I just put up an expanded version of this: Photo Cascadia: Current Trends in Photo Print Mediums — Metal vs Lumachrome

From: Photo Cascadia

CURRENT TRENDS IN PHOTO PRINT MEDIUMS

July 31st, 2016 by photocascadia

by Zack Schnepf

Canvas prints failed for me because I specialize in highly detailed grand landscape scenes and the detail gets lost in the texture. Certain images still sold well on canvas, but they were primarily low detail abstracts and painterly looking scenes that lent themselves to the medium. …

Aluminum prints have a lot of advantages over traditional print mediums.  They are much more durable, water proof, scratch resistant, light weight, very archival [Metal prints’ longevity is overrated. Wilhelm Research rates metal print longevity at only 50 years, compared to “up to 200 years” for the latest inkjet prints – ed.], don’t need to be framed, very three dimensional, and very bright.  They also have less reflection issues compared to framed prints with standard glass.  They do have a few disadvantages as well.  They are not as detailed as traditional inkjet prints and have a much more limited color gamut.  The limited color gamut is my biggest issue with metal prints.  It can be very challenging to get certain colors to render correctly. … In my experience, green is the hardest color to render correctly. …

Recently I’ve been experimenting with acrylic prints and they are my current favorite.  They represent the best of both worlds and the best overall quality in my opinion.  Like aluminum prints, they are bright and have a beautiful three dimensional glossy look, but they also retain the detail and color gamut of traditional inkjet prints.  They do have a few draw backs compared to metal prints.  They are heavier, and they scratch easier.

..about 20% of my images that I can’t get to print very well on aluminum.  …

For aluminum prints I use: http://www.hdaluminumprints.com.  Randy at HD Aluminum Prints does a fantastic job and profiles better than any other aluminum printer I’ve used. I have my acrylic prints made at:  http://www.nevadaartprinters.com.  They produce incredible quality acrylic prints!

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