Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/08/31
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I cut a window mat today for the first time in a few years. I had time before getting a print to somebody to take a quick drive downtown Portland to Art Media and pickup some 100% Rag museum board and check out the photo corners. Ragboard has gone up plenty! I couldn't believe it when I put the print in the mat after cutting the window out of it and hinging it against a backboard and attaching the print to the backboard with the archival plastic corners. This was an 8 by 10 print I had done on Multigrade Fiber paper. Printed to Archival standards as I see them; of course Selenium toned. I had done the shot with my newish 35mm Summicron Asph. Might have used a yellow-green filter. Developed my TriX in Xtol 1:2 I think. A stack of Fiber prints are more impressive that a Stack of RC prints that's for sure. Holding a fiber print in your hand and looking at it is WAY better than holding the plastic RC sheet and looking at it. It feels better, handles better, it's surface is way better and it is obviously thick nice paper instead of a sheet of too shiney or texturized poly-U-name-it. But put that Fiber print in a window mat of 100 percent Strathmore Museum board and you've got a whole new ballgame! I feel like I really did something all night in the darkroom! I had wondered if I had printed it down a bit too much but the mat opened it up! No longer an 8 by 10 print. But a 6 by 9 image in a mat. I'm getting happier with my photography and Leica is a big part of that. Mark Rabiner