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View Full Version : Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Pearl surface sensitivity--solved



mdarnton
3-Nov-2014, 13:50
I had read, and also experienced, the supposed surface sensitivity of this paper. It's my favorite paper, but I have had to be very careful handling the prints, as others have noted. This weekend I made a few prints on it that were mostly black, and the surface quickly started to look messed up. I didn't quite know what to do, but wanted to save the prints, so when I got to work today, I took some odorless paint thinner and a paper towel and wiped the surface off, hoping that the marks were, perhaps, finger grease. After a good wiping, the prints (which were two-days' dry before I wiped them!) are perfect, and look like they're going to stay that way.

After doing this, and looking at the results, I believe that the problems I've had in the past were not due to a sensitive surface, but due to ink overspray which is forming a light, non-integrated coat of ink dust over the surface of the print. Because it's just dust, it's very easy to disrupt, ruining the look of the surface. In my case, at least, this is what's so sensitive to marking, not the paper itself. A very thorough wiping with paper towels didn't damage the paper at all, much to my surprise--there are no fine scratches, and the sheen is now totally uniform. Once all the ink dust was wiped off, the print looks much better and is also immune to the kind of handling problems it had before. My whole attitude about this paper, which is the only paper I've found that looks like old photo paper, has completely changed!

Dan Quan
1-Jan-2015, 10:33
I love it when a vision comes together.

:)

earlnash
1-Jan-2015, 16:58
Try toggling between "relative colorimetric" versus "perceptual" settings in PS. One or the other, I can't remember which, has a tendency to overload the ink where there are very saturated areas.