Correct name for an inkjet print?

<p>I am about to exhibit some work but I am unsure as to what the correct technical name is for a print coming via an Epson Stylus R2880?</p>

<p>Would it be an "Archival ink print"?</p>

<p>Thanks for any help you may be able to offer.</p>

<p>George</p>

<p>On page 7 of Jeff Schewe's "The Digital Print": <strong>digital pigment print.</strong></p>

<p>It's not so much "correct" as it is pretentious, but try <em>giclée ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gicl%C3%A9e )</em></p>

<p>There does not seem to be any universal agreement or naming convention. I most often hear and use "Pigment Ink Print." Extra silly is giclee. To merely use "Archival ink print" begs the question: is it dye or pigment? Your printer is of course pigment so that is a key element suggesting its archival qualities, but to call it "archival..." is not necessary any more than calling a gelatin silver print archival; it is archival by definition (assuming the photographer knows what he is doing.) I just searched SFMOMA and found "ink-jet" "ink print" and "pigment ink print." I don't care for "digital pigment print" because it is too narrow. Many of my prints begin life on film. I am sticking to "Pigment Ink Print."</p>

<p>I like either Archival Ink Print (if indeed you're using pigmented inks) or as Jeff suggests, Digital Pigment print. Anything but <em>giclee</em> which is a BS term to be avoided like the plague!</p>

<p>But Andrew, what does "archival" actually mean? (hint, it has to do with marking pens)<br>

:~)</p>

<p>The term "archival" is meaningless...</p>

<p>A <em>giclee</em> print with plenty of <em>bokeh</em> should sell for considerably more than an "archival" print. Except in France. Or Japan.</p>

<p>Okay, how about "Fine Art Print", a term used in JDM's Wikipedia article?</p>

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<p> what does "archival" actually mean?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Me last long time <g></p>

<blockquote>

<p>what does "archival" actually mean?</p>

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<p>It won't start to fade in 2-3 years, and instead will look a whole lot better than you in 100 years.</p>

<p>Epson used to throw the term around when they brought out inks and papers about the time of the 2200 and I forget how many years they were saying prints wouldn't fade. You could probably google the term and find Epson's literature of the day rather than our normal speculation without actually knowing. In Galleries I've seen Giclee and Pigment Print. </p>

<p>You could always go to Wilhelm's web site and see what they have to say about the lifetime of almost any given ink/paper combination.</p>

<p>http://wilhelm-research.com/</p>

<p>thanks to you all for the input.</p>

<p>As Andrew Rodney suggests. I will be avoiding "giclee" like the plague. I try to avoid most things of a Franco nature!</p>

<p>Photo.net people seem to have decided that the term "giclee" is undesirable or worse, and avoid it as I do. However when walking around galleries it is possibly the single most common term I see, which presumably means that not everyone despises it. If your exhibited work is for sale I'd be inclined to ask your gallery what descriptions they see and which if any have positive or negative connotations amongst that customer/prospect base.</p>

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<p>Photo.net people seem to have decided that the term "giclee" is undesirable or worse, and avoid it as I do. However when walking around galleries it is possibly the single most common term I see, which presumably means that not everyone despises it.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Not only "giclee", but "c-print" and "digital c-print" are liberally used for digital ink print.<br>

http://www.photo.net/film-and-processing-forum/00KY0S</p>

<p>Are these gallery owners and printers ignorant, pretentious, or intentionally misleading? Hard to tell. Do most casual viewers know the difference? Do they care? Hard to tell. But knowledgeable printers, gallery owners, viewers and buyers certainly know and do care.</p>

 

<p>Robert, I don't think printers and gallery owners are ignorant. I think that using terms like "giclee" is simply a way of boosting the artistic quality of a print to a potential buyer. It's kind of like the way real estate developers will dress up the impression of an otherwise ho-hum area by adding grandeur to the names. In our area, there's a development called "Mountain View". There's not a mountain in sight. A riverside or lakeside development can migrate from "Missthe Point" to "Missthe Pointe", and the price goes up by $20K per lot...</p>

<p>Re: "gilclee." The NPR Car Guys said it best at least regarding autos. "The French copy nobody, and nobody copies the French." I do not honestly know if the term originated in France though. It sounds more like a pretentious American (as in USA). Content-less pretentiousness has no place in photography, we're better than that :-).</p>

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<p>Re: "gilclee." The NPR Car Guys said it best at least regarding autos</p>

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<p><br /> Gilclee is a real word (in French) and depending on who you ask, either means 'squirt' or worse 'ejaculate'. It's a BS term in this case based on the history of fine art ink jet printing, dating to Nash Editions that started all this. They never used the term but an ex-employee who went off and started a competitive business used the term solely for marketing. If you used the term in front of Mac Holbert or Graham Nash who spend a huge amount of time and money into creating this industry, they'd probably justifiably barf on your shoes! <br /> <br /> Seriously, if you know anything about this kind of printing and the history, you'll avoid this nonsense term at all costs.</p>

<p>The correct name is... "junk". :-)</p>

<p>So what do I call my prints which I printed in the darkroom and process in RA-4 chemistry?</p>

Re: RA-4 chemistry prints

 

They are called c-prints or

chromogenic prints or dye coupler

prints.

 

The classifying of your print type for a

gallery (for sale) should explain the

ingredients that make up the print.

Calling something a "digital print" is too

vague for the investor and similar to a

baker calling his product an "oven

cookie".

<blockquote>

<p>Not only "giclee", but "c-print" and "digital c-print" are liberally used for digital ink print.</p>

</blockquote>

<p> <br>

There's no evidence of that. I've been in plenty of galleries and it's pretty clear which ones are real c-prints and never seen one mis-labeled.</p>

<p>I agree with Jeff on the above. There's no way you'd expect to call an inkjet print a C type /C-print without getting picked up as its just inaccurate. If you're printing on a Chromira, or Lambda or LightJet thats different as you are effectively wet printing on a variant of regular photo paper using an RA4 process. </p>

<p>But Andrew, I think you are holding the wrong end of the telescope. From the perspective of the exhibitor, he /she wants the nomenclature that will carry the most weight with potential buyers/reviewers/gallery owners. They don't care who in the supply chain is barfing on whose shoes. The owner of the space will be the best source of advice on what his customers respond well (and badly) to.</p>

 

<p>Several years ago, at a large local arts fair and in local galleries, I'd see terms ranging from <em>giclée</em> to "Digital C-print". More recently the terms Andrew and others have suggested - digital pigment print and archival ink print - seem to be more common. A few would even specify the process, printer and paper types used. Presumably photographers and painters selling reproductions have been advised that those earlier terms were considered misleading or embarrassing.</p>

<p>To be absolutely clear, as others have already said, an inkjet print is NOT a C-print.</p>

<p>A C-print (chromogenic print) is made using the RA-4 chemical process. A digital C-print is one made on something like a lightjet/chromira/lambda, which exposes photo-sensitive material to light then passes it through the RA-4 process.</p>

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<p>Several years ago, at a large local arts fair and in local galleries, I'd see terms ranging from <em>giclée</em> to "Digital C-print"</p>

</blockquote>

<p> <br>

That's not a surprise, most people that send out get c-prints. I do both depending...</p>