It's a common misconception that photos printed at home with an inkjet printer fade more quickly than professionally developed film. While that may be true if you’re using everyday printing supplies, when you print photographs using papers and ink specifically designed for photo printing you will discover that your pictures can last just as long as traditional photos.
Of course, just like traditional photos, your digitally printed images are subject to environmental conditions that can cause wear and fading. Here's what you can do to protect your photos, so your treasured memories will remain just as brilliant for years to come.
Start out right
Use papers and inks designed specifically for your printer. Hewlett-Packard's hardware engineers work directly with our paper and ink teams to design printers, papers and ink that work together to produce vivid, long-lasting pictures. (In this article, find out more about the benefits of HP Premium plus photo paper.)
Papers with special coatings and absorption factors are carefully matched with inks resistant to damage from air, light and water, while HP's PhotoRET Color Layering Technology produces images that are sharper and more colorful from the start. Learn more in Better photo printing with HP photoREt IV.
After printing, make sure your photos are completely dry before stacking them, or they might stick together. Many new products offer quick-drying prints, but it can't hurt to let them sit as long as 24 hours to be on the safe side.
Storing and displaying
When storing your prints, be sure to keep them out of direct sunlight and humid rooms, such as basements or bathrooms, and away from intense heat. Cool, dry, and dark are the ideal conditions for long-term photo storage.
Prints stored in an album last longer than those in frames, but avoid albums with self-stick, "magnetic" pages and PVC plastic overlays. These albums cause rapid fading and discoloration. Albums with archival-quality enclosures or plain script pages (used with self-adhesive corner mounts) are your best options.
If you want to display your photos, put them in frames under glass, preferably with an anti-UV coating. Aluminum frames are ideal, as they are lightweight and are not affected by humidity. Be sure to put an acid-free mat between the frame and the photo to prevent your prints from sticking to the glass over time. Read Archiving photo prints for more tips on preserving photos.
If you're counting on being able to reprint your photos from disk if they should fade, take some time to consider your digital storage method. One caveat: No one is really sure just how long digital storage media such as zip disks, CDs, or DVDs might last before the information stored on them begins to degrade. Some experts estimate that, considering the current rate of technological progression, today's media will most likely be unreadable by computers 10 or 20 years from now.
If you plan on keeping a digital archive of your photos, you will want to regularly migrate your collection to the next generation of storage. Also, be sure to keep extra back-ups of those most special memories: Though digital information isn't subject to fading, you could lose your images if the disk were damaged. Don't count on being able to just drop your disk of digital images into a box somewhere and forget about it, or you may lose your treasured memories forever. Read Preserving memories on dvd for tips on creating a digital archive.
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