subject: Obtain Better Color Stability With Pigment Dependent Inks [print this page] Many printers that can be purchased use pigment-based inks, rather than the common more affordable dye-based printer inks associated with almost all ink jet printers available nowadays. Epson was the first computer printer manufacturer who came out with a computer printer that can make use of pigment-based inks. The ink is made up of tiny particulates that sit on the conventional paper. For almost all, the kind of printer ink a printer uses just doesn't appear vital.
Pigment inks possess a a small number of precise benefits over dye-based inks. Initially, their archival print lifespan is certainly much longer. Plus, pigment inks have a much better color steadiness than their dye-based counterparts. Dye inks are generally notorious for fading quickly and also having a poor color stability. For graphic designers, the choice to change to pigment inks was really a no-brainer. With pigment printer ink, you can save a printed out document for more than 200 years, under ideal conditions. This was proved by Wilhelm Imaging Research, a leader in the area.
The ink isn't the only method when measuring print life. The substrate, typically referred to as paper, is just as crucial. Using glossy or even optically enhanced papers will probably deprive you of decades of print life. Moab, Crane's, and Hahnemuehle, as well as others, happen to be very successful using natural-fiber papers. They're not as bright as other papers but they may potentially last a lot longer. If you don't care in case your printed document lasts 200 years, simply just find generic printer ink.
They certainly contain a many features nevertheless pigment cheap ink usually is definitely not perfect. They're more expensive than other inks, are not as vibrant, and won't give you as wide color variety as dye inks. Right now, several dye-based prints, kept under glass and far away from direct lighting, will last for up to 25 or 30 years, which happens to be more than adequate for many people. Wilhelm has analyzed several dye/paper mixtures that illustrate archival life of almost 100 years. That is exactly why dye printer ink just isn't going away any time soon. When thinking about reasons why you would want a very expensive, pigment-based printer and specialized papers, there's one compelling explanation, money. If you are a photographer and are usually aiming to sell some of your work, you might want to think long and hard with regards to using pigment cheap ink. In case you are just printing out daily materials, though, dye based aftermarket inks are the most useful option.
