Lodima folders - am I missing something?

[Meekyman]

Hi Folks,

I'm starting to finally take some 4x5's that I am happy with after experimenting for 2 or so years (!) and would like to store them in a way that keeps their potential longevity alive. I am using negatives and positives. After reading around a bit, I bought some "folders" from Lodima (along with nicely made boxes!):

http://lodima.org/archival-materials/archival-boxes/

When they arrived, well basically they are just a sheet. I suppose I just fold in two like in the picture in the website and they store in a box, vertically. My concern is that unless the box is jammed full then the "folders" will just open up and over time the negatives will start to bend. Also, I imagined a sort of paper envelope which would prevent dust from settling. WOuld you use these directly?

Silly question I know.

Graham

[Ron McElroy]

When I start a new box of negatives I lay is on its side to prevent them from bending. I use sleeves and envelopes from Archival Methods so I can't comment on the use of the envelopes.

[N Dhananjay]

If you are worried about the negative and folded sheet of paper bending in a less than full box, lay the box on its side till it gets full. In my experience, you do not need to get a box stuffed to stop the bending since the negatives folders are a fairly snug fit inside the box on 4 out of the 6 sides. I actually like the system quite a lot. 1) It is archival - most damage to photographic emulsions come from poor processing and atmospheric pollutants, and 2) the folder lets you scribble notes on it - so once you get a good print, I scribble down printing notes with a pencil which saves a fair bit of time the next time I have to print the negative. I dislike envelopes since it seems to require more handling of the negative which would have to be gently 'forced' into an envelope instead of being 'placed' in a fold.
Cheers, DJ

[Meekyman]

"If you are worried about the negative and folded sheet of paper bending in a less than full box, lay the box on its side till it gets full. "

Makes sense!

Thanks to both of you for your replies. I'll stop obsessing!

Cheers

Graham