Shore Traders offers a full range of photographic prints, from notecards to large mantlepiece-sized framed artwork. Our fine-art prints are created and printed using the latest techologies and work processes.
All of our fine-art prints are printed using archival-quality papers and inks. Why is this important? Many prints from home printers fade in as little as 3 or 4 years. This fading is largely the result of two factors: ink type and paper type.
The first factor is ink type. Most home printers use inks that are dye-based, meaning they stain the paper in the same way you might dye a pair of slacks. While modern dye-based printers are improving, the best solution for long-term preservation is to use pigment-based inks. These inks are akin to the paint you use on your house or that the old masters used on their canvases. Instead of a dye, there are actual small particles of pigment that adhere to the paper surface. These particles have better resistance to fading and deterioration from airborne contaminants that may come in contact with the prints.
The second factor is paper type. You may have observed the difference in print quality when someone prints a photo on standard copier paper versus glossy "photo paper." The copier-paper print is dull and fades quickly. The photo-paper print is more vibrant and usually lasts longer. What you may not be familiar with is that there are many types of photo paper (not all of which are glossy, by the way). High quality photo papers, whether shiny or matte, have special coatings on them and have a neutral chemical pH. The coatings help the ink to adhere to the papers and not bleed into surrounding areas. The neutral pH helps ensure that no acids are going to eat away at the print over time. High quality papers can cost several times what standard store-bought papers cost — but the difference is visible, both today and long into the future.
Outstanding prints show the actual colors and details that you saw when you took the picture. It is very common for a computer monitor to display colors that do not match the colors your camera recorded. Have you ever played with the color and contrast settings on TV? The same settings exist on a computer monitor. How do you know if your monitor matches the "real world"? Similar issues exist with printers. Have you ever seen a print made on two different printers and they look very different? Both of these problem are related to what is referred to as "color calibration."
Color calibration is the process through which a monitor, a printer, or a scanner is adjusted so that they display or capture colors as realistically as possible. All professional photographers and printers should have a well-calibrated work process. Specialized sensors, controlled print samples, and special software that runs alongside of their graphic applications ensure that they are all representing colors the way they should. We have the capabilities to ensure you are getting the very best color output.
Using pigment-based inks and high-quality archival paper, a fine-art print can last well over 100 years -- much longer than your typical at-home print and on par with the best traditional photographic prints. In fact, our fine-art prints are generated by both of these processes. The first method is done by Shore Traders using pigment-based, professional inkjets on archival-quality papers, as we have just described to you. The second method is identical to the traditional photographic prints you find in fine wedding albums. Whichever method is used for your fine-art prints, you can be confident that your prints will last a very long time.
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