[Steve]

This is a question for everyone,

If you are having photos printed professionally say through Photobox or somewhere similar, and you intend to have them framed behind glass, do you go for gloss, silk, matt or something else? I was wondering what the general feeling is to get the best and most professional finish.

[Gary Bagshawe]

I will always go for a matt finish if it is to be displayed behind glass, helps stop distracting reflections if the print isn't 100% flat or if the sun is shining or other bright light source is nearby.

[noah]

ilford gallerie smooth pearl for me. very nice matt finish that seems to get on well with my printer

[MickB]

Same as Noah

[Steve]

What printers are you guys (noah and Mick) using?

[Sonsey]

I just had 3 pictures printed by Photobox (my first order with them), I had them blown up to 30x20ins and chose glossy... the pictures are excellent quality, but they are really glossy so I'd take Gary's advice for the reasons he's given.

[Steve]

I had some large glossy prints done at Photobox and as you say they are really shiny, the print quality is excellent though as was the pricing. I have also recently had a few butterfly pictures professionally printed and went o the trouble of having a couple of the shots printed on both glossy and matt papers to see the differences when framed. The results were that the matt prints unframed did not look as good as the gloss but once framed they were just as vibrant and came to life but didn't reflect the light as much on the actual print.

Needless to say my future orders will be on matt for framing and gloss for general display/use.

[noah]

i've stolen my flatmate's epson r200 as he doesnt use it! it's good fun to be able to print your own and do some for mates, but realistically they're a fair bit softer than a pro lab.

[asd]

Whats the best paper to use with an epson printer for framing (i have R800) at the moment i am just using epson's own make

[Dabhand16]

I am a member of Costco, an American owned discount warehouse. Their own brand A4 glossy paper 225 gm/m2 is great for general purpose use, and costs about £12 for 125 sheets.

[dod]

Originally Posted by asd

Whats the best paper to use with an epson printer for framing (i have R800) at the moment i am just using epson's own make

I like the Ilford Gallerie glossy on a R300. HAving said that I've just got a Pixma 4200 so we'll have to see what works best with it.

[asd]

Ilford Gallerie glossy ...will give it a try....cheers

[Steve]

I have used Ilford Gallerie Satin in the past with my Canon printer and the results were great. If you are using Ilford don't forget to check out their website for custom printer profiles, they do them for all their papers and the majority of popular printer makes and models.