dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

Oh my how didactic... Color laser printers are practical and give great prints on mat paper. If showing friends "last nights event" then fine. NO, of course not of Museum quality, but from practical view fine. My Dell Colored Laser did a fine job when my Epson pooped out. When viewed from a few feet away can you tell... ok Gene you can... but J.Q. Public is not so discerning.

Matt paper covers or blends out sin ... gloss is annoying because of reflection of light. That is a practical comment from a guy [me] who loves Redriver Pearl Metallic for some of my prints.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

A.J.R. Loc: Devon, UK

I now always use a fine lustre paper. In my early film days I used quite a bit of matt but this would need a suitable subject as it tends to give a more limited range of tones and not good blacks Generally gloss papers will give a better black and overall quality, but the reflective surface can be distracting.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

I prefer glossy for photographs that have, and require, detail. For portrait type photographs, I prefer semi-gloss or matte.
--Bob

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Ah.

SusanFromVermont Loc: Southwest corner of Vermont

I can understand you wanting suggestions before purchasing paper. It can be expensive to buy one and decide you don't like it! However, as OP said, different papers are best suited to different projects. Here is a suggestion: Buy a sample pack of paper. Red River Paper sells one with 16 different photo and fine art papers. It is $12.99 + shipping. They also have very good descriptions of various papers, reviews of printers, etc. on their website. Link for page with sample kit: http://www.redrivercatalog.com/samples/

Your printer is probably limited to 8.5x11 and legal size papers. I also have an all-in-one inkjet printer which does a fairly good job of prints. But if your monitor is not calibrated, you may find prints will not come out as expected. Mostly it will probably be too dark, which you can fix by brightening the image. This happens because the monitor brightness is too high, which is what we like for normal viewing.

When I bought a sample kit, I found a picture that was intended for photo print evaluation. Then I chose one of my own images that had a very pretty picture of a poppy flower in pink with nice detail of leaves and central portion. I chose that one because any variation in the image would be easy to recognize when printed. Then I printed the evaluation photo and the flower, each on half of the same page, on each of the different papers. It is quite interesting to see how each turns out. Paper does make a difference!

In general, my favorite go-to paper is either satin or luster [mostly satin because it is less expensive]. But I also use a variety of other papers depending on the image. It is fun to experiment!

Hope this helps.
Susan

Booker

I have developed a preference for Epsons Premium Lustre paper & use it for all my portrait work except black & white. For b&w I LOVE Exhibition Fibre Paper also by Epson. Also, in addition to my larger printer, I have an Epson inkjet all in one. It does a respectable job with 5x7
And 8x10 photos.

Bullfrog Bill Loc: CT

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

When I want good results, I use the printer brand of ink and paper.

PeterBergh

Thanks for enlightening me.

rustfarmer

Don't know what the current deal is, but I bought a Cannon Pixma Pro 100 for (after rebate) $49.00. It even came with some sample 13 x 19 paper.

gerdog

You need to make sure the print quality is set to "best" and that you select the type of paper you are printing on in the printer options. The dialogue popup for the settings can vary depending on what program you are printing from, but look for something like "preferences" to find all the settings. Your results can vary widely if you choose the wrong settings. The HP default setting is "normal" and "plain paper." That's not what you want for photo printing.

brooklyn-camera I Loc: Brooklyn, NY

I use both, depends what mood Im in.I am using the Canon MX922 and it works for me. I don't pixel peep so I am easy to make happy with my prints. If you like the results that is all that matters. Good Luck!

Toby

Several years ago I read or someone told me that to avoid a framed photo sticking to the glass over time they should be printed in the luster or matt format. I have never experimented and never heard that again. Perhaps the printed photos have changed or perhaps it was/is BS. I scanned the comments here but did not see anything addressing that. Perhaps my comment will solicit responses. Hopefully from someone who knows and not just someone who has an untested opinion. I will stand aside and wait. Good Luck to you.

SusanFromVermont Loc: Southwest corner of Vermont

CORRECTION: The sample kit has FREE shipping!