Gallerie Classic Pearl This new Ilford paper is remarkably similar to the new Epson ColorLife paper. It is also a polymer paper. No word about it being "swellable", but Ilford says it "will not sufffer from gas fading. It also will not show coalescence or bronzing, which were the main complaints with Ilford's current desktop papers. There have been other various improvements too, to give images made on it a longer life."
In thickness, feel and texture, the Gallerie is pretty much the same as the ColorLife. It's not quite as white, and texture is just a little bit less prominent. But I do mean a little: you have to compare them side by side, and look very closely to notice the difference. Personally, I have very mixed feelings about these papers. When light is reflecting off the paper into my eyes, I detest the quality of the reflection. But with the light at any other angle, they really do look very nice. Ilford says a true glossy finish version of the paper will be available around the end of the year.
Like ColorLife, the Gallerie paper is not an instant dry paper, and it is not not waterproof. It leaves the printer feeling a bit soft and tacky. Rubbing your finger on the wet print can smudge the surface. If you exercise reasonable care this shouldn't be a big problem, but I'd suggest handling it with care for the first hour or so after printing. And I wouldn't recommend it for outdoor use, or in any high humidity area. Unlike Premium Glossy, (and like ColorLife) the ink will run very badly if held under running water.
Note that the directions Ilford provided me recommend the PGPP media type setting in the Epson driver. But I think this applies way too much ink to the paper. When I have a little time, I'll try some other settings. But I think the Photo Quality Glossy Film setting that Epson recommends for its ColorLife paper would be a good place to start.
The image on Gallerie is virtually identical to prints made on ColorLife. In fact, I've never tested two papers that look so much alike. Viewed on it's own, without comparing it to the other prints, the Gallerie looks ok, for the most part. The gray scale in the Royce Bair test chart appears neutral, and the PDI target seems ok. The background of the Adobe image does, however, appear a bit bluish/purple, rather than gray. Compared to prints on most papers, however, the coolness is obvious. The background of the PDI target looks yellow on the other papers compared to the polymer papers. The faces in the PDI target and the Adobe image are much warmer on the older papers. And the background drape in the Adobe image is noticeably blue/purple in comparison. The polymer papers are too cool for my taste, but I've always felt that PGPP (and Luster) are just a bit too warm. A compromise somewhere between would be nice, but it shouldn't be too hard to warm the output a bit. And maybe a different media type setting would help.
With the above comments in mind, overall image quality is very good, basically equal to the Epson Premium Luster and ColorLife.
Most importantly, preliminary results indicate the paper is very good at resisting orange shift. Like the ColorLife paper, it shows no shift after 10 days in the ozone chamber. Here's a comparison of the Gallerie and Epson ColorLife.
Ilford Semi-Matte: I tested a beta version of this paper in my
initial round of tests. Not as bright or glossy
(obviously) as the PGPP, but with the right settings in PhotoShop and the print driver it
provides very high quality results on some images. I've gotten some prints virtually identical
to the Epson 1270 /
Premium Glossy combination (but not as glossy, of course) with the following settings:
PhotoShop levels of 10 to 255, Matte Paper Heavyweight (HWM) paper setting, gamma 1.8, cyan, magenta and
yellow inks all set to -10 in the Epson driver, and printing at 1440 dpi. Notice I say "on some
images." Unfortunately, on images with a great deal of dark black, the paper is prone to
bronzing (the black ink seems to sit on top of the paper, and shows odd reflectance
compared to the rest of the print). The settings above minimze this problem, but don't completely
eliminate it.
I really, really like this paper. It is very smooth, without the surface texture that exists on most inkjet papers. It's glossy enough to add "snap" to the image without creating glare.
Caveat Emptor: I should mention one caveat. I've heard from a number of other users about the semi-matte paper. Some report great results, and are very happy with it. Others report a great deal of difficulty in dark areas of images, seeing blotchy results and having problems with reticulation. I've also gotten one report from a user who's seen "a very noticeable orange shift (almost streaking) in dark/black areas of the print." I've never seen the orange shift appear as "streaks," so I'm not sure if this is the same thing, or some other problem.
I don't know if these problems reflect sample to sample variations in the printer or paper, or something else. My suspicion is that there are several factors here: Some of the people having problems are using 870s, which I believe don't have a backlit film paper setting. Every other paper type selection uses more ink. If you're using this paper with an 870, try reducing the CYM levels even more than I suggest above. You might also try increasing saturation, which reduces the amount of black ink mixed in with the color inks.
I also think that differences in the saturation of the images being printed probably have an effect, and possibly differences in the printing environment. Temperature and humidity greatly affect drying times, and it may be that environments that allow the print to dry more slowly produce better results (or vice-versa). In a dry environment (very common in the winter) try covering the print with a blank sheet of paper so it drys more slowly, allowing more ink to soak into the paper.
In any case let me reiterate that, before you spend a lot of money on any paper, you test a small sample yourself. I should probably point out that this paper takes quite a bit more time to dry than the Epson Premium Glossy, and the colors will change slightly as it dries.
After 6 monhts in the ozone chamber there was no visible change in the test sample. Zero, Zip, Nada. The outdoor sample showed very subtle changes in the gray scale. After 6 weeks steps 2 and 3 were slightly brown, and steps 4 and 5 were slightly green. I don't think the shift would be noticeable except that adjacent squares have shifted in opposite directions! The lightest blue and pink squares have faded very slightly, as have the brown squares. But remember that this is in indirect sunshine, with no glass to filter out UV. Epson's Premium papers don't last but a few days in the same conditions. This is an amazing performance.
Ilford Heavy Weight Glossy Paper: This paper is almost as glossy as the PGPP. Very close to
that paper in hue and saturation. Slight reticulation, the dark end of the gray scale is very
compressed and all the dark colors are too dark. There's a slight magenta tinge to the gray scale,
too. Based on my results with the Ilford Semi-Matte I hope with the right adjustments to color
and ink quantity, this could be a very satisfactory replacement for the PGPP. This paper takes
even longer to dry: at least 12 hours before final color and texture can be determined.
I've been told that this is a very old technology paper, and it's not without some problems. The same problems some people report with dark areas of the semi matte, above, are perhaps even more of a problem with the glossy. But so far, it's the only true high gloss paper I've tested that has proven to be very resistant to the orange plague.
After 6 months, the Ilford Heavyweight Glossy shows no visible change in the ozone or office window environments. In the outdoor test, there's a very slight brown shift in steps 2 through 4 of the gray scale, and a very, very slight green (!!) shift in step 1. There is also a very slight lightening of the lightest blue and pink squares, and the brown squares have also lightened a little bit. We've had a lot of rain during part of this test cycle, and it's been very humid, which may be a factor. But unless you plan to hang your prints in the bathroom, this probably isn't a big deal.
Again, these prints are outdoors, exposed to direct sunlight. This is a pretty amazing performance, too. I've also heard from a number of other users who have orange shift with the PGPP, and report no shift with this paper.
Ilford Film Beta: Has an almost metallic, silvery sheen to it. Color may actually be a little
more saturated than PGPP, but there's definite reticulation in the darker colors, and the gray scale
is a bit magenta. If there's a way to reduce the amount of ink laid down, it would be very interesting
for some images.
No color shift or fade in any test! Unfortunately, this was a beta product sent to me by one of my donors. According to that person, Ilford is still experimenting with the film, and any product that eventually reaches the shelves may not be the same.
Ilford Fine Art: A truly remarkable paper! Printed with the
PQGF setting, colors are noticeably brighter and more saturated
than with the Epson watercolor. Still not quite as bright as PGPP, but closer. And
color balance is more neutral, much closer to the balance of PGPP. It's got a little bit more
"tooth" that the Epson Watercolor, but that still doesn't seem to interfere wtih apparent
sharpenss. I like it a great deal, and can't wait to see how it does with fade and shift.
Orange shift performance is disapointing, however. I was really hoping for better, but it shifts a bit more rapidly than the Epson Watercolor. After only 10 days it has shifted more than the Epson paper did after 2 weeks.