I never made a study of print paper types, substrata, sizing type, or no sizing, weight, texture, etc. There are many considerations to make, if you were to begin from scratch. There is a print paper that can be said to be the standard for hand coated photographic processes. Arches Platine paper. It was the first paper made specifically for platinum printing. I don't believe it gets any better than that. It is a smooth finish paper about a 90lb weight made of 100% rag. I can say that I have used this paper and pretty much find it as the paper to use. One caveat for me is that to my eye, it doesn't seem to be a pure white color, but more of a soft eggshell color. Perhaps it is my eye.
The first paper I worked with printing in silver was Canson, in both the classical white and the softer eggshell color, which brings a warm toned look to the print, which might otherwise be more neutral black and white. I chose that paper because of the textural finish, which was sort of a raised looking crosshatch pattern, showing through the silver print just enough that it was obvious the print was hand coated. That was just my subjective choice at that time. I continue to print on that paper for some work. One of the qualities I like about this paper is that it is of lessor weight. It feels more like 70lb weight, and it doesn't absorb the silver layers as deeply as a heavier weighted paper might, especially if that paper has no sizing.
Another paper that I have found to be a good paper for printing in silver is a good hot pack watercolor paper of a 90lb weight. The hot pack papers are smoother finish and some have a sizing, as well as being 100% rag paper. Cold pack papers have a rough surface and I found them unsuitable for printing unless used for some specific reason, which I have yet fathomed. Canson paper will be the cheapest of the lot, although they sheets come in 19"x21" or something close to that, which isn't all that conducive to 8"x10" prints, as you only get four sheets from the cuts, either way.
One method of buying printing paper, if you choose Arches Platine, is buying it bulk from Bostick & Sullivan. Locally, retail for a sheet of Platine is $12.95. I do get six sheets out of it, but still. The same sheets of Platine in a package of (25) sheets is around $130, or about $5.60/sheet. That will be my choice when I finally get my printing room up and running and printing begins in earnest.
Another heads up for those that begin to feel the itch to try out hand coating their prints, using enlarged digital negatives, printing frames are available at Photographers' Formulary for under $60, 8x10, 11x14, 16x20, 20x24, same price. I am currently locating parts necessary to build the UV printing box I will be building, using 24" florescent (T12) 20W UV tubes. For that box 8 bulbs will cover 20", 1 1/2" tubes spaces 3/4" apart (between tubes), one ballast per 2 tubes. When I have that together I will be documenting the procedure for posting. Every encouragement helps.
I chose Canson White paper for this image. At the time I liked the surface pattern, a sort of crosshatch softly raised tooth, which just showed through the finished, subtly. It was pleasing to my eye, and that would be the question to ask when choosing your paper. I had reached the proper density range for the salted paper print's correspondingly long tonal range potential. This is a digital scan of a copy slide of the original. Things get lost in translation, especially for me.
Negative; FP-4 (ISO 125 rated 80) Pyro/Hydroxide
Salted Silver Print ~ "Overlook Cougar Reservoir"
1986 ~ 5"x7" ~ Unique
Oregon Mountains
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