question for those who print pictures at home

[Grumpy's Gal]

I get all of my photos printed at Walgreens.

I don't print any photos at home. But I'm interested in that! It would be convenient. I keep reading someone on this board mention it and I think how handy that would be.

My question is -- for those who print at home -- do you think the long term quality of the photos is as good as if you got them printed professionally?

That's my concern -- that of I print them at home and then ten years from now, they might be faded. And if I had gone to all of the work of scrapbooking them.....I'd be heartbroken.

I thought I'd ask all of you that have been doing this for awhile, if you'd had any problems about the quality over the years.

Thanks so much for your help!

 

[AlexWyattMommy]

I do both. Print at home and get them from other places.
I've only been printing for about a year though. I don't know what the quality will be like in 10 years. If they will fade or change colors or bleed. Hopefully someone who has been doing it longer can help us.

 

[boBQuincy]

Wilhelm Research is the authority on print longevity. Most of the manufacturers try to get good ratings from Wilhelm and I would trust what they publish.

Afaik pigment inks are still the best for fade resistance and will probably outlast us. The only consumer pigment printers I know of are the higher end Epsons.

Dye inks have come a long way and will last a very long time *if* they are kept behind plastic or glass and are not in sunlight (or fluorescent light). Dye ink prints in books should fare about as well but may not be as well protected from atmospheric gases.

One reason that this comes to mind is the recent problems caused by some Chinese drywall, where the gases produced are corroding the home wiring among other things. Although it is probably not one of the homeowners biggest worries I am sure the gases are fading their photos too.

Anyway, back to the topic, check the printer you plan to buy to see how Wilhelm rates the prints for longevity and resistance to fading. Remember that the ratings are for OEM ink and paper, any other media can cause big changes (many 3rd party inks fade very quickly).

Btw, I work in digital so in 10 years I can easily reprint the page on the latest 3D holographic inkjet! *If* I can still read the file... everything has it's own set of problems!

 

[Grumpy's Gal]

Wilhelm Research is the authority on print longevity. Most of the manufacturers try to get good ratings from Wilhelm and I would trust what they publish.

Afaik pigment inks are still the best for fade resistance and will probably outlast us. The only consumer pigment printers I know of are the higher end Epsons.

Dye inks have come a long way and will last a very long time *if* they are kept behind plastic or glass and are not in sunlight (or fluorescent light). Dye ink prints in books should fare about as well but may not be as well protected from atmospheric gases.

One reason that this comes to mind is the recent problems caused by some Chinese drywall, where the gases produced are corroding the home wiring among other things. Although it is probably not one of the homeowners biggest worries I am sure the gases are fading their photos too.

Anyway, back to the topic, check the printer you plan to buy to see how Wilhelm rates the prints for longevity and resistance to fading. Remember that the ratings are for OEM ink and paper, any other media can cause big changes (many 3rd party inks fade very quickly).

Btw, I work in digital so in 10 years I can easily reprint the page on the latest 3D holographic inkjet! *If* I can still read the file... everything has it's own set of problems!

Thanks for the info. I am hoping my pictures outlast me and my children and their children (when they are old enough to have children.)!

 

[SharonLovesMickey]

Both Epson and HP have done tests on their photos and if you use their inks and papers together they will last 100+ years under proper conditions. I did a lot of research on that before I bought an Epson printer to print at home.