Photography News Issue 65

Photography News | Issue 65 | photographynews.co.uk

First tests

PermaJet FBPearl 300From £32.95

Specs

Prices A4 25 sheets £32.95 £1.26 a sheet; A3 25 sheets £64.95 £2.60 a sheet; A3+ 25 sheets £81.95 £3.28 a sheet; A2 25 sheets £125.95 £5.04 a sheet; 17inx15m £114.95; 24inx15m £144.95; 44inx15m £259.95 Compatibility Dye and pigment inks Base weight 300gsm Thickness 0.34mm Whiteness 94 Optical brightening agents No Coatings Single coated acid-free Contact permajet.com

PermaJet’s media stable goes from strength to strength as its product range expands in both enthusiast and professional sectors. At recent The Photography Show PermaJet launched FB Pearl 300, a paper that replaces the now discontinued FB Satin 310 with immediate effect. FB Pearl joins PermaJet’s fibre based baryta collection and is free of optical brightening agents to give great-looking prints with good resistance to fading. Pearl finishes can vary from a fine stipple with a satin sheen to a smoother, semi-gloss finish. FB Pearl 300 sits in the latter category and has a lovely, air-dried gloss look with an off-white base. The paper is free of optical brightening agents (OBAs) so you don’t expect brilliant white, and this paper is not as creamy as some

non-OBAs papers. I like the restrained, white base that doesn’t glare and really lets the image show off, whether it is colour or black &white. My test prints were made on an Epson SC-P800 with Epson inks. Generic profiles are available from the PermaJet website. I createdmy own for colour andmono prints using anX-rite i1 Studio outfit then went through my repertoire of test images and threw in a few new files, too. Subject matter ranged frompolar bears in the snow to moody landscapes rich in dark tones. I loved the results I got from FB Pearl 300. My print featuring a colour test chart looked lively with crisp, snappy contrast and rich colours came out nicely saturated without being excessively over the top or garish. But delicate pastels came out well, too, and didn’t seem overpowered by stronger colours. Accuracy was spot on. For my monochromes, the characteristic I look for in a paper is the ability to deliver a slightly contrasty look and FB Pearl 300 certainly gives me that. A good Dmax is promised by the paper’s spec and it delivers on that front and the blacks looked impressively deep without any muddiness. This FB Pearl 300 is very well suited to exhibition and competition work

Image FB Pearl 300 gives plenty of depth and impact in finished images

lovely was accompanied by smooth mid-tones and snappy highlights. I think FB Pearl 300 is very well suited to exhibition and competition work where you need a paper that presents images at their best with plenty of depth and impact. And it does this, but without compromising delicate tonal transitions or losing crisp highlights. On finished prints, whether viewing from straight on or obliquely, there were no distracting reflections or surface glare in the pearl surface finish. Prints also handledwell andproved resistant to fingerprints, scuffing and surface abrasions in normal situations. If youdo inadvertently land a greasy finger in the print surface, it’s not a disaster and it should be removable without any permanent harm done. WC black performance

Verdict

PermaJet’s new baby is a lovely paper that performs very well indeed. It’s great with a wide subject range and seems very well suited to contrasty, richly coloured scenes and gutsy black & whites, too. The subtle surface and laid-back white base helps to show off images at their best. If you’re after a smooth, semi gloss coupled with the ability to show off a wide range of subject matter successfully, PermaJet FB Pearl 300 is worth a seriously long look.

Pros Great for vibrant colour and monochrome images and good

with delicate hues, too Cons Nothing of note