Digital BW, The Print

http://www.wilhelm-research.com/phototechniques/PhotoTechniques_WIR_2005_01.pdf

"Archival" is a word we don't use anymore. Its original definition was
usually interpreted to mean "lasting longer than 100 years."

Also, his goal certainly is for consumers simply to believe his numbers:

"The choice is there, in very simple terms, using Wilhelm Research
Numbers." 

Either Wilhelm communicates the limitations of his "results" clearly,
noting conflicting results when they occur, and correcting companies
who sloppily use his numbers in advertising, or he doesn't. It's a
matter of credibility.

If he doesn't address the stability of paper itself, including
yellowing and physical decay, he doesn't even address what most people
mean by print permanence. I believe most are much more concerned with
yellowing and crumbling of old photos than they are with Dmax.

Maybe you don't, but most of the art world and all my customers do,  
they are obsessed with it. Second question is usually "how archival  
are the prints?"
Mark

On Apr 9, 2007, at 10:00 AM, djon43 wrote:

> "Archival" is a word we don't use anymore.



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, Mark Savoia
<mark@...> wrote:
>
> Maybe you don't, but most of the art world and all my customers do,  
> they are obsessed with it. Second question is usually "how archival  
> are the prints?"
> Mark
> 
> On Apr 9, 2007, at 10:00 AM, djon43 wrote:
> 
> > "Archival" is a word we don't use anymore.
> 

Mark, those weren't my words, I quoted Wilhelm. 

When your customer asks "how archival," what does she mean? Does she
plan to do densitometry in the future? Will her progeny? 

Or is she simply parroting something she's seen, that's used for
marketing by some photo galleries (does a "sofa-sized"  picture of a
barn and cloud by an unknown photographer need to be "archival"?  

If she's more realistic than most, it possible she's thinking more
about her ancestors' yellowing photos than about Dmax?

A couple of years ago there was some talk of a web site that used daylight to test paper/ink combinations but I can't remember the name of the site.

Can anyone refresh my memory?

thanks,
Richard
--
http://smallfield.vze.com
http://photos.smallfield.vze.com (Photos web site)
http://warkworth.vze.com/ (Warkworth photo essay)
http://picasaweb.google.com/rsmallfield/ (Recent work) 

   "There is no cause so right that one cannot find a fool following it."
   --Niven's Law # 16

>> A couple of years ago there was some talk of a web site that used daylight to test paper/ink combinations but I can't remember the name of the site.


You might mean Livick. It's very interesting what is currently there in place of data. 
http://www.livick.com/method/inkjet/pg1.htm


Michael Gordon
www.mgordonphotography.com

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