Re: dye sublimation prints

Luis Nadeau (nadeaul@nbnet.nb.ca)
Sat, 21 Mar 1998 02:23:37 -0400

At 6:56 PM -0700 98/03/20, Bob_Maxey@mtn.3com.com wrote:
>>>>Processes are not permanent. Some processes are potentially permanent.
>
>Actually, permanent means forever. After all, it is permanent. So how long
>is permanent?

500 years is considered by many to be permanent enough. One of my upcoming
books, _History and Practice of Photoceramic Processes_ will tell you more
about photographs that have the potential of lasting 40,000 years or more.

>Illfochrome has materials that they will guarantee for 150 -
>200 years or more depending on how they are handled. these specialty

There are so many holes in your writing that I just don't know where to
start. Let's try here, but I'll have to be brief as I don't have all day.
My first meeting with the Ilford chemists in charge of permanence issues
was in 1976 in Europe. We worked on a black & white project that was later
called Galerie paper. The advantage of working directly with industry (and
archival) specialists is that one can get a lot of insider's information
that nobody would be caught dead putting in writing. After some networking
I learned that Cibachrome (formerly Telcolux and Cilchrome [1963]) was no
longer to be advertised as "archival" when an interior decorator had to
redo a job because the Cibas had faded quite badly in a record time (months
under a lot of light). Cibachromes, because of their azo dyes, were 3 to 7
times better than conventional chromogenic materials (a far cry from being
"archival") and were to be referred to as "fade resistant" from that point
on. Nowadays they are not as permanent as some Fuji papers.

>microfilm materials are, after all designed for permanence. Yes, some are
>perminent...visit any museum that displays some of the Old Masters. Earth
>pigments tend to be as permanent as possible.

You are not teaching me anything new here either. Take a look at my
_History and Practice of Carbon Processes_, (1982), out of print but
available through inter-library loan.

>>fade if made without care. And what do you mean by normal color display
>>material? Prints like Dye Imbibsion have lasted since the day they were
>>made.
>>>Many have but many have not. Dye prints are not the most light-fast color
>>>prints. They are very stable in the dark though.
>
>My Dye Transfer Prints and many existing Technicolor Motion Picture Release
>Prints are still with us, and in perfect condition. I have a Dye Transfer

In my fadeometer I had no difficulty making Kodak dye transfers fade.
Others, including Kodak, had similar results. I eventually found a set of
pigments suitable for tricolor carbon printing that never faded in 3 years
of 24 hours/day exposure 1 cm away from fluorescent lights. Some
"permanent" pigments, especially yellows, faded significantly after 3 days.

...

>>>Sorry but you are wrong. Some Fuji materials are very permanent.
>
>I did not say they were not, what I said - (clearly pasted above) is that
>Fuji can't say that they have a proven track record for longevity.

If they can't say it I know of others who can comment favorably about some
of their chromogenic materials. I also have two beautiful Fuji full color
photoceramics here, complete with balistic tests, no less, that will be
published in my photoceramic book.

Luis Nadeau
NADEAUL@NBNET.NB.CA
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
http://www3.nbnet.nb.ca/nadeaul/