At PhotoPlus in NYC, Blurb announced that they are going to have available a premium paper option for their book printing capabilities, starting Oct 23, 2008, which by my calculation is in a couple of more days.
The premium paper is a 100 lb text with a silk finish, which should improve opacity (less transparent) and improve the printing process with their HP Indigo printers. The premium paper option is available for all book formats, but there is a current limitation that you can not go beyond 160 pages with it.
From Blurb:
Blurb recently moved its book printing exclusively to the HP Indigo digital printing press, and earlier this year introduced its membership-only B3 program (Blurb Business to Business). A key feature of the program is a premium Custom Workflow option that delivers superior quality. Premium Paper is now available to B3 members as part of the Custom Workflow process.
“This is a big deal for Blurb users – many of whom are professionals who use our platform to create portfolios and to sell books to their clients,” said Eileen Gittins, founder and CEO of Blurb. “Premium Paper is yet another example of our commitment to these people, and to delivering superior quality and consistency. Our users can now make higher quality books than ever before.”
This premium paper option looks very interesting and I am looking forward to reviewing a Blurb book printed with this paper. I have a good feeling that I will be soon incorporating this paper into my Blurb photographic project books.
In fact, if you have a published Blurb books, you should be able to go back in and edit your printing options to include this new 100 lb paper.
Best regards, Doug Stockdale
12-03-08 Update: I just received my second edition of In Passing which I had printed on the new Blurb premium 100lb paper. A very nice improvement, the printing does not appear as flat as it did with the 80lb standard paper. A highly recommended option for photographic projects and monographs. I have subsequently reviewed Ben Robert’s Blurb book One More Night, which was printed on this same paper and again, the colors appeared more vivid, and not flat.
