Statement about photofinish from your ink jet

[Stewart Schooley]

Don't do it!

Take your print to a color copier and copy it.

The place I go to has color copier samples on the wall next to the
originals for comparison. They have been there for at least 4 years with
no sign of fading..

I have been experimenting in making very thin films that reproduce a
color image. I brush a thin even coat of poly based white paint on the
Canon color copier image. Let it dry completely, turn it over and remove
the paper by soaking and rubbing with bleach. Soaking and rubbing with
bleach doesn't bother these inks. If they can stand up to bleach, they
are tough and have to be permanent. All colors stay the same and I end
up with a color image that is as thin as the coat of paint I put on. It
is a reversed image, so do your print in reverse.

You can do your woodgrain image on your computer, put it on a floppy
disk and take it to the color copier. You can do up to 11" x 17".

Last year I put an ink jet printed image in a window to catch light.
After 4 months it had seriously faded.

I wouldn't hesitate to use a color copier woodgrain print under a toner
because I wouldn't worry about permanance. However, I would still do the
print in reduced color and put a layer of oil paint over it for the
richness of color it gives.

Stewart

[Stewart Schooley]

I didn't get any responses on this and after reading it over I see that it
is so poorly written that even I don't understand it. Here's a better
statement;

If you have ever tried to duplicate photofinish paper with
an ink jet
printer, there is a better way to do it. Ink jets will do
the job if you print
in reduced color and put oil paint over it to bring up the
correct color.
The oil paint is permanent and provides protection from
fading. see the
color print method here;
http://pages.cthome.net/ptf/photofin/photoFinish.html

Using a color copier is a better way. It will provide more
permanance. I
have been doing some experiments and found out that the ink
from these
printers will stand up to bleach. Bleach will not dissolve
them. Anything
this tough must be permanent.

Also, the place I go to has had color copies on the wall
next to the
originals for comparison purposes for at least 4 years and
there is no sign
of fading.

You can work out your color woodgrain on your computer and
take a
print to a color copier or put it on a floppy disk and use
it in the machine.
you can do up to 11' x 17".

Doing it this way means the method of doing DIY photofinish
on a black
and white print isn't really necessary. Still, I think it
is best to do your
print in a slightly reduced color and use oil paint as a
toner to get the
correct color. Oil paint adds a richness to the color as
well as extra
permanance insurance.

BTW, I will probably still start with the black and white
prints because I
like having total control it.