The purpose of this exercise is to research different companies offering inkjet (giclée) and C-type printing. All prices are for A3 prints as this is a size commonly used for portfolio purposes. I have included descriptions of the options as described on the websites because I am not well versed in the differences between the different types.

Company 1: DS Colour Labs

C-Type Prints – described as ‘Silver Halide printing light-sensitive paper and silver based chemistry, a technology which has been constantly refined over time.’

Lustre £1.20

Gloss £1.20

Pearl £7.49

Velvet £7.49

Lustre – ‘a very natural photographic finish reminiscent of traditional photographic printing. Coated with a slightly stippled texture Lustre prints are very resistant to fingerprints, scratches and scuffs and feature a semi-matt finish with minimal glare.’

Gloss – ‘produces higher contrast in your work with a vivid, glossy finish which accentuates the colour to give a punchy, rich feel.’

Pearl – pearl-like crystals give a unique high-gloss effect and add a beautiful iridescent touch to your photos with deep blacks and purer highlights 

Velvet – ‘professional coating with a zero-reflective top layer creates a stunningly soft and deep- matte effect…..enhanced color reproduction, white purity and excellent image stability.’

Giclée Prints – highest quality, archival digital inkjet prints available.

Permajet – £10.99

Hahnemuhle – £11.99

PermaJet – T’he image reproduction will surpass your expectations in all areas providing images that meet the highest standards of Museum quality giclee prints. Photographers and artists will appreciate the natural heavyweight feel and smoothness of the range as well as the subtle, yet varying, base colours which bring your images to life and add a sense of depth and clarity which cannot be reproduced on a normal gloss or satin paper.’

Hahnemuhle Photo Rag – The fine, smooth surface and feel of Photo Rag make this paper very versatile and it is ideal for printing both black and white and colour photographs and art reproductions with impressive pictorial depth.

I note that the offer sample packs to enable comparison of the different papers and this is something I intend to look into further to improve my knowledge of the variances.

Company 2: Loxley Colour

C-Type Prints

Loxley’s offering is very similar to that of DS, apart from the inclusion of Metallic instead of Pearl. Metallic is described as ‘A beautiful shining paper that is perfect for those showstopping images. The Metallic print finish adds a sheen to images with an almost reflective appearance.’

Lustre £4.52

Gloss £4.52

Metallic £6.77

Velvet £6.77

Giclée Prints

Loxley offer a wide range of different papers from Fujifilm, Hahnemuhle and Epsom all priced at £12.99 each.

Company 3: Theprintspace

C-Type Prints

Again, the offering from theprintspace varies slightly from that of the other two, offering matt, gloss, flex (described as ‘super-gloss’) and metallic.

Matt £8.54

Gloss £8.54

Metallic £10.28

Flex £13.36

Giclée Prints

Seven different papers are available, from Canson, Epsom and Hahnemuhle, all priced at £11.23.

The research shows there is a very wide range of different papers and pricing available and photographic printing appears to be something of a minefield to the inexperienced. I have used both DS Colour Labs and Loxley before and the only different I have found was that Loxley seem to offer a more premium service in terms of customer service and packaging but not necessarily in the finished product itself. This is an area I definitely need to improve my knowledge in and I will allocate some expense to trying out the different options later in the year.

Technically, it could be argued that an inkjet print is not a photograph because they are created by laying ink onto a sheet of paper rather than being photography in its purest sense and I am inclined to agree, also the argument is a little pedantic. It is, of course, still a print of a photograph, since the original image has been made with light. In practical terms, however, I would not be put off using or purchasing a print purely because it was an inkjet.