Digital Prints

There are so many coated inkjet papers available now, it’s even hard to keep track of the
categories for organizing them. But, that won’t keep me from trying.
One way that suppliers like to classify coated papers is with the terms “photo paper” and
“fine-art paper” (see Table 7.3). Photo papers tend to have a resin-coated (RC) component
structure (see below) and a glossy or semi-glossy finish just as their traditional counterparts
have. Fine-art papers frequently resemble watercolor paper. However, there is really
little reason to limit your thinking to only these two categories. There are plenty of crossover
choices that don’t fit neatly into either camp.
Another way to classify paper is by finish or surface texture type: glossy, matte, satin, and
so on. This, however, tells you very little about the type of paper and its appropriateness
for use with different inks or printers.
A final way to categorize papers is by the coating technology: microporous or swellable,
plus the misnamed resin coated. These help tell you what you can and cannot do with a
particular paper.
■ Microporous: A relatively new solution to the problem of inkjets printing faster than the
ink can dry, microporous coatings (sometimes called “particulate” or “micro-ceramic” coatings)
contain very small, inorganic particles of either alumina or silica to create voids or
cavities in the coating. The ink is absorbed into these cavities by capillary action, and the
particles prevent the ink from spreading. The good news is that this results in very fastdrying
prints that can be handled immediately and that have a high resistance to moisture
and humidity. The bad news is that the open areas of the coating allow the ink to
come into contact with air and all the atmospheric contaminants it contains.
This may have contributed to the Orange Shift problem described earlier, which is why
all microporous prints made with dye–based inks should be displayed or stored covered
or framed behind glass or Plexiglas. Microporous papers produce excellent image quality,
and they can have a glossy, luster, or matte finish. These papers can work with either dyebased
inks or pigment inks depending on the particular brand. (See Table 7.3 for some
third-party examples.)
■ Swellable: Water-receptive polymer coatings for printing papers have been around since
the early 1990s, but their use was limited. All that changed when people needed to find
a way to reduce the fading caused by ozone and other atmospheric contaminants. Swellable
Chapter 7 ■ Choosing Your Consumables 231
Figure 7.13 Coatings affect how the
ink interacts with the paper.
Courtesy of Martin Juergens