The Message
At the end of the 2020, I received a message from PermaJet that brightened the dark moments we all are going through – I was given the opportunity to try a brand new double-sided paper. The best thing about it is that I will be reviewing the paper before it is released in shops and on their website. I’m so thrilled that myself, someone who prints photographs at home on a small printer, has been asked by a company that specialises in everything for photography prints. No, I am not a professional photographer. No, I do not sell hundreds and hundreds of prints. But they trust me enough that they sent some sample sheets and ask me for my opinion.
So let’s see…
I received the box in January and was very excited to open it. I was amongst a group of testers and was very happy to be considered. When I opened the box, there they were, the A3 sheets of their new Double Sided Lustre 295 paper and a lovely letter. I had to start resizing my sample sheets as I can only print in A4 at home.
Once I had my sheets ready there followed the biggest task in front of me. Having to choose what to print was the most difficult task since I did not have many new photos due to lack of time and of course, the amount of lockdowns we’ve all had to deal with. I had a look in PermaJet’s new media guide, The Knowledge (the paper is not in there) for some inspiration and started making my selection. I decided to go for some images in colour and some in black and white as I know their lustre papers are great for both.
Previous experience with Lustre from PermaJet gave me some very nice colour and beautiful blacks. Contrast in prints is amazing and there is nothing to the paper that will go against it.
Double Sided Lustre 295gsm
I can honestly say that I have not printed double-sided on any photo paper before. I have not considered double-sided paper to be important for me, if I print my work, I always look at just one side. Now having the option to print on both sides I can see that there is certainly great use for papers like this. I know that PermaJet offers some double-sided papers but they have never ended up in my shopping basket.
I have to say, the paper is great. I am in love with all styles of their printing papers. Most of my work ends up on Matt paper and certain photographs I print on ultra glossy paper, but the new lustre give me something in between.
I won’t pretend that I could use this paper on a daily basis but working with portrait work and fashion photography will allow me to print and present multiple shots for my models or clients. Being able to print on both sides will also be great for my portfolio as well. This paper has a lovely white base, the texture is pleasing to eye and the touch (yes, you can touch it without being scared of leaving your fingerprints on your prints). I did this accidentally in the past and had to reprint a few of my photos that were printed on ultra glossy or glossy/metallic papers. What I found great is that the prints dried instantly and were ready for their second side straight away.
I printed my samples on my Epson EcoTank and by the time I had set my following images, the prints were already ready to go.
I am happy. PermaJet did not disappoint, although they never do with their product range. I can see myself getting a couple of boxes of this new paper once we’re back in some sort of normality and I am able to shoot again.
Want To See More?
When I printed my samples, I managed to record a couple of videos close to a light source. This should help you see how this paper looks when handled after printing.
Please do visit my social media channels to check it out… you can search for @br1anthatguywiththecamera.
