if you were an assessor....

[Rob A]

hey guys, if you wer ana assessor... whether it be at a university or a proper company like national geo, when looking through peoples portfolios would you think glossy paper looks better or matte/semi matte paper would look better?

what do you pros use?

thanks for any help!!

 

[santino]

I'd prefer semi matte/matte

 

[Contra|Brett|]

Most of the photo shops in my area have stopped using glossy paper.
(pro labs probobly still have it i would immagine.)

It is mainly because most the students who go there always request matte.
It looks more professional, doesn't glare as much as glossy, and doesn't show fingerprints as easy.

That's why my lab stopped using it as well.

 

[Hertz van Rental]

Matte paper does not have the same contrast range as glossy.
Matte has a rough surface which scatters the light (hence the matte appearance) but this is what happens in lens flare. The result is lightening the blacks so the print looks flatter and you loose shadow detail. You also loose highlight detail for the same reason. In short matte paper has a smaller tonal range than glossy.
Gloss paper reduces flare so blacks are deeper and hold more detail, and whites are brighter and hold detail.
Choose matte if you want but it degrades the print quality.
And before anyone starts arguing, do the same print on gloss and matte and compare them. Then run a reflecting densitometer over both. The results will confirm what I say.

 

[santino]

you're def. right, but I like matte brom papers on baryt base, I LOVE em

 

[Jeff Canes]

I can go ether way with color. But with b&w it’s simi or matte all the way, IMO whites look polished on b&w glossy

 

[Rob]

Nice easy bit of unjustified opinion from me here:

Use matte for portrait photos, if the subject needs a flattering image (personal portraits or weddings generally)
Use glossy for everything else.