Best practices for storing 1000s of prints?

[Ninny148]

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[Erik Larsen]

An old shoe box full of loose prints stored under the bed is the traditional method:)
I would think you are probably safe with your solution as long as the boxes you are using are photo safe? If you are in extremely high humidity area or get flooded I guess you could potentially run into the risk of the plastic sleeves sticking to the emulsion of the prints? If the prints are truly heirlooms you might look into archival envelopes. Not sure where to find those but I’m sure there are conservation websites to offer guidance or ask a local museum.

[John Layton]

If house catches fire...that shoebox of old photos gets saved first! (after wife and doggie of course!)

[Willie]

Buy some thin sheets of Bainbridge Alpharag Artcare matboard. 2 ply, not 4. Cut and tape using good acid free tape and store them in your own boxes and sleeves. The Artcare board actively protects the images from atmospheric pollutants. Easy to do, just takes a bit of your time and effort.

[nitroplait]

...most of which are still in their original developer-supplied envelopes.

I am not sure what we are talking about here? Paper envelopes?

What is your environmental circumstances? High or low humidity? Significant variations in humidity or temperature?

Do you frequently need to see/handle the prints?

Is it important they are kept absolutely pristine, or is it OK that minor wear and handling marks occur over time?

What material is it? Color or black and white, resin coated or fiber?

What is the current age and condition of the material?

[ic-racer]

My goal is to have 100 prints to store and pass on. After 40+ years of photography i have about 30 so far.

[nitroplait]

My goal is to have 100 prints to store and pass on. After 40+ years of photography i have about 30 so far.
Good plan. Your children/grand children will love you for not dumping everything on them.

[Alan Klein]

They may like them now and you would get a kick out of it if you gave them some framed ready to mount on their wall. Enjoy their experience and thanks yous with them now.

[Sal Santamaura]

...I have several thousand prints of varying sizes (4x5 up to 5x7), most of which are still in their original developer-supplied envelopes...Are these color or black and white prints? Are the envelopes paper and/or thin card stock? Advice will depend on answers to those questions.

[Richard Wasserman]

You can buy archival shoe boxes—

https://www.archivalmethods.com/product/short-top-boxes

I would get rid of the envelopes the prints are currently stored in as they, I'm sure, are made of inferior paper with a high acid content. Archival Methods can supply anything else you might need. I've been buying from them for years and they are a first-rate business.

[Vaughn]

If the prints were not processed to archival standards, storing in archival material seems to be a waste of money.

The word of the day...

Edit

[Richard Wasserman]

If the prints were not processed to archival standards, storing in archival material seems to be a waste of money.

The word of the day...

Edit

You could be correct. If they were mine, I would would go the archival storage route as it would be the best possible solution. It can't hurt and maybe it would help even a little. It might also be an opportunity to get the photos organized which is a skill I struggle with.

[Vaughn]

Me, too. It all depends on the worth of the prints...cash value, as well as emotional, historical, and family value they might have.

Sometimes just a stack of loose prints can be a wonderful thing to come across.

[Richard Wasserman]

Me, too. It all depends on the worth of the prints...cash value, as well as emotional, historical, and family value they might have.

Sometimes just a stack of loose prints can be a wonderful thing to come across.


Indeed! I was cleaning out a cabinet in my parents apartment shortly after they had died and found about a dozen loose negative that my father had taken of my mother before they were married. They were obsolete medium format sizes which I contact printed and put them all in one frame. I made copies for several other family members and we all treasure them.

[Tom-Thomas]

[...]I have several thousand prints of varying sizes (4x5 up to 5x7), most of which are still in their original developer-supplied envelopes. I'm keen to preserve them, but the cost of archival-grade envelopes and other storage is too much for me.[...]

B&H (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/43014-REG/Print_File_PF574P25_Archival_Storage_Page_for.html/overview) sells Print File brand archival sleeves for $7.40 for a pack of 25 sheets and each sheet hold 4 (up to 5x7 size) photos. For a 1000 photos, you need 10 packs, which is $74. I think it is quite affordable.

[Alan Klein]

You could be correct. If they were mine, I would would go the archival storage route as it would be the best possible solution. It can't hurt and maybe it would help even a little. It might also be an opportunity to get the photos organized which is a skill I struggle with.

I would think the archival storage envelopes prevent air from getting to the print preserving them better regardless of the archival quality of the print paper. Since you're stuck with whatever print paper was used, there's not much else you can do about the paper itself. Then keep it at room temperature at 50%RH in a dark place.

[Ninny148]

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[Oren Grad]

What do we think about the prints 'breathing'? Have any of you encountered issues with prints being kept in air-tight packaging?

AFAIK "breathing" is a much bigger issue for negatives, and in particular for those on cellulose acetate base, which means almost all 35mm color negatives of recent decades. Cellulose acetate is vulnerable to chemical breakdown, and once that starts it is autocatalytic - the breakdown products themselves accelerate further breakdown. So you want any breakdown products to be able to escape from the enclosure.

The most important factors affecting long-term stability of chromogenic prints are light, temperature and relative humidity. Light exposure, high temperature and high RH greatly accelerate deterioration. So do what you can to have your prints in a place that's dark, relatively cool and relatively dry.

[Vaughn]

Just in case you have not checked out these folks:

https://conservation-resources.co.uk/

They sell a variety of materials. Like you mentioned, not cheap, but you might find something that can work for you.

I buy from the American version of this company:

https://www.conservationresources.com/

[nitroplait]

I'm from the UK, where unfortunately the archiving options seem to be very high-end and museum-focused. I don't see many shops catering to amateurs and family archiving projects, thus why I'm focusing on materials rather than specialist products.


Just buy polypropylene (PP) or polyester (PET) sleves with the right pocketsize for your photos: This for example:
https://www.fotoimpex.com/archival/clear-file-polypropylene-negative-sleeves-for-9x12-cm-4x5-sleeves.html?cache=1648537796
And binders to hold them. This for example:
https://www.fotoimpex.com/archival/adox-adofile-archival-ring-binder-black-plastic-with-ring-closure.html?cache=1648537796

Fotoimpex ships to the UK, but there must be similar products available online locally if you want to avoid import duties.

Put the binders into a dry dark cabinet where you can easily access them and enjoy them.

I have a hard time imagining that "1000's of prints" can all be meaningful and would think that editing down the volume would be a loving act for future viewers.

[Alan Klein]

Thanks for the replies, everyone. The envelopes they're currently in are this style (https://d37j7wop4pf4r7.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/images/products/feature-images/photo_envelopes_feature_0604.jpg), the sort that was commonplace back in the day. My prints are a mixture of qualities, glossy and matte, from the 50s to 2000s.

I'm from the UK, where unfortunately the archiving options seem to be very high-end and museum-focused. I don't see many shops catering to amateurs and family archiving projects, thus why I'm focusing on materials rather than specialist products.

What do we think about the prints 'breathing'? Have any of you encountered issues with prints being kept in air-tight packaging?

When I moved, I went through loads of print and negatives stored in the original Kodak envelopes that were mailed back to me or I got from the 1-hour processing stores prevalent at the time. The prints and negatives looked good after decades of storage in my closets.

[Ninny148]

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[nitroplait]

An update from me: I eventually found a product that fit the bill perfectly, and I'm posting it here as I suspect other amateur archivists may be interested.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00R6L4ODA

The back is supported by a glassine-like material, but everything that comes in contact with the contents is polypropylene.

I'm not sure if they are available in the US, but in the UK, I paid about $10 for 250 of them. Very pleased to find something that fits the bill and is so affordable.

I notice this: "Multi-surface adhesive at the top"
Do you mind describing what is meant by that?
If it is to close the flap over the opening in the top, is the adhesive on the flap itself or on the "body" of the envelope?

[Ninny148]

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