 Maria Zammit |
Prints: How Long Do They Last? And What Care? I would like to print some photos to hang in a room. What do I have to do to ensure they will not fade after a couple of years? What do I have to ask for at the printer to ensure I get what I want - a long lasting print? Thanks!
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John P. Sandstedt |
Prints made in the wet darkroom withstand the test of time. You can still see prints Matthew Brady made of his Civil War images. The same might not be said of digital prints. Digital photography is very new; really only about 20 years ago Kodak introduced the first consumer-oriented digital camera. You'll read a lot about how long a given paper manufacturer's print will last. It's hard to say; results reported reflect a simulation as opposed to the "test of time." As with any piece of art work, you want to be sure it's protected from dust, aerosols, chemicals, etc. Thus, you want to hang properly framed prints. [And, you don't need to pay huge sums - you can do a more than adequate job yourself.] One other thing, watch strong lights "glowing down on your prints." Recall that most museums prohibit use of flash photography - the reason being the negative impact of the bright flash. Don't know if it's really true but, I wouldn't argue with Museum Curators [like, for example, those at the International Center for Photography in NYC.
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John H. Siskin |
Hi Maria, Traditional Photographs were made using light sensitive materials, such as silver halides. These are reactive chemicals that can be damaged by light and chemicals. I think you are unlikely to see any of Matthew Brady’s U.S. Civil War work on long-term display in a museum. I recently saw some Daguerreotypes at the Getty Museum here in Los Angeles. They were shown in a special room with controlled light. The worst light appears to be in the ultraviolet, but you couldn’t show images indefinitely under red bulbs either. The basic situation for digital prints is if you use a printer that uses pigment inks the ink itself is more stable and less likely to react to outside chemicals. That helps a lot. Next, if the image is in a sealed frame behind glass, matted with museum-grade materials, things will be even better. You can use a glass that will filter out ultraviolet light, which will help more. Finally, sunlight is much more intense, and more blue than light from most other sources, so if you can keep sunlight away from the print, it will last longer. The other two big problems are water and heat: Try to avoid these. The print will last for years, maybe decades! Thanks, John Siskin
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Maria Zammit |
Thanks, John, for your help. I am now more confident to try out some enlargements. Can you help me with the sort of paper that is most likely to last longer, please, and what sort of printer is best. Are home-printed photos as good as those produced at a professional printer?
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John H. Siskin |
Hi Maria, The three major printer manufacturers for photographers are HP, Epson and Canon. If you get one of the printers from these companies that uses their archival inks - for instance, Vivera from HP - and you use their recommended archival paper, then you should have a good outcome in terms of durability and quality. If you use ink or paper from a third party, there is no predicting how long the prints will last. If you get one of the 13X19 inch printers with the archival inks from one of these companies, expect to pay between $500 and $1000, and you can expect very fine prints. Thanks, John
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