Is Fomabrom Variant 111 Worth the Price?

[rcjtapio]

Quote from PhotoTechnique March/April 2013......

"Fomabrom appears to be the best paper I've ever encountered. Now, stop to consider that sentence. Forte was the truly excellent paper I used exclusively for about 15 years. At the end of those 15 years I found Bergger paper was equal to it. Then I found the Adox MCC 110 paper to be equally excellent. To my amazement, the Fomabrom paper appears to me to be better even than Forte, Bergger or Adox, all of them fabulous papers basically on par with one another."

----Bruce Barnbaum

Just curious, as this paper has been "out there" for a while now, does anyone on this forum use this paper for their serious work & do they really see a difference from other papers? Of course, the obvious big difference is the price....probably one of the most expensive on the market.......so.....is the extra expense really worth the difference in quality?

Rick

[Greg Y]

Both east & west coast price put Fomabrom Variant at less than the comparables Adox MCC110 or Ilford Classic... & it is a lovely paper.

[andreios]

It's a nice, honest, good paper. And luckily also one of the more affordable around these parts

[jp]

It is a good paper. Foma makes much better paper than film in my estimation.

[Pete Watkins]

I like it but I'm in The UK and ordered from Norway. needs a softish developer.
Pete

[Eric Biggerstaff]

Great paper, consistent quality, tones well, affordable, nice weight - but don't take our work for it, paper is like film, you just need to buy some, work with it and decide for yourself.

[StoneNYC]

Buy and test, it may take a month to get any FOMA from B&H its never in stock. I prefer the Variant 123

[Corran]

You can get it straight from Freestyle instantly with no wait for the same price (shipping costs may be different). They do sometimes run out of stock but it's not a special-order item.

I've been using the VC matte Fomabrom - Variant 112. Like it a lot.

[rcjtapio]

Thanks for your responses. It's interesting that nobody is as enthusiastic about this paper as Bruce Barbaum is. I was hoping to find someone who was as enthusiastic & is using this paper as their first choice......guess not.....at least so far.

I was using Ilford MG IV, which I really liked, but of course needed to change after it was replaced. I did test & try different papers, including the Fomabrom Variant 111. For my last portfolio I actually settled on Ilford Classic, but for several reasons I'm thinking of switching to the Fomabrom for my next set of prints.

[Roger Cole]

I used MCC 110 for quite a while and still have some left. It's a really good paper but not as good as Bruce's hyperbole seemed to indicate either. Excellent, yes, but somehow exceptional or above other fine quality papers, no. I'm not all surprised if the same is true of Fomabrom 111.