Printer Paper Exposed

When finding the perfect paper for you project, cardstock should be your number one choice.  You can find cardstock in a variety of different colors, weights, and finishes.  Cardstock has always been a favorite for people looking for paper for scrap booking, postcards, business cards, and related things.  Found in every color of the rainbow, reams of cardstock can be purchased online and at your local retail store.

No matter what your planning on using cardstock for there are weights and different finishes you need to keep in mind.  65# cardstock is the most commonly used of all the weights available.  The reason why people choose 65# compared the heavier weights like 90# and 110# is 65 is much easier to manage and fold.  If you’ve ever tried to print on really heavy cardstock, you’ve probably experienced a lot of jams.  Some people have even damaged their printers through wear and tear caused by the super thick stuff.  When folding cardstock, 65# weight will look much better than 110.  Basically what happens when you fold thick cardstock, you often get a distorted spine that looks very tacky whereas with the medium thickness cardstock, you don’t have that problem.

When it comes to cardstock colors and finishes, you have almost an unlimited amount of choice.  Whether you’re planning on using on using cardstock as a binding cover for a marketing portfolio or using cardstock to highlight the photographs from a scrap booking project, there is plenty of choice out there.  When choosing cardstock, the finish and color is all about personal preference.

A great brand of cardstock that I’ve always had good luck with before is Wausau.  They’re a famous paper company that has a great line of paper products developed with you in mind.  If you want some worry-free, quality cardstock Wausau papers will always deliver.

Choosing to buy cardstock online is a very important thing if you don’t want to end up getting cheated out of your hard earned money.  Whether you buy just a few reams of cardstock or want to use an online print shop to print on cardstock for you, you need to make sure you pick from a reputable store.  Saving a couple dollars on a ream of paper isn’t worth it if the company take 2 weeks to ship it to you.  So with that in mind, you’re going to want to choose from either local retailer or an online retailer with a strong name.  Before buying online, always research and make sure they’re a company you want to deal with.

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If you haven’t tried HP photo paper before you’re missing out a realm of amazing printed pictures.  You’ve probably noticed the difference in quality of result when you compare printing on copy paper and photo paper.  Well just like there is a major difference between copy paper and photo paper, there is also a difference between brands of photo paper too.  Printing with HP photo paper will be much different than the results you may get from printing on Kodak brand paper.

HP has a broad line of paper products on the market for printing photos.  No matter your skill level or what you’re planning on using the pictures for, there is paper made by HP great for you.  They are deeply respected in the printing industry and with their prices compared to their competitors, they can hardly be beat.  If you’re looking for consistent, reliable photo paper, HP is the brand for you.

HP makes their photo paper in a variety of different qualities based on what you’re going to be printing.  For example, if you’re planning on printing every day photographs that will be passed from person to person and then thrown away afterwords, HP Advanced Paper will be the best for you whereas HP Premium Plus Paper would be great if you are planning on keeping the photos you printed for many years or if you’re going to be selling your printed pictures to people.  There are some other grades of quality of HP paper products in between those but we’ll mainly focus on the two mentioned.

HP Advanced Photo Paper comes in many shapes, sizes, and finishes.  Based on the size of paper for your printing needs, you can get it in 4×6, 5×7, 8.5×11, and 13×19. Also, HP Advanced Photo Paper comes in both glossy and matte finishes.  The quality of this photo paper is roughly equivalent to what you can get from any Sam’s Club photo developing center.  The glossy photos you can get with this HP paper is quite amazing and so you really can’t go wrong for the price.

HP Premium Plus Photo Paper is the best photo paper you can purchase from HP.  If you’re looking for simply spectacular photographs that you can keep and share with others, this is the paper you’re looking for.  This is professional grade paper that you simply can’t beat for level of quality.  Backed with HP paper technology, HP Premium Plus Photo Paper has a special coating that gives it resistance to fading over time plus color that will remain vibrant for generations to come.  Found in all the typical photo paper sizes and matte and glossy finishes,  you just can’t go wrong with this quality paper.

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Printing your own photos can be very fun and exciting.  Not only can you save lots of money by printing your photos yourself but you can also sell or give out pictures you have taken as gifts.  One frustrating part about printing your own photos however is there is way too much choice.  It can be absolutely confusing trying to choose the right photo paper with all those brands, paper weights, and finishes available.  Is there any difference between the $10 photo paper and $50 premium brands?  The answer is yes!  There is a major difference between photo paper brands and so in order to make the right choice you need to assess your printing situation.

The photo paper you may use for your trip to Hawaii will be much different from the photo paper you’d use if you’re a wedding photographer.  For example, if your photos are just going to be thrown away after you show them off to everyone, do you really want to spend a lot of money on your paper?  Whereas on the other hand, if you’re a photographer and you sell the pictures you take, you’re going to want have photo paper that looks and feels like quality.  Presentation is key with photo paper and the differences between glossy and matte photo paper will help you with that.

Glossy Photo Paper

Glossy photo paper is important for people who need some flashy pictures.  If you’re in doubt with which type of photo paper you’re going to choose, glossy paper is the best for most situations.   The results of glossy photo paper you print at home will match or exceed the photos you’re used to getting from a developer.  The slick, stylish presentation will dazzle everyone you show the paper to, from your family members to important clients.

Matte Photo Paper

Matte photo paper, while doesn’t have the flashy pizzazz of its glossy cousin, is another type of photo paper that can get you amazing results when printed on.  Matte paper doesn’t have a lot of the problems that you can get from glossy photo paper.  For example, glossy paper reflects light a lot.  In really bright environments, you can have difficulties seeing the picture if you have a bad viewing angle.  Matte paper, on the other hand, doesn’t have the problem.  Another great thing about matte paper, especially at looking the premium “studio quality” brands, is the paper simply feels like a million dollars.  With great matte photo paper, you can print for less than a couple dollars at home, results that look like they cost you $50 dollars at a photography studio.

Quality Photo Paper Brands

There are many brands of photo paper out there that you can choose from.  Some brands you’ve probably heard of like HP, Canon, and Epson, and others you’ve probably haven’t heard of as well like Meritline.  Photo paper quality does vary between brands and it also varies between the brand of printer/ink you have too.  Photo paper brands will give you the greatest results when paired with its brothers.  For example, if you have an HP inkjet printer, you’re going to want to buy HP brand ink, as well as HP brand photo paper.  HP, and other companies as well, will research and design their products to work and look amazing with each other.

There are a lot of things to know about copy paper and you can be at a serious disadvantage if you don’t know them.  There are a combination of features that go into good printer paper and so you should know those features before buying paper online or in the store.  While sometimes all that information can be a little overwhelming, with proper research and an open mind, you can find the copy paper right for you.

One of the first things you should think about before buying copy paper is what you’re going to be using the paper for.  If you’re going to be using the paper to show off your new business portfolio, you will want to choose printer paper that is much higher quality than paper that your kids are going to print on and then throw away.  Many things go into the quality of copy paper which include:  brand name, brand technology, paper weight, and brightness.  Believe it or not, but Hammermill copy paper will be much better for certain print jobs whereas say Staples brand copy paper may be better for others.  It’s all about what you’re using the paper for.

Paper technology varies from brand to brand.  As an example, HP paper has technology that works very well with HP brand ink.  When printing on their brand of copy paper, you’ll see much more brilliant color that is resistant to water damage and running.  Even though their paper can be a little more expensive compared to the competition, you’ll see much better results if you’re printing off some impressive marketing stuff.  On the other hand, off-brand or store brand paper will have little to no added “technology” and their price will reflect that.  You’ll want to choose off-brand paper when you’re looking for decent looking but cheap copy paper.

Next, paper brightness and weight play a major part for choosing the right copy paper for you.  In terms of paper brightness, the brighter the paper the greater the “pop” from a marketing persepective.  If you are printing a resume, you’re going to want paper that is nice, white, and bright.  Paper brightness varies from the lowest and cheapest (88 bright) to the more expensive high (98 brightness or higher).  Also, another factor in choosing paper is paper weight.  While paper weight isn’t very important for paper you’re just going to throw away, it is important if you’re making a presentation.  For a good paper weight you’re going to want to have about 28 lb paper.  Paper weight in copy paper will range from about 20 lb to over 32 lb.  If you go any higher for paper weight you’ll end up getting cardstock which is a whole other topic.