p.1 #1 · question about Archival or similar treatment
Archival paper and ink can produce a longlasting image.
but, do i have to use both archival ink and paper to get the long-lasting result?
somebody told me that there is a special treatment for regular ink and paper, it will make the image last for a long time, is it true? if so, can it last longer than archival paper + ink?
p.1 #2 · question about Archival or similar treatment
Problem with regular paper is that is is very acid and is breaking down as it sits on your shelf. Look at some year old copies. There are some treatments archivists use to save old broken down paper but it my understanding that these treatment are very time consuming, expensive and you need someone who knows what they are doing to get the desired result.
If you want a long lasting result the easiest way to get it is to use the proper materials the first time. There has been a lot of work put into the current OEM inks and papers. The results speak for themselves.
p.1 #3 · question about Archival or similar treatment
Have to agree with Tom. One of the big things that is different between a fine art paper and a regular photo paper is that the high end papers are 100% cotton rag instead of wood pulp. Wood Pulp can break down over time and yellow or become brittle. This is not new. You'll notice that good art papers have long been made from rag sources.
What the photo printers put out there is print permanence rating, not overall archival rating. What they are talking about is how long will the color hold in intensity and saturation under "X" conditions. During that 100 year period, if the paper is wood pulp based, there is a good chance that the paper will degrade.
So if you want your images to last, you should shell out the $3/sheet asking price for good quality fine art printing paper.
p.1 #4 · question about Archival or similar treatment
And there are some spray's that can be used to "seal" the pigments to improve color permanence, but I don't know if these have been thoroughly tested with ink jet systems.
p.1 #5 · question about Archival or similar treatment
mrladewig wrote:
And there are some spray's that can be used to "seal" the pigments to improve color permanence, but I don't know if these have been thoroughly tested with ink jet systems.
Wilhelm has conducted tests and approve of a couple of brands, such as Premier, as being effective in extending the longevity of prints in their tests. Premier was very effective--as good as UV glass.
Of course, we can argue at length about whether the Wilhelm tests are truly representational of real-world longevity, but unfortunately none of us today will be able to prove it over real time and still have enough time to enjoy the knowledge.
The real Catch-22 is that no imaging process now in use has any real-time proof of longevity...not even silver halide. The silver halide materials and processes of today--even the atmospheric environment of today--are vastly different from those of 100 years ago. Nobody knows except through tests like Wilhelms whether anything produced today by any method will last the next 100 years.
