Digital BW, The Print

> Paul Roark wrote:
    On a related point, I'm amazed when I hear people disparaging all
> fade and age testing. How quickly we forget the horrible reputation
> inkjet printing, and including the expensive Iris "giclee"
> prints, got from the use of dyes instead of pigments. I think, in
> particular, Wilhelm's testing and excellent reputation has done a
> tremendous amount to move the industry to more stable materials and have
> our inkjet photos accepted as a serious medium.
Absolutely!  My mother-in-law has professional portraits of each of her 
children (5 daughters) along the main hallway in her house, both baby, 
toddler, and wedding  pictures.  The prints are between 10 and 45 years 
old, and they don't receive any direct sunlight.  Most are fine, but a 
couple show extreme fading, including some of the most recent.  Clearly 
the prints are made with different materials, with some being much more 
long lasting than others. Personally, I enjoy looking at old family 
pictures, and given all of the work I put in to making my family 
pictures, I'd like there to be a decent chance that my daughters can 
show some of them to their grand children without there being major 
deterioration.