Which paper is closest to graded Brilliant (Guillemot version).

[Drew Wiley]

The redux ZS Brilliant was marketed by Calumet. Not the same thing at all; not even close. And I miss the classic graded papers from before the Triassic asteroid hit the earth (esp Brilliant Bromide, original Seagull G, and Portriga). Today's premium VC papers are not only a lot easier to use, but have unquestionably come of age. Still ... I stumbled onto an old Brilliant print a few months ago I never got around to toning, souped it in some gold toner for deep cold black, and wow. DMaxxxx is an understatement.

[Michael R]

Hmmm. Out of curiosity approximately when was this version of the paper in production?

The redux ZS Brilliant was marketed by Calumet. Not the same thing at all; not even close. And I miss the classic graded papers from before the Triassic asteroid hit the earth (esp Brilliant Bromide, original Seagull G, and Portriga). Today's premium VC papers are not only a lot easier to use, but have unquestionably come of age. Still ... I stumbled onto an old Brilliant print a few months ago I never got around to toning, souped it in some gold toner for deep cold black, and wow. DMaxxxx is an understatement.

[Drew Wiley]

Ohh ... that's a bit hard for me to date, Michael. I've never written dates on my prints. But with respect to me, it was during that very frustrating period when all of the classic graded papers were disappearing or themselves being altered, with the exception of Ilfobrom Galerie, which I never used very much, and when VC papers were still generally disappointing. Sometime in the 80's before Forte MGIV came to the rescue. I could get the new Brilliant to cooperate if I resorted to masking the original negs, and got a number of decent prints that way; but those never resembled the Guillmont version.

[Bernice Loui]

Think the Guillmont version of Brilliant paper died just past the mid 1990's. After Calumet got the brand name "Brilliant" it became a different paper. Did not take long for the users of Guillmont Brilliant to figure this out, resulting in the Calumet version to go off market due to lack of demand. Back then, there were alternatives to the Calumet offering.


Another example of brand marketing that failed.

Bernice

[Drew Wiley]

Calumet treated all of the Zone VI acquisition like an unwanted stepchild. They were going through their own internal metamorphosis from a full service pro house to a far more narrowly defined studio supplier, predictably headed straight down the path to extinction.

[Michael R]

Thanks I was wondering if it was around in the early to mid 1980s and it sounds like it was.

Ohh ... that's a bit hard for me to date, Michael. I've never written dates on my prints. But with respect to me, it was during that very frustrating period when all of the classic graded papers were disappearing or themselves being altered, with the exception of Ilfobrom Galerie, which I never used very much, and when VC papers were still generally disappointing. Sometime in the 80's before Forte MGIV came to the rescue. I could get the new Brilliant to cooperate if I resorted to masking the original negs, and got a number of decent prints that way; but those never resembled the Guillmont version.

[Sal Santamaura]

...As I recall, Brilliant had no optical brighteners in it...

I just went into my box of test prints from the early 1990s. Fortunately, I was OCD about labeling them. Now, shining a UV light on the Brilliant Bromide ones, they glow like every other paper that contains OBAs.

OBAs have been ubiquitous for many, many decades. I can find only one gelatin silver print in the house that doesn't include them, an 8x10 of "Yosemite Valley Winter"

https://shop.anseladams.com/collecti...31415830478915

that I purchased in 1979 or 1980. The price back then was 20% of what it is now. I've four more from that series bought not too long afterward, all of which incorporate brighteners. As does every print hanging on our walls that I've purchased from other photographers, most of which I know were made on Agfa Brovira.

None of this is intended to take anything away from French-made graded Brilliant Bromide. It was the best paper I've ever been able to print on, and I miss it more than early ADOX MCC 110 (the version that had a nice surface, not recent too-glossy batches).

[Oren Grad]

Think the Guillmont version of Brilliant paper died just past the mid 1990's.

FWIW, Calumet purchased Zone VI around 1991. R. Guilleminot, Bœspflug et Cie went out of business in 1994. I do not know when Guilleminot's production stopped.

[bob carnie]

Thanks I was wondering if it was around in the early to mid 1980s and it sounds like it was.

No more like the late 80's as I went to New York to the Brilliant booth to voice my displeasure.

[RichardRitter]

Before Calumet bought Zone VI we would buy the whole production run of the paper all grades. When Calumet took over they went to R. Guilleminot and told then they wanted a lower price and smaller shipments. That did not happen. The last paper that can in before I left Zone VI was made by Ilford and was from their plant in Spain. Calumet could not figure out why sales of the paper dropped off so fast.