Inkjet Printer Photo Paper

Inkjet Printer Photo Paper

A good quality digital camera will go a long way towards producing professional quality photos, and of equal importance is your choice of inkjet printer photo paper. The right choice of photo paper will allow you to create stunning, professional-quality prints with a digital camera and your home printer: a feat that was not possible less than 20 years ago.

When choosing the ideal size of your photo paper, it helps to keep in mind what you intend to use the resulting print for. The majority of inkjet printer photo paper comes in A4 size, but other sizes are also available. Common photo sizes are 9 × 13 cm, 10 × 15 cm, 13 × 18 cm, 15 × 20 cm, 20 × 30 cm and 30 × 40 cm. The smaller sizes are ideal for photo albums, craft projects and scrapbooking, while the larger sizes are suitable for framing or to give as a gift. Your choice of photo paper size will also largely depend on the size and paper capacity of your printer.

For monochrome, single use prints such as multiple copies of black and white documents on standard paper, laser printing is the clear choice. Outperforming inkjet printers in per-page cost and speed, laser printers deliver a maximum of 700 DPI and are the ideal printer choice for some users. Inkjet printers, on the other hand, can print up to 2,880 DPI and are significantly more accurate than their laser counterparts. What inkjet printers lack in print speed, they make up for diversity, with a range of printing supplies available for inkjet printer users to choose from including inkjet glossy photo paper and inkjet matte photo paper.

There is no industry standard when it comes to inkjet printer photo paper, and many manufacturers have their own standards. As a guide, though, photo paper that is marked as ‘standard’ will be more economical and best suited for everyday photos. The next step up is inkjet photo paper that is brighter and heavier, and best suited for photo albums and scrapbooking projects. When you need the highest quality inkjet printer photo paper, look for heavyweight stock that is suitable for archival purposes, as this will create photo prints with brighter, more accurate colours and the highest standards of definition.