# photo paper life span



## yayaroo

how long does photo paper last?


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## ann

it depends . type of paper, how it has been stored are the most common question asked for buying old papers. For example some of the Agfa papers do not keep well at all, while kodak's azo may be good after 20 years.

The best method would be to take a piece of the paper in question and run it through the process, developer, stop bath and fix and then see if it is fogged. A small amount of fogging can be corrected, more may find the paper useful when one needs to pre-flash, and then of course some folks take older papers and fix them out for other processes. 

It would be helpful to know which paper your talking about.


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## yayaroo

i have b/w illford glossy and fiber. and kodak color F. both have been sitting in a plastiic storage bin for about 7 yrs.


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## ann

the ilford might be ok, but i doubt the kodak color paper would still be useable.

just do a simple test with the ilford. We have some single weight MC ilford at school that is about the same age and it is losing a bit of contrast, which means we just have to boost the filter grade, but it is still useable.


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## computermatter10

How does photo paper affects the life span of a photo?? Or it is the printing process why photo wouldn't last long. I am so disgusted with my pictures that turned vulnerable one. So please do help me!!

thanks a lot!


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## ann

fiber paper is considered to have a longer life span, the manner in wh ich the photo is made greatly effects the life span.

it is important to fix and wash properly this  is critical. that is why serious printers use what is called archival standands for printing. 

Also, i am assuming you mean black and white vs color, as color will fade regardless, it is the nature of the product.


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