DIN A4 prints for long-term archiving of photographs

Data format: DIN A4 (297x210mm) or smaller, 600dpi max., RGB, CMYK or LAB, with job ticket. Delivered final format: approx. 305x230mm

For your valuable images and documents, we offer an analogue archival solution as a printed photo that is suitable for long-term archiving and, with dry and dark storage, offers archivability of more than 200 years without any noticeable colour change occurring. The photos are then placed with unbuffered cotton interleavin papers in acid-free and light-tight cardboard photo boxes to provide optimal long-term storage conditions.
 

Our long-term archivable photo prints are characterised by the following features:

• We print your photo at the highest possible resolution directly from your RGB or LAB colour space. You do not need to convert the images into special ICC profiles.
• We print on the printing system with the most precise colour reproduction on the entire printer market
• We print with the latest and most long-term stable Epson HDX colour pigments
• We print on hahnemühle Photo Rag Pearl made of cotton, which offers great storage capacity
• On each print, a status line below the image notes the filename, ICC profiles used, print date, rendering intent, printer, substrate, ink and much more
• The prints are equipped with 18gr/qm unbuffered cotton interleavin papers to prevent rubbing and scratching
• The prints are delivered on request in special archive boxes that are optimally suitable for long-term archiving
• Print papers, interleavin papers and archive boxes are certified and designed for long-term archiving

 

Detailed information on the materials used and their suitability for long-term archiving

Photo printer: EPSON SureColor 9000V Spectro

• The SureColor SC-P9000V is the printer with the most accurate colour reproduction on the entire printer market¹
• It features Epson TFP PrecisionCore print heads and pigment inks with orange, green and violet as additional colours
• We print at the highest resolution of the printer
• The printer and measuring equipment were delivered on 23.12.2015 and put into operation in early 2016

 

Pigment ink: EPSON HDX colours

• We print with 11 different pigment inks

• With the help of violet, UltraChrome HDX can create a large palette of vibrant colours as well as deep, rich blacks and dense shadow areas
• The new Photo Black ink has up to 1.5 times higher pigment concentration compared to previous inks, which provides deeper blacks.
• UltraChrome HDX inks were developed for long-lasting durability. Particularly in the yellow range, the weaknesses of the earlier HDR inks were eliminated. Mark McCormick-Goodhart, Director of Aardenburg Imaging and Archives writes: "Yellow was by far the weakest link [for long-term stability of pigments]. The new HDX ink set remedies this weakness [...].
• Henry Wilhelm from Wilhelm Imaging Research writes about the new HDX inks: "The data measured so far shows that - depending on the paper used - the new inks offer long-term stability of up to 200 years for colour prints, and probably over 400 years for black and white prints. [...] “The larger Dmax, the larger colour space and the reduced metamerism through the new Epson UltraChrome HDX pigments represent a major advance in visual brilliance of both colour and black and white images. [...] The generally better performance of the prints is a significant contribution to photography."

 

Substrate: hahnemühle Photo Rag Pearl

• We searched for a long time for a paper capable of enabling the same long-term qualities as our HDX inks. We deliberately used a non-resin-coated paper. It is also important that our hahnemühle paper contains no optical brighteners, which are critical for long-term stability for various reasons.
• We also chose the paper because the certification experts have extensive experience with it.
• The paper is certified as Digigraphie like our Epson printer
• The natural white paper with a basis weight of 320 g/qm consists of 100% cotton, is free from optical brighteners and is reminiscent of a warm-toned baryta paper. With the large colour space and high colour density, exceptional colour and black/white nuances are achieved and a three-dimensionality is created.
• Wilhelm Imaging Research already certifies the paper with the "old" Epson HDR inks as having colour stability in dark storage of over 200 years.

 

Interleavin: Silk paper without alkali buffer made of cotton

• Between each photo sheet, silk paper without alkali buffer made of 100% cotton with a weight of 17-18 g/qm is inserted to minimise mechanical friction
• The silk paper is smooth on one side with a pH of 7.0 - acid-free and without optical brighteners.
• The paper has passed the Photographic Activity Test (PAT) according to ISO 18916.

 

The archive box

• We deliver the photo prints for an additional charge in a photo archive box. The archive box is writable and can be stored optimally. Approximately 50 images with interleavin papers can be stored per archive box.
• The archive boxes are guaranteed acid-free and ideal for storing prints.
• The archive boxes are ageing resistant according to DIN 6738, ISO 9706 and ISO 16245

 

Why we chose these materials

When we started to deal with the topic of long-term archiving of photographs, we researched various websites and sought advice from different experts.
One of the best-known sources is certainly Wilhelm Imaging Research, which provides an impressive amount of information on the long-term durability of specific printer/ink/paper combinations. Wilhelm Imaging Research pioneered this field and was an important source for us. However, the proximity to the printer and paper industries attributed to him, which pay for Wilhelm's studies, led us to also look for further sources. For example, many posts in forums indicated that papers confirmed as durable by Wilhelm Imaging sometimes developed cracks within a few years. The consideration of climate influences such as ozone on the durability of prints was also taken into account by Wilhelm Imaging only much later. For these reasons, we did not rely exclusively on the investigations of Wilhelm Imaging, but took into account further studies and opinions.
An excellent advisor was Mark McCormick-Goodhart, head and founder of Aardenburg Imaging and Archives - a company active in the field of assessing materials for the creation and conservation of images. Aardenburg Imaging is divided into four areas: photography, printing, research and archiving – excellent therefore for our long-term archiving task.
Mark MacCormick-Goodhart contributed many insights and ideas to our project. His investigation approach of megaluxhours as a measurement point for long-term stability and his idea of i-Metric for assessing quality loss through colour changes in image viewing are absolutely noteworthy. Based on his findings and results from the Aardenburg Light Fade Test Results Database and due to his assessment of our project regarding substrates, printers and ink, we decided on hahnemühle Photo Rag Pearl.
Regarding storage for archiving, we contacted Dr. Philipp Stolper from the Material & Environmental Protection Department of Fogra Forschungsgesellschaft Druck e.V. based on recommendations. I contacted him, among other things, regarding the suitability of hahnemühle, Tecco and Sihl papers, which are partly certified by Fogra according to ISO 9706 ("Information and documentation - Paper for documents - Requirements for permanence"). However, he wrote to us regarding this standard: "In this test, kappa number (indicator of lignin content), alkali reserve (measure of substances that can neutralise acids created during ageing), pH value in aqueous solution (is the paper generally acidic?) and tear resistance according to Elmendorf (mechanical stability) are determined. This standard aims primarily to ensure that the paper does not release acids or oxidise and thus cause additional damage to the ink. This standard does NOT address the relationship between paper and ink, nor does it examine the change in ink."
Our original intention was to place the prints in polyethylene sleeves, as recommended by Epson for archiving. But Dr. Stolper had a clear recommendation: "As for the polyethylene sleeve, I don't know if that might not even be counterproductive if moisture accumulates here and microbiology also comes into play." Admittedly, that was understandable, and McCormick-Goodhart struck the same chord: "A high quality PE wrapper won't necessarily harm anything, but probably is unnecessary unless you expect high levels of physical print handling on a routine basis." We subsequently dispensed with the polyethylene sleeve.
The printers, inks, papers, interleavin and archive boxes we use have thus crystallised as the optimal combination through numerous certifications, study results, recommendations and opinions.

 

Why is long-term archiving of photographs important?

Today almost all photographs are taken digitally, and artistic images are often only produced digitally. Digital images are inexpensive, high-resolution, colour-accurate and excellently retouchable. But can we be sure that these images will still be displayable in many years? That they can still be viewed? That the colours will look exactly as they did at the time of capture? How can we protect a digital original from loss and preserve its colour authenticity for many decades and generations?
Two classical problems of the digital image emerge here:

1. Problem: Risk of loss due to storage media failure

• Every hard drive will eventually fail or produce read errors
• CDs and DVDs can corrode and scratch, drives may no longer be available in the future (see floppy ...)
• Flash memory and SSDs are not indefinitely rewritable, and failure of the electronics also leads to total loss.
• Due to their small size, these media can easily be forgotten, sucked in or inadvertently disposed of.
• Accidental dropping, water, etc. can cause media failure.
• The cloud also offers no safe solution: What if the provider becomes insolvent? Who guarantees the data? Will Strato and Amazon still exist in 50 years?
• Can you permanently migrate your data to new data carriers for decades and centuries and update file formats to current standards?
• Colour microfilm would have been a solution, but is hardly used anymore, and back printing is time-consuming and requires special readers and printers.

 

2. Problem: Readability of data formats and colour spaces

• Can data formats such as JPG, TIF and PSD still be read in decades?
• Can colour spaces such as ECI-RGB V2 or AdobeRGB still be interpreted, can the original colour still be viewed?
• Micrografx Picture Publisher, Macromedia Freehand ... have disappeared. What about Adobe in 50 years?
• Can you manage the permanent effort to migrate to new data formats?

For long-term archiving of valuable digital photography as a print, there are currently hardly any alternatives. "A physical print is the only viable way at this point in time to ensure that future audiences will see the aesthetics of the image the way the photographer wanted them portrayed. The print is where the photographer is able to instill and ensure his or her own aesthetic values in their image craft. At this time, enduring, nothing less than a print, a tactile, physical object, very often hand signed by the artist, achieves this goal." Mark McCormick-Goodhart