I've heard that photo printer inks (especially Epson) are subject to fading. Is this due only to light so, therefore, they won't fade in storage? Or, does heat and time cause it too?

Will laminating or using plastic sleeve help and, if so, what kind?

Thanks, Pete

-- Peter Holden (PEHOLDEN@prodigy.net), December 08, 1998

Answers

Light is definitely the biggest culprit, especially ultraviolet. I'm sure time/temperature is a factor also, but light is what will kill a print left facing a bright window in a few months. I have prints that have been stored for a couple of years, and they don't appear to have faded at all. (Although I haven't tried any scientific measurements of them.) There are some plastic laminates made specifically to cut UV transmission, and those would definitely help. (You'll need to find a laminating service in your city that caters to graphic-arts types. The most effective laminates, as I recall, are the cold-mount ones, since they can carry extra UV absorbers in the adhesive layer itself.) No laminate will be 100% though - while UV is the worst problem, ANY light will have some effect.

-- Dave Etchells (web@imaging-resource.com), December 09, 1998.