolor Cards - Strathmore - - Cold Press, 140lb, 300 gsm - make nice cyanotype cards

Here are the links for Canson, Daler Rowney, and Strathmore.

The papers are available from AC Moore, Hobby Lobby, Michaels, Dick Blick, Daniel Smith and other stores.

More HP Photosmart D5460

I have had this printer since Christmas 2008. I have reviewed this model previously. Until recently, I had used generic or Kodak paper. Recently, I used glossy HP Advanced Photo Paper. The results were fantastic. I was really impressed with the colors and the finish of the print. The results were noticably better than any other brand of paper I had used. The printer reads a code on the back of the paper and adjusts the printer for the paper. I highly recommend this paper for the D5460.