Photo Preservation: The Problem with Prints

Look at any number of photos printed in the 1970's or 1980's, and you may notice the prints are slightly discolored. The colors may have simply faded, or they may have even turned slightly orange or green. Even photos printed with modern technology have problems – they can suffer water damage, get crumpled, or even lost. Not how you want to remember your loved ones!

Pull out artwork or newspaper clippings from your childhood, and you'll probably find that they are yellowed and brittle. Most documents and memorabilia cannot stand "the test of time" on their own.

Both scenarios are caused both the effects of improper storage, time, and "acid attack".
You may have heard the term "acid-free", and maybe even "lignin-free". "Acid-free" has become somewhat of a marketing term, highlighted on packaging to help sell craft products, but there is a reason for it. All the concern about "acid-free" comes from the fact that acids in paper break down the chemical composition of photos. These acids come from oxidation, as well as the chemicals used in photo developing and papermaking.

This isn’t acid like liquid battery acid – scientifically, it means the paper has a pH level that is acidic, rather than alkaline. So you won’t see any bubbling or smoking like one might associate with the term "acid". This acidic reaction causes anything that’s on paper to become yellow and brittle, be it photographs, letters, postcards, drawings, or diplomas. And lignin is a material found in wood pulp, and so is found only in paper, not pens or glues. Lignin causes the same yellowing and damage to paper that acid does.

You can easily see the results of lignin and acidic damage in the old magnetic albums that have turned yellow along the edges. And consider the mechanics of a magnetic album: when you lift up the plastic cover, a thin layer of the adhesive sticks to it, then you press that plastic back on top of your photo. So you’re actually putting glue on top of your photo! Not a good idea, even if the adhesive is acid free. You can also see acidic damage in Polaroid pictures – the chemicals are right in the photo themselves, and can start discoloring after just 5 years.

But how do we stop this acidic "attack"? Remove your photos from their inhospitable climates, and place them in an acid-free, lignin-free photo album or scrapbook and use all acid-free embellishments.

That often seems like a daunting task, considering the years of photos currently housed in unsafe albums, or even still in photo development envelopes. No time (or inclination) to place mountains of photos in archival-quality albums in creative layouts? We can help you with that. Check out the following services to help keep your photos, documents, and memories safe:

Memory Archiving: http://okpicturethis.com/products_detail_memory_archiving.aspx

Custom Collages & Kids' Artwork: http://okpicturethis.com/products_detail_custom_picture_boards.aspx

Custom Memory Books
http://okpicturethis.com/products_detail_custom_memory_books.aspx

We want to help make your "photo rescue" project easier. Contact us today to get started.