BW Photo problem

[DB]

I have been framing for a local amateur photographer for several years and most of these go into exhibits, so we stick to a white Alpha 8 ply mat, dry mounted to rag, and conservation glass. In August, I framed a piece that he hung immediately in a museum exhibit. When he went back to pick it up, the photo had yellowed considerably in 2 months time. I took the piece apart and the portions of the photo that are covered by the mat are not discolored at all. He claims that this was hanging in a hall and not in direct sunlight. He gave me another photo to replace the discolored one with. He processed both the same way at the same time. We were both wondering what might have caused the discoloration. Could there be a problem in his processing? Again, this was framed with UV filtering glass.

 

[AWG]

Diane:

Is this a fiber-based print or RC? Was there any other damage (wrinkles, cockling, lifted mount) to the print? Here are a few thoughts on your predicament...

I ran photo labs for a long time a long time ago and can't imagine it's a processing problem. Usually a processing problem would show up quicker, but it IS possible.

Since the covered part of the print appears undamaged I would guess the display method caused the problem. Excessively bright or hot lighting may be the culprit (UV glass wouldn't help with high temperature). Maybe the lights never got turned off and "burned" the paper. Even in the hallway without direct light it might still be bright enough to cause a problem.

Hard to say exactly and I'd like to hear what some other Grumblers think...

Tony

 

[katman]

Sounds like inadequate time in the fixer (or weak fix). However, if he processed both at the same time you would probably see the same problem with the second print unless he made a large number of prints and his fix was getting exhausted toward the end of the session.

 

[AnneL]

Florescent light actually gives off more uv than sunlight. Also, visible light causes much of the damage to photos. They are particularly sensitive to it and conservation glass doesn't filter for it (or else it would be opaque.) Also, is it a tradationally processed photo or an inkjet print. Some inks are notorious for turning yellow after printing. My resident photo expert thought maybe it was a chemical reaction to something in the environment that the image was exposed to.

 

[Bill Henry-]

I took the piece apart and the portions of the photo that are covered by the mat are not discolored at all.

Was the portion of the mat in contact with the photo slightly stained? If so, I suspect that there was insufficient wash time so that not all of the fixer was removed and may have leached into the mat.

If the fixing process was compromised with either too short a fixing time or having used an exhausted fixer, that would leave residual silver in the emulsion resulting in a darkening (not a yellowing) of the image.

Or possibly, the art was hung under florescent lighting which had a fairly high UV emission. But a properly processed B&W image shouldn't fade in that short a time.

 

[Bill Henry-]

I took the piece apart and the portions of the photo that are covered by the mat are not discolored at all.

Was the portion of the mat in contact with the photo slightly stained? If so, I suspect that there was insufficient wash time so that not all of the fixer was removed and may have leached into the mat.

If the fixing process was compromised with either too short a fixing time or having used an exhausted fixer, that would leave residual silver in the emulsion resulting in a darkening (not a yellowing) of the image.

Or possibly, the art was hung under florescent lighting which had a fairly high UV emission. But a properly processed B&W image shouldn't fade in that short a time.

 

[Rebecca]

Are these black and white printed on color, resin coated paper - i.e. not silver gelatin?

I had this happen with some school project cutouts which were b&w on color paper. There was an extra cut out and I slipped part of it behind a light switch plate as a quick and dirty "display" technique. The part behind the plate was fine, but the exposed part faded/yellowed irregularly.

Makes me suspect light, and maybe humidity.

Rebecca

 

[stud d]

Another photographer here. Everyone is correct. It could be due to the fixer being weak or insufficient time. It could also be due to wash time. Some photographers due many prints at a time. It is quite easy to forget which one is the new and which is the old. So it could be an easy mistake. This would go for fiber , or Rc prints.

One question, why drymount an original photograph? If it is to keep it flat there are other ways. Some times photographers want this, but it is not the best thing. I know the arguement about Ansel Adams drymounting his work shall come up. It was normal at the time to do this, but now there are better things one may do.
d