As a part time photographer....somewhere between an accomplished amateur and a junior professional....anything which improves the overall appearance of the final image is something which I rate very highly. The last time I attended the In Focus exhibition at the NEC in Birmingham, I had the opportunity to view examples of the Canon Photo Paper Pro Platinium - and since using this paper, for important jobs, I wouldn't use anything else.

Okay......first things first.....let me upfront about the fact that this paper is not cheap and it wouldn't be the kind of thing I would purchase to print out cute snaps of my children playing on the beach! I recommend that you don't consider doing this either unless your children happen to be called Brooklyn or Lourdes and you have money burning a hole in your pocket!! An A4 (210 x 297 mm) version costs around £16 and an A3 version of this paper costs nearer 20. In each packet you only get 20 sheets and so its not difficult to work out that you're getting on to paying around £1 a sheet - which isn't cheap by any standards! I tend to buy mine direct from my local specialist photography supplier, but I have seen this for sale on the ever trusty Amazon as well.

The paper is, in basic terms "white", but it is the type of whiteness with is fairly neutral and so doesn't take on a colour of its own. I sometimes find with other photo paper that the white is kind of a vivid or bright white and therefore this contributes to the resulting colour - which isn't what I want because I want the colours to be natural and authentic. The Pro Platinum enables me to achieve this and I am able to be as certain as possible (with printer callibration) that the colour is as true to reality as possible......or at least as true to my desired colouring.

The paper is 300gsm and so its thick and sturdy and incomparible to the really thin and flimsy 90gsm paper that seems to frequent the shelves! I think thicker paper like this feels like so much better quality.

The reason that Canon says that this paper works so well is because the layers of the paper are separated into a colour reproduction layer, an absorbing layer, a chromogenic enhancing (resin-coated) layer. In "english" this basically means that the ink is absorbed quickly and into the thin ink-recieving layer on top - and therefore the colours are more vivid and richer with a higher resolution. I do find that the finished product is greatly enhanced by the quality of the paper that is used - and with this in mind, I believe that the Pro Platinum is, to date, the best photographic paper I have chanced upon.

In addition to this, I find that the colours do not fade or deteriorate and so basically I can be fairly certain that what I achieve at the outset is what remains several years later. Again, with cheaper papers, I have seen the colours and sharpness of the images fade.

Overall, I would recommend this paper for anyone who takes their photography seriously and who has some important photos to display. Again, I wouldn't use it for snaps (or I'd be bankrupt!!) but for something special, it really is worth it.