The care and feeding of transparencies:
Not much to speak of!

On this page I introduce you to my long-term approach to archival storage of transparencies, in this case, Fuji's Velvia 50 and newer replacement, 100F.

The long-term storage of transparencies does not necessarily involve a litany of things to do very frequently. Transparencies have an inherently very long and stable life if they are stored correctly. Trannies that have been sleeves and stashed away will benefit from a 6 monthly or so 'airing', and true, also, that preservation can be enhanced by occasional projector screening (Fuji's Velvia particularly benefits from this strategy). I have amongst my large collection 26-year old Kodachrome transparencies that live out their long days in the familiar old Kodak yellow plastic boxes, then in a acid-free paper-lined shoe box in a very, very dry and dust free top shelf in total darkness. Many more Kodachrome transparencies live in archival quality A4 sleeves in ring binders. These old 'chestnuts' (as I fondly term them) are a memorable yardstick to early and intermediate efforts in experimenting with transparency film and of considerable interest in jogging a wandering or lost memory.

In 1996, when I first pursued Cibachrome printing, I set out to consider archival storage of selected transparencies that will in the course of production, go through the post to the printer, be disassembled by him, reassembled (all in skilled hands, of course) then returned in the post to me for filing away. I discovered Clear File Black Mask transparency sleeves in single 35mm format and this has serviced my needs very well over time. My printer, too, has marvelled at this type of presentation. These mounted transparencies (there are many hundreds now) are then stored in a flip-top non-treated wooden box, devoid of any adhesives, lacquers, dust, debris or sharp bits that could potentially damage trannies. This box is now full and I will be searching out a second and third box to continue my storage.

The transparencies are vetted, clipped out of the sleeved roll and mounted using 3M transparent archival mounting tape which is easily removed by the printer during the Ciba production process, then reassembled. It is very simple, very neat and very, very easy to organise and label.

Digital folk may think that the end of the world is nigh for such cute "anachronisms" as 35mm masks. But that aint necessarily so! In this modern world, there is room for both film, as the preferred professional medium for the production of fine art, and digital, for its immediacy and convenience, but not (at this stage) archival permanence, to co-exist until such time as one is rendered fully redundant — and we are nowhere near that period in time yet.

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Clear File USA | Black Mask transparency sleeves page