Digital BW, The Print

Jim,

Thanks very much for this excellent response.  This is so much more 
than I ever expected and is very much appreciated.  I have a lot to 
learn and this post will save me, and others, a tremendous amount of 
time and effort.

Brian


--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "jim hayes" 
<jimhayes@f...> wrote:
> --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "BluesVan"
> <BluesVan@a...> wrote:
> > Hi,
> > 
> > I've got an Epson 2200 and ImagePrint, and I'm getting excellent 
B/W 
> > prints.  I am fairly new to this and wanted to know if there is 
a 
> > preferred paper type (matte, rag, etc..) and brand (should I 
even 
> > consider using non-Epson papers ?) for B/W archival photos which 
> > will be framed under glass (are there alternatives here as 
well ?).  
> > I'm looking at print sizes ranging from 5 x 7 to 5 x 8.75 to 8 x 
10.
> > 
> > Thanks for any info,
> > Brian
> 
> I use the same combo, though I print larger. I frame myself since 
the
> markup is tremendous (can be 5x, am told). Here's some thoughts. 
They
> are longish, and my opinion only, others may have other 
preferences/
> better and longer experiences:
> 
> 1) "Ghosting" can occur with glossy but not matte papers. This is 
were
> you frame something, and 6 months later, the ink sort of outgasses,
> forming an image on the inside of the glass. It can be solved,
> according to many, by simply putting a sheet of paper over the 
print
> after it is printed for a couple of days to absorb stuff. Then 
frame
> it. I use matte paper so haven't ever messed with this.
> 
> 2) Some matte paper can have the coating flake off in little bits,
> creating white spots. Brushing with a drafters brush or an anti-
static
> cloth just before printer insertion may minimise this, as may 
spraying
> the print after. Hahnemule paper is notorious for flaking but is
> otherwise a top paper. Low humidity can worsen the problem. Non-
Epson
> paper is fine, except don't tell Epson you've used them if you need
> Epson tech support. Weird. Some papers have optical brightners to 
make
> them whiteter- some people think this is not strictly archival or 
that
> the paper will dull in time.
> 
> 3) If you spray the print with a fixative it can improve longevity.
> Some coatings deepen the blacks on glossy paper- this is a subject 
in
> itself. There are many sprays. Premier Art "Print Shield" has been
> tested to improve longevity officially. It is transpartent on matte
> paper, on glossy too if you spray it with care.
> 
> 4) go to htttp://inkjetart.com and click on the 2200 link and then 
the
> media recomendations link for paper recomendations. This is a
> commercial site. But they try to have a lot of plain facts about 
this
> stuff.
> 
> 5) I use metal frames over wood because they have less chance of
> contamination (acid in wood) getting into the mat, and can be taken
> apart and reassembled in a flash if you don't put Kraft paper on 
the
> back. W/o Kraft paper the print can breathe too. I buy cardboard
> corners that go over the  metal corners to prevent nicks on frames 
for
> transport. I buy from http://www.framingsupplies.com which has good
> service, huge variety, and discounts on hangers to mat cutters. You
> can get metal and wood moulding cut to many lengths. A metal frame
> moulding, cut to 18x24 with assembly hadware, costs only $11.
> 
> 6) Lucite is better for shipping and has less of a tint to it than
> glass, but I never use it anymore. It scratches too easily and the
> staic electricity collects dust and can contribute to print 
flaking. I
> use Conservation-clear glass made by Tru-Vue. This glass has an
> anti-UV coating on the inside, which contributes to longevity of
> print. I don't get anti-glare version simply because I don't like 
it,
> but it is also made by etching the inside of the glass with acid-
> slightly questionable. Lucite anti-glare is made differently I 
believe
> and is safe. Anti-UV lucite is also made but hard to find (try 
Light
> Impressions). If you buy the glass cut request that they sand the
> edges, and ask that they put a bit of masking tape on the outside
> face, so you dont have to scratch the border with a razor blade to
> tell which side has the UV coating and ahould face inside. I use
> Tru-Vue (purple) glass cleaner because it is safe for the UV 
coating
> and I presume archival. Shop around for glass, I found prices vary
> locally.
> 
> 7) I have used Logan's top of the line mat cutter called "Framer's
> Edge"  for about 1 1/2 years, bought at a discount from
> framingsupplies.com, although they carry other brands. Logan can be
> pretty bad, a friend that has framed all his life tells me he hates
> Logan, but this is a decent model at a good price. I don't think 
I'd
> buy any other model they make but that's up to you. Always use at
> least a 4 ply window mat so that the print will never touch the 
glass-
> it can breathe.
> 
> 8) There are a few ways to attach the print to the back mat and 
hold
> it behind the window mat. I never dry mount anymore. Some people 
use 
> ragged edge torn Japanese Mulberry paper strips to form hinges with
> either wheat or rice paste adhesive to attach to top of print. 
Lineco
> even makes pre-adhesive torn strips-right out of the box. I like
> mounting corners better. They are little corner pockets, paper or
> plastic that hold the work in place, hopefully hidden behind the
> window mat. They go on in seconds and you can remove the print and
> even swap prints out with these. My favorite new item I use is
> see-thru polyester mounting strips by Lineco, which are just strips
> that hold an edge of your print overlapping it... you can then form
> your own corners, cut the strips to any length (1/2-1 inch for your
> size), hold the long edge of a print in the middle, trim the 
overlap
> to not be visible under window mat (!) etc. With corners or strips,
> leave a little gap so the print can expand under temp extremes 
without
> buckling. From what I can see it looks like the strips promote
> expansion better than the corners, but I've just started using 
them.
> If using the hinges, you don't worry about this.
> 
> 9) Consider a bigger frame. The fashion now is to have wide window 
mat
> borders. Some folks like to weight the window, making the top 
border
> narrower than the bottom border. I try not to go below a 3 inch
> border, even on the top; you may get away with less on a smaller
> print- certainly 5x7. I think when I added up the entire cost of
> framing something in an 11 x 14 frame, including glass, mat board,
> rubber feet, etc, it was about $15 materials, getting it from the
> right sources.
> 
> 10) I called up Crescent and ordered most of their archival mat 
board
> corner samples, and a display stand to hold them. This is what the
> frame shops have. It's only 18 inches long and holds about 230 
> different corner samples. Something like $35 for both. I also 
ordered
> about 30 sample metal frame "corners" from framingsupplies.com - 
they
> cut them for you for this purpose if you want. So I now have a mini
> frame shop. I look at corner samples, hold them next to print, then
> just call up a local frame shop and order up a 32x40 sheet of 
whatever
> mat color I want. I can save a dollar/sheet if I order a pack of 25
> from framingsupplies.com but they sometimes get creased in 
shipping.
> You can buy the mat corner sample kit from them too but it's more
> expensive than from Crescent. 
> 
> 11) I learned a lot of this by simply buying a few books and 
reading
> them and then making a few mistakes. And following threads on this
> forum (aka "ghosting") and others. A lot of framing books get well,
> silly (my opinion) by after a chapter or two on basic framing, 
going
> into how they made frames out of junk found in flea markets, gluing
> glitter to the frame moulding, welding frames out of rusty iron, 
very
> weird stuff. I suggest: keep the frame simple and understated. And
> research the books you buy carefully...get lots of pages of nitty
> gritty, and less on special frames and triple window mat cutting 
with
>  notches in the corners, etc. Actually, it can be a simple task
> requiring minimal skills.
> 
> Jim Hayes