| If you want a good shiro, the most important element is the shiroji ground. This means that the white must not only be very white, it must also be bright! There are many types of skin in shiro lines. Some are naturally better than others. You want to find the fish with white but also with a high degree of what the Japanese call luminous cells ( really a clear cell in skin that reflects light).
Once you have this skin type the pattern ON the skin is improved and often tends to 'float' on the body. It would be nice to then add a high class sumi to this picture but you will pay dearly for that option! So even second class sumi will look excellent on the right white skin.
Pattern in shiro under the old standards, required a 'reflecting' or checkerboard arrangement. This is no longer the case and 'reflection' now refers to the interplay in shiro and sumi itself and not just the pattern symmetry.
Here is a very good shiro. Study the shiro. This is in very strong light and there isn’t any flaw. This is rare as most shiro, even some expensive patterned ones, do not possess this shiro quality.
Best of luck on your hunt, JR |