A few days ago I asked if anyone had used Kodak's Professional Metallic
Paper. I suppose nobody on the list has used it.
Got my answer yesterday and today when I had an 11x14 made of this one made
using an OM-1n and 85/2.
http://johnlind.tripod.com/indexphotob.html
Took a half-day yesterday and another half-day today making two special
trips to the lab in the "Big City." Yesterday I looked at some examples
they have of large prints made using this paper. It's a very interesting
and unique print paper with a "sheen" (especially in midtones) that's
similar to Fuji "R" and Ilfochrome. It's super high gloss (more than a
standard glossy), but not quite the ultra-high gloss of the Fuji or Ilfochrome.
After looking at their display prints the lab tech and I looked at the
negative under a 10X loupe to assess sharpness and discuss how grainy a
35mm Portra 400NC negative might appear when enlarged over 12X into an
11x14. Her assessment was similar to mine. Focus and acuity of the
negative was impeccable with exposure well within its latitude. Left the
negative with a 4x6 "guide print" and the understanding they stack up the
requests for these prints until they have enough make a "run" with it.
Had a pleasant surprise this morning when the lab called to tell me they
had enough work requesting it to make the special run and my large print
was finished. Took another half-day this afternoon to retrieve it. I was
shocked at the results. Not as sharp as I can get an 11x14 from medium
format, but very respectable and stands up to relatively close scrutiny;
16x20 would be too big. They did a superb print job and the metallic paper
makes it "glow." Just got done framing it. Under glass the metallic sheen
is subdued very slightly; just enough that it requires some inspection to
realize why it glows more than a standard Fuji Crystal Archive print.
*Finally* I've found something that gives me the "look" I want out of the
relatively few negatives I have that's similar to what I can get using
Ilfochrome from the transparencies. I'm having this one printed on the
same paper in a few weeks:
http://johnlind.tripod.com/mamiya/gallery/mamiya01.html
There won't be any questions about its sharpness; used the M645 with Portra
160 for it. I have an 8x10 semi-gloss machine print in which major office
contents such as file cabinets, interior doors, whiteboards and desks can
be identified in the two closest buildings (requires at least a 5X loupe).
Thought I would pass this on for those on the list that have custom prints
made. If you haven't seen prints made with it, ask your lab if they use it
and to see some samples.
-- John
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