Ilford fine art papers
We print on nine Ilford fine art papers, from a classic pearl photo paper to textured cotton rag, a baryta-style fibre paper and a fine art canvas. Every print is made in-house at our studio in Waiouru and delivered throughout New Zealand. Every paper costs the same at each size, so the choice is only about how you want your photograph to look.
ILFORD Certified Printer Partner. Certified by ILFORD for our colour management and quality control.
Compare the papers
| Paper | Finish | Texture and base | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smooth Pearl | Pearl | Smooth, Photo paper | 310gsm |
| Fine Art Smooth Pearl | Pearl | Smooth, Alpha-cellulose | — |
| Smooth Cotton Rag | Matt | Smooth, 100% cotton | 310gsm |
| Smooth Cotton Pearlescent | Matt with shimmer | Smooth, 100% cotton | 310gsm |
| Textured Cotton Pearlescent | Matt with shimmer | Textured, 100% cotton | 310gsm |
| Cotton Artist Textured | Matt | Textured, 100% cotton | 310gsm |
| Metallic Gloss | Metallic gloss | Smooth, Photo paper | 260gsm |
| Gold Fibre Rag | Semi-gloss | Textured, Baryta-style fibre | — |
| Fine Art Canvas Galicia | Matt canvas | Woven, Cotton/poly canvas | 450gsm |
Where to start
- Not sure? Smooth Cotton Rag is our default: calm, matt and detailed, it suits most photographs.
- A classic photographic print: Smooth Pearl, with strong colour and a low-glare pearl sheen.
- Black and white: Gold Fibre Rag, for the feel of a traditional darkroom print.
- Bold colour and contrast: Metallic Gloss, a deliberate, striking look.
- A painted feel: Cotton Artist Textured, or Fine Art Canvas Galicia for a canvas.
Or choose Recommended for You in the designer, and our print specialists choose the paper for your photograph.
The nine papers
Ilford Smooth Pearl
Pearl · Smooth · Photo paper
A classic photo-lab look: a smooth pearl surface on a heavy, resin-coated base. Strong colour, sharp detail, and glare kept under control.
Best for: Landscapes, Portraits, Colourful images, General photography.
Why choose it: It's built like a traditional photographic print, with a natural photo-paper white and a pearl finish that keeps reflections down.
Our recommendation: Our go-to if you want it to look like a proper photograph. If your image is colourful and you're not sure, this is a safe place to start.
Technical details
- Weight
- 310gsm
- Thickness
- 310 microns
- Base
- Resin-coated (RC) photo paper
- Surface
- Pearl
- Opacity
- 99%
- Paper white (CIE L*a*b*)
- 95.5 / 0.7 / −5.0
Ilford Fine Art Smooth Pearl
Pearl · Smooth · Alpha-cellulose
A smooth pearl-surface fine art paper made from alpha-cellulose rather than cotton. Sharp and contrasty, with a wide colour range.
Best for: Black & white, Detailed images, Landscapes.
Why choose it: You get the crisp, contrasty look of a pearl surface on a fine-art base instead of a resin-coated photo base.
Our recommendation: Worth a look for black and white or high-contrast images where sharpness matters. It has more of a fine-art feel than Smooth Pearl.
Technical details
- Base
- Alpha-cellulose, acid-free
- Surface
- Pearl
Ilford Smooth Cotton Rag
Matt · Smooth · 100% cotton
A soft, matt, 100% cotton paper with a very smooth surface: crisp detail and a natural, unbrightened white.
Best for: Fine-art work, Landscapes, Highly detailed images, Black & white.
Why choose it: No shine, so nothing competes with the image, and no optical brighteners, so whites look natural.
Our recommendation: Our default for a reason. Calm, matt and detail-rich, it suits most photographs and gives that quiet gallery-print look.
Technical details
- Weight
- 310gsm
- Thickness
- 485 microns
- Base
- 100% cotton rag, no optical brighteners
- Surface
- Smooth matt
- Opacity
- > 98%
- Paper white (CIE L*a*b*)
- 98.5 / 0.2 / 2.5
Ilford Smooth Cotton Pearlescent
Matt · Pearlescent shimmer · Smooth · 100% cotton
Smooth cotton rag with a subtle pearlescent shimmer in the coating that gives highlights a little extra life.
Best for: Landscapes, Fine-art work, Images with luminous highlights.
Why choose it: The same smooth, detail-holding cotton base as Smooth Cotton Rag, plus a gentle sparkle.
Our recommendation: For when plain matt feels a bit flat but full gloss is too much. The shimmer is subtle, not shiny.
Technical details
- Weight
- 310gsm
- Thickness
- 550 microns
- Base
- 100% cotton rag, mould-made
- Surface
- Smooth matt with a pearlescent coating
- Opacity
- > 98%
- Paper white (CIE L*a*b*)
- 97.5 / 0.3 / 1.8
Ilford Textured Cotton Pearlescent
Matt · Pearlescent shimmer · Textured · 100% cotton
The textured version of Smooth Cotton Pearlescent: a tactile cotton surface with the same gentle shimmer.
Best for: Fine-art work, Painterly and artistic images, Landscapes.
Why choose it: The texture adds a hand-made feel, and the shimmer adds light to the highlights. It's best when the paper itself is part of the look.
Our recommendation: A statement paper for when you want the surface noticed as well as the picture. If fine detail is the priority, the smooth version is safer.
Technical details
- Weight
- 310gsm
- Thickness
- 570 microns
- Base
- 100% cotton rag, mould-made
- Surface
- Textured matt with a pearlescent coating
- Opacity
- > 98%
- Paper white (CIE L*a*b*)
- 97.8 / 0.3 / 1.4
Ilford Cotton Artist Textured
Matt · Textured · 100% cotton
A heavy, mould-made cotton paper with a pronounced watercolour-paper texture.
Best for: Fine-art work, Painterly images, Landscapes.
Why choose it: The coarse surface gives a traditional watercolour-paper feel, and ILFORD says it still holds sharp detail and consistent colour.
Our recommendation: The most 'artist's paper' feel in the range. Great if you want your photo to feel like a painted piece. For very fine detail, compare it with Smooth Cotton Rag first.
Technical details
- Weight
- 310gsm
- Thickness
- 595 microns
- Base
- 100% cotton rag, mould-made, no optical brighteners
- Surface
- Textured matt
- Opacity
- > 98%
- Paper white (CIE L*a*b*)
- 98 / 0.2 / 2.6
Ilford Metallic Gloss
Metallic gloss · Smooth · Photo paper
A glossy, resin-coated photo paper with a metallic shimmer that gives images a striking, three-dimensional look.
Best for: Portraits, Studio work, Architecture and industrial subjects, Bold colour and contrast.
Why choose it: The metallic finish makes colours and highlights glint. It's a deliberate look, not a neutral one.
Our recommendation: The 'wow' paper. Not the one for a quiet, natural look, but striking for bold colour, strong contrast or hard-edged subjects.
Technical details
- Weight
- 260gsm
- Thickness
- 260 microns
- Base
- Resin-coated (RC) photo paper
- Surface
- Metallic gloss
- Opacity
- 98%
- Paper white (CIE L*a*b*)
- 88.0 / 0.3 / −4.0
Ilford Gold Fibre Rag
Semi-gloss · Textured · Baryta-style fibre
A baryta-style fibre paper with a soft texture and a semi-gloss sheen, aimed at that traditional darkroom-print look.
Best for: Black & white, Fine-art work, Detailed images with a wide tonal range.
Why choose it: A bright white base and wide tonal range, with more sheen than the matt cottons.
Our recommendation: Our pick for black and white, or anything where you want the classic darkroom-print feel with a little lustre. It looks quite different from the matt cottons.
Technical details
- Base
- Baryta-like fibre paper
- Surface
- Semi-gloss, soft texture
Ilford Fine Art Canvas Galicia
Canvas · Woven · Cotton/poly canvas
A matt cotton/polyester canvas, for prints that feel more like a painting than a photo under glass.
Best for: Landscapes, Wall art, Artwork reproduction.
Why choose it: A woven canvas surface with a bright white base, made to be stretched without cracking.
Our recommendation: Pick this if you want a canvas rather than a paper print. Ask us if you're unsure how it will work with your image.
Technical details
- Weight
- 450gsm
- Thickness
- 590 microns
- Base
- Cotton/polyester canvas
- Surface
- Matt
- Opacity
- 99%
- Paper white (CIE L*a*b*)
- 97.6 / 2.1 / −6.2
Technical information sourced from ILFORD Imaging.
Common questions
Can I order a print on Ilford paper in New Zealand?
Yes. Upload your photograph in the designer, choose its size and one of the nine Ilford papers above, and we print it in-house in Waiouru and deliver it anywhere in New Zealand.
What's the difference between a matt cotton paper and a pearl paper?
The matt cotton papers, such as Smooth Cotton Rag, have no shine, so nothing competes with the image, and give a natural, gallery-style finish. A pearl paper, such as Smooth Pearl, has a low-glare sheen and the look of a classic photographic print.
Which paper is best for black and white?
Gold Fibre Rag, a darkroom-style fibre paper with a soft semi-gloss sheen and a wide tonal range. Fine Art Smooth Pearl and Smooth Cotton Rag also suit black and white.
Does the paper change the price?
No. Every paper costs the same at each size.
Order a print
Upload your photograph, choose its size and paper, and see the price before you order. Every photograph is reviewed before it goes to print. More about our fine art printing.