resin coated versus fibre based?

[kevin kelly]

Hello I'm new to black and white printing and would like to know the pros and cons of fibre based and resin coated papers? Which is more permanent? What cost? (A few people have said I'm mad to bother with traditional techniques-I maybe a touch insane! But it probably helps...!

[Gene McCluney]

For such a broad general question, here is a broad general answer. Resin coated paper is quicker to process, and has probably a shorter lifespan, but the debate is still out on that. Resin coated is in general a little cheaper to purchase than fibre.

Fibre based paper is the choice of fine art printers, has greater depth, can be processed archivally, but takes longer in the darkroom to finish (Dev, fix, wash).

[Oren Grad]

You should search the archives here and at other discussion boards - there's been endless discussion on this, though much of it more heat than light.

Briefly:

Which looks better is a matter of personal taste. In my experience, whether the tonal characteristics of the specific brand of paper are a good match to the characteristics of the negative I want to print is as important or more important than whether a paper is RC or FB.

Re permanence, there is some evidence that treating RC prints with a protective toner (such as selenium toner) or a silver stabilizer (such as Agfa Sistan or Fuji AgGuard) goes a long way toward preventing the sort of spectacular short-term deterioration of framed prints on display that happens occasionally, and that understandably has scared many people away from RC. Stability of treated RC prints on very long-term display is unclear; however, long-term stability of RC prints in dark storage under reasonable environmental conditions should be excellent.

Finally: RC processing is much less of a nuisance, which likely means you'll print more, which means you'll learn faster. So if you have no experience in printing at all, that's where I'd start. Once you understand how to make a good print, there will be plenty of opportunity to expand your horizons and explore FB.

[Gene McCluney]

Many of us that print our own b/w images use a combinaton of RC and fibre. There is no need to exclude one for the other.

[Oren Grad]

Many of us that print our own b/w images use a combinaton of RC and fibre. There is no need to exclude one for the other.

Yes. I keep my darkroom stocked with both.

[kevin kelly]

Thanks guys.

Being new to it I'll start with resin coated ans hone my skills.

[Greg Lockrey]

In college we weren't allowed to use resin papers because it didn't have the D-max of fiber-based, but that was about 30 years ago. Don't know if there has been any improvement to match fiber-based paper. Never got into resin myself. Never got into multi-grade paper either.

[Brian C. Miller]

One thing I learned early on with RC is the presence of built-in developer. With a developer like Dektol the print will seem to develop almost immediately. I have control with Ilford Multigrade (widely available), and Freestyle (http://www.freestylephoto.biz/sc_main.php) has Fotospeed PD5 and DV10, also Arista paper developer. (I've only used Ilford Multigrade with RC.)

[alec4444]

I've been using both as well: Typically (though not always) RC for contact prints and fiber for final prints. Do remember that the settings you use to create one will not work on the other.....

--A

[Robert Hall]

Thanks guys.

Being new to it I'll start with resin coated ans hone my skills.

Wisely spoken.

[Jim Jones]

One thing I learned early on with RC is the presence of built-in developer. With a developer like Dektol the print will seem to develop almost immediately. I have control with Ilford Multigrade (widely available), and Freestyle (http://www.freestylephoto.biz/sc_main.php) has Fotospeed PD5 and DV10, also Arista paper developer. (I've only used Ilford Multigrade with RC.)

Years ago paper that incorporated developer was available for stabilization processors. The RC papers I've used in the past 35 years require normal dvelopment.