Tetenal Spectrajet

Tetenal Spectrajet 264: Very heavy, with a nice feel. But the surface seems to have a bit more texture than the Epson Premium Glossy (PGPP), which I'm not sure I like. On the High Quality Film setting, there is some reticulation in dark colors, although not as bad as the Ilford. Colors are very close to the PGPP, but a little bit warmer, and the gray scale is a bit compressed at the dark end. However, the surface seems soft and more easily scratched than some other papers. There were also a couple of white spots on the print where no ink stuck. I don't know if there was something on the paper that prevented the ink from sticking, or if it flaked off afterwards, but someone else e-mailed me and said he had the same problem.

It also shifted. Not as badly as the PGPP, but not far off. (The importer of Tetenal seems to feel that my tests are unreasonable. so I'll add that a sample left lying around my work area has also shown the orange shift. More slowly than PGPP, to be sure, but it is noticeable. I've offered to place a test print supplied by HP Marketing in my work area, and return it after it shifts, but HP hasn't taken me up on that offer.) Note:  I've heard from another individual who has gotten fade on the PGPP, but not on Tetenal. As I said, this is a very complicated problem, but if you suffer the orange fade you might consider testing this paper.

(1/02/2001) Since Bob Salomon of HP Marketing (the importer of Tetenal) has taken issue with my accelerated fade tests ("our paper isn't meant for display in windows or in furnace ducts"), I've run a new test, eschewing my normal accelerated tests. The images seen here were printed at the same time on the same sheet of paper. The control sample was placed in a ziploc bag inside a cardboard box, to protect it from air and light. The test sample was placed face up on a file cabinet in my home office.

The shift you see here is after only 6 weeks of display. The test sample was exposed to no direct sunlight, and no direct flourescent light. The only direct light is a 60 watt incandescent in a ceiling fixture, that probably isn't on more than 3 or 4 hours a day. My house does have an electronic air filter, which generates ozone, but no special efforts were made to expose (or protect) the print from ozone.

I will be sending these samples to Bob Salomon at HP Marketing.

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