Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/07/20

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Subject: RE: [Leica] Darkroom prints versus digital prints
From: Alex Hurst <corkflor@iol.ie>
Date: Mon, 20 Jul 1998 08:47:54 +0100

srlondon wrote:
<snip>
>In terms of my own personal experience with fading, I printed two photos
>on regular document paper when I purchased my first inkjet printer (a HP,
>which while fast, had banding problems when printing photos) three years
>ago.  These prints were literally tacked on the front of a refrigerator.
>While the color print seems somewhat less vibrant than the original print
>was, it is not noticably so (nobody looks at the print and says "oooh...
>that's faded").  The black print appears as it did originally, if possibly
>the blacks are somewhat less dense.  I would like to pick up some of the
>UV print coater and see if it makes a marked difference in the longevity
>of these prints.
>
Reinforcing this point, surely no-one is going to claim that every image
they print is worthy of archiving. There are horses for courses.

1) If you want to archive, then both Cibachrome and digital routes are
available.

2) For less permanent prints, the ink-jet route is perfectly satisfactory,
and indeed permanence will probably improve by leaps and bounds as ink
technology advances.

3) There is also a point about publishing on the Web, as many of us do.
No-one would claim that a compressed JPEG is going to come anywhere near
the quality of a Cibachrome or even a good high-end ink-jet print.

Nevertheless, a striking image will still be striking despite the
considerable loss of technical quality.

It's a bit like listening to a great classical music performance on a small
radio compared to a good hi-fi rig. The essence of the performance will
still be there, and your ear (or in our case,  your eye) will make the
necessary compensation for the limitations of the medium.

BTW, what's this UV spray and where do I get it? Sounds just the thing for
Jim's 15mm and 19mm R lenses.....;-))

Slan

Alex


Alex Hurst
Cork Florists
19 Winthrop St, Cork
Republic of Ireland
Tel: +353 21 270 907
Fax: +353 21 271 248
email: corkflor@iol.ie
Website: http://www.flowerlink.com/corkflorists
Home website: http://homepages.iol.ie/~corkflor/