Buyer's Guide 2006: Printers

While looking at a photograph on a camera’s LCD or a large computer monitor is exciting, neither replaces the satisfaction of holding a quality print. Improvements in the stability of inks have led to inkjet printers producing archival-quality prints that resist fading for a lifetime. Enhanced ink-delivery systems have meant smaller and smaller ink droplets, creating seamless transitions of color and tone that are virtually indiscernible. And whether you enjoy processing your images first or prefer making prints fast and easy, printers feature advanced color management for optimal control and built-in software drivers for prints without a computer.                  
    
Archival Quality
We want our prints to last, and this is something that hasn’t been lost on printer manufacturers. Although early inkjet prints threatened to fade even before they had dried, today’s printers promise fade-resistance for decades to more than a century under the best conditions. While not 100% resistant to UV light and pollution, today’s inks are more resilient than ever before, and many beat the longevity of traditional color prints.

Archival quality has been limited to a small number of printers, but it’s now increasingly available across all major manufacturers and at virtually any price point. What’s even more exciting is that photographers are finding a wider variety of paper surfaces that work well with the improved inks.

Initially, matte surfaces were the only paper stock that would be rated as archival. Matte paper’s ability to absorb ink provided greater stability than glossy surfaces, which limited the absorption of inks into the substrate. Now, matte, glossy and other surfaces produce long-lasting prints.