Trip summary: Arctic Adventure Cruise

Hello all,

This past summer, we completed a fantastic two week Arctic cruise. Over the next several weeks, I will be sharing some of the tips that we picked up during this cruise. Most of these tips are general travel tips that could apply to adventure travel anywhere; however, there are a few that are specific to travel in the Polar regions. Before getting into these tips, however, I want to give you an overview of the excursion that we took.

This was our first adventure travel / expedition cruise, and it was very different than previous cruise experiences on the major cruise lines. In our case, the itinerary and excursions were organized by One Ocean Expeditions who rented the Clipper Adventurer ship for their exclusive use during this trip. The ship is leased to other companies throughout the year and sails in both the Arctic and Antarctic regions.

Compared to the larger cruise ships used by the major lines, our smaller ship was more personal, more interesting, and matched our interests perfectly. The Adventurer has a maximum of 120 passengers, and is well suited to expedition cruising with an ice hardened hull, a complement of 10 zodiacs, and the ability to load zodiacs from either side.  Our cabin was a little small but extremely well laid out, with two single beds (dressed in comforters), two good-sized windows (not portholes), three closets, a writing desk, a night stand, and an ensuite washroom with shower. The main lounge, where tea, coffee, water, and snacks were served 24 hours a day, hosted our lectures and served as a general meeting location. The dining room sat the entire ship for a single serving, and produced amazing multi-course meals throughout the trip.  Possibly because of the smaller number of passengers, the food was much better than my experience with the larger ships while maintaining variety and options (e.g. dinner was 5 courses, with at least 2 salad, soup, and dessert options and 3 entrees, all of which were different each day, and never repeated). There was also a well-stocked library and a back deck, with chairs, that we used for afternoon tea several times during our voyage (yes, we had afternoon tea, outdoors, above the arctic circle. Comfortably.).

Our itinerary gave us an excellent overview of the small part of the Canadian Arctic  we sailed through and  a glimpse of West Greenland.  We took a charter flight out of Edmonton to our starting point in Resolute Bay. From there, we traversed the eastern Canadian Shield visiting Beechey Island, Prince Leopold Island, and Devon Island, before heading over the north-east side of Baffin Island to Pond Inlet.  From there, we crossed Baffin Bay to Greenland where we visited Uummannaq, Ilulissat , and Sisimiut before heading down Sondre-Stromfjord to Kangerlussuaq, where we boarded another charter flight for our return to Toronto.  As one would expect on an adventure trip, our schedule was flexible and there were several times when our initial plans changed in response to weather, sea conditions, or wildlife. It was a credit to our staff that we were able to work around these interruptions (often without the passengers’ knowledge) and maintain an exhausting excursion schedule.

The focus of the trip was on wildlife and photography and excelled in both areas – a credit to the One Ocean’s team and the Captain.  The staff clearly had significant experience in Arctic expeditions, and was able to provide a variety of activities at most of the sites  where we landed. In most cases, there were at least 3 distinct options, ranging from zodiac cruises to “charging” hikes, where the goal was usually to get to the top of a local peak. There were also usually at least 2 less strenuous hikes (which was what I usually did). When we stopped at villages, there were  cultural options as well –  at least one museum visit was included as an option in each town, with the residents of Pond Inlet hosting us for a two-hour, live cultural display at their museum. This range of activities kept the passengers engaged and allowed for everyone to get what they wanted out of the trip. The One Ocean staff also gave regular presentations on a variety of topics and made frequent use of the ship’s intercom system to alert us when something interesting was happening outside that we might be missing. As one might expect, the staff included a couple of naturalists, who were able to put what we were seeing in context. What we were not expecting was the level of experience that the entire staff had, each having spent months at the Poles over dozens of expeditions. A highlight for us was a talk given by one of these naturalists about his experiences leading the last major dog sled expedition in Antarctica. Importantly from our perspective, the staff also included two resident photographers who worked closely with the passengers (in fact, we found out about this trip from one of them). They not only gave presentations about relevant topics and led photography-centric groups on excursions, but provided personalized instruction based on the individual’s level of interest, expertise, and equipment. The opportunity to learn from these experienced professionals, and to ask very specific questions, added significant value to the excursions and turned into one of the highlights of the trip for us.  

The ship saw 16 polar bears during our trip, and I personally saw 9 – averaging over one per day until we left Canada (missing several while I slept). My most memorable viewing came when the Captain parked the boat on the edge of an ice floe for about half an hour so we could observe a polar bear on the floe. The bear did not appear to mind us being there: although it did charge the ship once to see if we would back away, it spent most of its time looking for seals and sleeping. As we finally pulled away, the sun came out and gave the bear’s fur a glowing white silhouette as it stretched. Absolutely awe inspiring! In addition, we had several other viewings from both zodiacs and the ship. The staff was extremely diligent in making sure that there were no bears near our landing sites, so we never saw a bear from land – an important safety consideration since polar bears will hunt humans and they are extremely fast. I had an excellent musk oxen sighting, with a small herd letting our group approach fairly close, as well as several distant sightings where the musk ox looked like brown boulders that moved. I also had two close walrus viewings, one from a zodiac where we were able to watch for about 15 minutes before he slid into the water and one where the walrus was sitting on an ice floe that passed by our cabin window as the ship moved between stops late one night. We were told that we saw narwhals as well. Unfortunately, apparently, during the summer, all you can see are the blows – the tusks and most of the narwhal remain underwater and invisible. So while I saw a blow spout, I wasn’t able to clearly identify the type of whale.

Overall, the trip exceeded my expectations – and everyone I talked to seemed to feel the same way. The ship was fantastic, and the wildlife encounters more than you could hope for. However, the staff of One Ocean really made the trip everything I could hope for: they focused on making sure we saw the wildlife and landscapes we went there to see. A few snapshots from the trip are viewable at our Flick site.

 

Terence

City Escapes Nature Photography

 

 

Home Photo Framing Basics, Part 3: Glass

 

Photo frame glass is all the same, right?  Wrong!  In the third installment of our series on home photo framing basics, we take a closer look at what is arguably the most taken-for-granted component of a frame: the glass.

 

Glass, as a material, is truly fascinating.  Though it appears to be a solid, it is actually a liquid; it can block or magnify light; it can be so clear that it is practically invisible, or completely opaque.  We acknowledge one of its many dichotomous traits when we speak of things such as a lake being “as smooth as glass,” yet who among us does not know to be careful around glass, lest a broken piece or a rough edge leave us wishing we owned stock in Band-Aid?  For photo framing, however, we need only focus on a few main characteristics of glass: its ability to block ultraviolet light, its reflectivity, and its weight.

 

Most, if not all, ready-made frames that include glass use the same type of standard glass.  This glass blocks about 45% of UV light and is highly reflective, meaning that glare can be a problem under particular lighting situations.  This glass is fine for many applications, but for particularly valuable (whether for monetary or sentimental reasons) prints, the home framer might want to consider upgrading to a higher quality material. 

 

The two main types of glass to consider, both available at most framing shops and many glass shops, are museum-grade and conservation-grade.  Both block 99% of UV light – a significant improvement over standard glass.  By blocking more of the ultraviolet light, these glass types extend the life of your print, both by preventing colors from fading, and by helping to prevent degradation of the actual print itself.  The primary difference between the two glass types is how much of the “good” light they allow through to the print.  Museum glass is the highest quality framing glass available.  It has low reflectivity, which means that glare is significantly reduced, and high light transmission, resulting in the truest color rendition and incredible clarity.  We have found that museum glass is especially effective at transmitting deep, dark colors: no other glass will display a richer black, for example.  It is also quite useful for works with three or more mats and for shadowboxes, as it retains its clarity of light transmission regardless of how far from the glass the print or keepsake lies.  Being the best, of course, comes at a price: museum glass is also the most expensive of all frame glass.

 

Conservation glass, meanwhile, while equal to museum glass in UV light blockage, has a slightly lower light transmission rate.  This means that colors do not appear quite as true or as rich, though this effect is much less noticeable for lighter colors than for darker ones.  Conservation glass is available in two styles: clear and reflection control, and they are how they sound: clear has a standard, glossy finish, while reflection control has a matte-like finish.  Both styles are notably less expensive than museum glass.  While a significantly higher quality glass, conservation clear will look much like standard framing glass in that light can create flares and reflections under the right conditions.  Reflection control glass does just that: glare and reflections are significantly reduced under those same lighting situations.  However, depending upon how the reflection control is achieved, the trade-off might be a decrease in clarity and sharpness, especially for prints that have three or more mats and for shadowboxes. 

 

Two last factors should be taken into account when considering your glazing needs: the size of your project and how likely it is to suffer damage.  We’ll deal with size first.  All types of glass are heavy, and for large framed pieces, it is not uncommon for the glass to rival or surpass the weight of the frame itself.  This can not only make the display of your piece more challenging, as the heavier the piece, the greater the need for substantial wall support, but it can also make transport more difficult and expensive, and increase the likelihood that the piece will be accidentally dropped.  For truly large pieces, professional framers will often use much lighter acrylic in lieu of glass.  Most home framers will never frame any piece large enough to require acrylic, but for the exceptionally adventurous types who want to try their hand at large-piece framing, know that acrylic is a much lighter option. 

 

Acrylic is not just for large pieces, however; it is also useful for situations where breakage is a major concern, such as in a child’s room or in a high-traffic area.  Most acrylics are shatter-resistant, making them safer to use in such situations.  (I once saw a beautifully framed, with glass, painting in a cruise ship pub -- a ship that sailed the open ocean, with all of the commensurate rocking and rolling.  This beautifully framed -- with glass -- painting was well attached to the wall, so that it would not fall because of the ship’s movements.  However, this beautifully framed – WITH GLASS! – painting was hung right next to a dart board.  It did not survive the first evening.)  Acrylic is also available in conservation and reflection control varieties.  Everything has a drawback, of course, and the major drawback of acrylic is that it is much easier to scratch than glass, even during routine cleaning.  It seems illogical that a material that is more difficult to break should be easier to scratch, but such is unfortunately the case here.

 

So, which glass option is right for your particular framing need?  The most honest, but unfortunately least helpful, answer is that it is largely a matter of personal taste.  A few guidelines can help, however.  First, consider the value of your print.  Is it expensive, irreplaceable, or high in sentimental value?  Then you might want to upgrade to conservation or museum glass.  Consider where you will be displaying the piece.  Should you consider the extra safety of acrylic?  What is the lighting like there?  Are you likely to have to deal with glare and reflections?  If so, you should consider a reflection control glazing.  And finally, what is your budget?  Standard glass, when included in a frame, will cost you nothing extra, while conservation glass requires a slightly larger investment and museum glass has the potential to give you sticker shock.  If you find yourself undecided, it is worth a trip to the frame shop to see the visual difference that each type of glass makes.  As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. 

 

Jodi

City Escapes Nature Photography

 

City Escapes Photography Newsletter - Nov. 2010

CITY ESCAPES

Nature Photography, LLC

 

 

Newsletter

November, 2010

 

 

 

Thanks for Coming to Our Second Show!

 

We want to extend a heartfelt “Thank you!” to everyone who came to see us at our second gallery show.  Our Arctic release was a big hit, and it was great fun finding out which image(s) each of you found most interesting.  We even had a few visitors who found images of places with personal connections, and I loved hearing their stories.  Most especially, a huge debt of gratitude goes out to Linda at Badger Canyon Herb & Tea for allowing us to take over a quarter of her shop for two days, and for finding it amusing that a moose was watching her the entire time.  (For those who were not able to make it, “The Stare – Bull Moose” directly faced Linda’s counter.  It was a good thing that she likes the image!) 

 

 

Show Special Extended – Buy a Print, Get Greeting Cards Free!

 

In honor of the success of the show, we have decided to extend our show special through December 19^th:  buy any print, framed or not, and receive a 5-pack of our Overview Greeting Cards free!  (Limit one free 5-pack per client per day.  For included images, see our Greeting Cards section on our website, http://www.cityescapesphotography.com .)

 

 

Home Photo Framing Basics, Part 3:  Glass

 

Photo frame glass is all the same, right?  Wrong!  In the third installment of our series on home photo framing basics, we take a closer look at what is arguably the most taken-for-granted component of a frame: the glass.

 

Glass, as a material, is truly fascinating.  Though it appears to be a solid, it is actually a liquid; it can block or magnify light; it can be so clear that it is practically invisible, or completely opaque.  We acknowledge one of its many dichotomous traits when we speak of things such as a lake being “as smooth as glass,” yet who among us does not know to be careful around glass, lest a broken piece or a rough edge leave us wishing we owned stock in Band-Aid?  For photo framing, however, we need only focus on a few main characteristics of glass: its ability to block ultraviolet light, its reflectivity, and its weight.

 

Most, if not all, ready-made frames that include glass use the same type of standard glass.  This glass blocks about 45% of UV light and is highly reflective, meaning that glare can be a problem under particular lighting situations.  This glass is fine for many applications, but for particularly valuable (whether for monetary or sentimental reasons) prints, the home framer might want to consider upgrading to a higher quality material. 

 

The two main types of glass to consider, both available at most framing shops and many glass shops, are museum-grade and conservation-grade.  Both block 99% of UV light – a significant improvement over standard glass.  By blocking more of the ultraviolet light, these glass types extend the life of your print, both by preventing colors from fading, and by helping to prevent degradation of the actual print itself.  The primary difference between the two glass types is how much of the “good” light they allow through to the print.  Museum glass is the highest quality framing glass available.  It has low reflectivity, which means that glare is significantly reduced, and high light transmission, resulting in the truest color rendition and incredible clarity.  We have found that museum glass is especially effective at transmitting deep, dark colors: no other glass will display a richer black, for example.  It is also quite useful for works with three or more mats and for shadowboxes, as it retains its clarity of light transmission regardless of how far from the glass the print or keepsake lies.  Being the best, of course, comes at a price: museum glass is also the most expensive of all frame glass.

 

Conservation glass, meanwhile, while equal to museum glass in UV light blockage, has a slightly lower light transmission rate.  This means that colors do not appear quite as true or as rich, though this effect is much less noticeable for lighter colors than for darker ones.  Conservation glass is available in two styles: clear and reflection control, and they are how they sound: clear has a standard, glossy finish, while reflection control has a matte-like finish.  Both styles are notably less expensive than museum glass.  While a significantly higher quality glass, conservation clear will look much like standard framing glass in that light can create flares and reflections under the right conditions.  Reflection control glass does just that: glare and reflections are significantly reduced under those same lighting situations.  However, depending upon how the reflection control is achieved, the trade-off might be a decrease in clarity and sharpness, especially for prints that have three or more mats and for shadowboxes. 

 

Two last factors should be taken into account when considering your glazing needs: the size of your project and how likely it is to suffer damage.  We’ll deal with size first.  All types of glass are heavy, and for large framed pieces, it is not uncommon for the glass to rival or surpass the weight of the frame itself.  This can not only make the display of your piece more challenging, as the heavier the piece, the greater the need for substantial wall support, but it can also make transport more difficult and expensive, and increase the likelihood that the piece will be accidentally dropped.  For truly large pieces, professional framers will often use much lighter acrylic in lieu of glass.  Most home framers will never frame any piece large enough to require acrylic, but for the exceptionally adventurous types who want to try their hand at large-piece framing, know that acrylic is a much lighter option. 

 

Acrylic is not just for large pieces, however; it is also useful for situations where breakage is a major concern, such as in a child’s room or in a high-traffic area.  Most acrylics are shatter-resistant, making them safer to use in such situations.  (I once saw a beautifully framed, with glass, painting in a cruise ship pub -- a ship that sailed the open ocean, with all of the commensurate rocking and rolling.  This beautifully framed -- with glass -- painting was well attached to the wall, so that it would not fall because of the ship’s movements.  However, this beautifully framed – WITH GLASS! – painting was hung right next to a dart board.  It did not survive the first evening.)  Acrylic is also available in conservation and reflection control varieties.  Everything has a drawback, of course, and the major drawback of acrylic is that it is much easier to scratch than glass, even during routine cleaning.  It seems illogical that a material that is more difficult to break should be easier to scratch, but such is unfortunately the case here.

 

So, which glass option is right for your particular framing need?  The most honest, but unfortunately least helpful, answer is that it is largely a matter of personal taste.  A few guidelines can help, however.  First, consider the value of your print.  Is it expensive, irreplaceable, or high in sentimental value?  Then you might want to upgrade to conservation or museum glass.  Consider where you will be displaying the piece.  Should you consider the extra safety of acrylic?  What is the lighting like there?  Are you likely to have to deal with glare and reflections?  If so, you should consider a reflection control glazing.  And finally, what is your budget?  Standard glass, when included in a frame, will cost you nothing extra, while conservation glass requires a slightly larger investment and museum glass has the potential to give you sticker shock.  If you find yourself undecided, it is worth a trip to the frame shop to see the visual difference that each type of glass makes.  As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. 

 

 

November’s Fun Facts

 

In honor of Thanksgiving, this month we’re all about turkeys! 

 

• Female turkeys are called hens, males are toms, and babies are poults. 
• Only toms gobble.  Hens cluck.  The gobble is a mating call, and can be heard up to a mile away.
• Wild turkeys can fly at up to 55 mph for short distances, run at 20 mph, and glide for over a mile.
• Domestic turkeys cannot fly.  They have been bred to be significantly larger than their wild counterparts, with an emphasis on the breast meat.  This extra size and weight makes them too heavy to fly, and even interferes with normal breeding.
• Yes, Benjamin Franklin really did want the turkey, not the bald eagle, to be the national bird of the United States of America.  In addition to its status as the only poultry bird native to the Americas, Franklin described the turkey as “though a little vain & silly, a bird of courage, [who] would not hesitate to attack a grenadier of the British Guards who should presume to invade his farm yard with a red coat on.”
• In bowling lingo, three strikes in a row is called a turkey.
• Big Bird is a superficial turkey: his costume is made of close to 4,000 dyed turkey feathers.
• Every year since 1989, two turkeys, one official and one “alternate,” have been given official presidential pardons just before Thanksgiving in a special ceremony at the White House.  Rather than being cooked for dinner, each year the two turkeys have been sent to live out their natural lives in a park.  For the first 15 years, the birds were sent to the petting zoo at Frying Pan Park in Herndon, Virginia.  (Given the name of the park, I imagine they remained nervous birds.)  Since 2005, the turkeys have all been flown to Disneyland.

 

 

If you have any questions, or suggestions for future newsletters, please email us at: relationships@cityescapesphotography.com

 

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City Escapes Photography Newsletter - October 2010

CITY ESCAPES

Nature Photography, LLC

 

 

Newsletter

October, 2010

 

 

 

Come See Us at Our Second Show – and Get a Sneak Peek at Our Fall Release

 

We are thrilled to announce our second gallery show, this time in Kennewick, Washington.  Friday and Saturday, November 5th & 6^th, 2010, will find our photographs – including more than ten as-yet unreleased images -- on display at Badger Canyon Herb & Tea, 210 N. Edison, Suite 258, Kennewick (just off Clearwater in the Marineland Village shopping center).  We will, of course, be on hand to answer any questions, regale you with stories of our adventures, or simply stand back and let you soak up a little of nature’s beauty.  If you are a tea lover, this show is not to be missed, either, as not only will you be surrounded by gorgeous photographs, but Linda has dozens upon dozens of fantastic teas from the world over to tantalize your taste buds.  Come join us – we’d love to see you there!  Hours are from 10am – 5pm Friday and 10am – 4pm Saturday.  Mention our October newsletter and get a free 5-pack of our Overview greeting cards with the purchase of any print!  (Limit one free 5-pack per person per day.)  This offer is good on any internet orders received by the close of the show, as well!

 

 

Bulk Holiday Card Special

 

The holidays are fast approaching, and if you run a business, you might already be preparing greeting cards to send to your clientele.  We can help!  Order 25 or more boxes of our holiday greeting cards and get a 5% discount.  Hurry -- only 100 boxes are available at this special rate.   Contact us at customer-support@cityescapesphotography.com for more information.

 

 

Home Photo Framing Basics, Part 2:  Acid-Free Materials

 

In our second installment of our series on home photo framing basics, we look at acid-free materials: what they are, when to use them, and whether the “acid-free” label can be trusted. 

 

In photo framing, the term “acid-free” is applied to those substances that have a neutral or slightly alkaline pH.  This is important for conservation purposes as the acids in framing materials can cause degradation, yellowing, and brittleness of framed photographs.  Some acid-free materials are acid-free by nature, while others have had the acids in them neutralized and/or a buffer added.  (Buffers create a reserve of alkalinity in the material, which will react with the acids produced to create a neutral pH, delaying the onset of damage to a print from acid-containing materials.)  Anything from mat boards and foam boards to the glue, tape, and even the ink used to sign or label photographs might be labeled “acid-free.”

 

When acid-free materials should be used is, to a certain degree, a matter of personal choice.  Certainly a print that has significant monetary value should be framed using only acid-free materials.  However, any print that you wish to preserve for many years, whether monetarily valuable or not, should be framed with acid-free materials as well, as these materials can add decades to the life of a print.

 

What causes acidity in the majority of framing materials?  In short, wood.  Lignin and other substances found in wood and wood pulp are major culprits in the deterioration of paper products.  Newsprint, for example, still has most of the wood’s original lignin, and it is this lignin that is responsible for its rapid yellowing.   Because most mat board and the paper coatings of foam board are, like most other papers, made from wood pulp, they too have lignin in them, unless it is first removed from the pulp.  If the acids created by the lignin in a mat come into contact with the photograph, it will, over time, cause what is known as “mat burn,” or the browning of the print from the edges inward, as the acids make their way further into the interior of the photo.  If the mounting board is not acid-free, it will eventually attack the entire photograph, “eating” the print from the back to the front.

 

Before we go any further, I should point out one inalterable rule of photo framing: under no circumstances should corrugated cardboard ever be used in any capacity during the framing process.  It is highly acidic, and will do an inordinate amount of damage in a very short time.  I have seen it used as mounting boards, as filler boards behind mounting boards, and as spacers between mats to create a shadow effect.  Even as a filler board, with a mounting board between it and the print, corrugated cardboard is so acidic that its outgases will penetrate the mounting board and begin to damage the print in a matter of months. 

 

What should you look for in acid-free materials?  That depends largely on two considerations: how long of a life-expectancy you expect the print to have, and how much money and time you are willing to invest in your framing project.

 

There are varying degrees of “acid-free”.  The highest quality materials are made from cotton rag paper.  These are innately acid-free, as they are not made from wood pulp at all, but rather, as the name suggests, cotton fibers.  Often referred to as museum- or archival-grade, cotton rag is generally the longest-lived of the mat and mount boards, and is available from most framing shops.  However, it is not generally pre-cut and off-the-shelf, and it tends to be the most expensive of the boards; it therefore does not fit easily into the home photo framer’s arsenal.

 

Conservation-grade mats and boards are made from traditional wood pulp that has had the pulp acids removed, and the resulting paper is buffered.  By some estimates, conservation-grade materials will last well over 100 years before damage begins.  Conservation-grade materials may or may not be available in pre-cut sizes at your local frame shop.  (In my experience, non-national chain frame shops, and frame shops that focus mostly on art and framing supplies, have a better selection of pre-cut, conservation-grade materials than national chains and larger craft stores.)

 

Mats and boards simply labeled “acid-free” are generally composed of three layers: an inner core covered on either side by a paper liner.  These are the most common pre-cut, acid-free materials at the disposal of the home framer.  Many frame shops will have a wide variety of pre-cut sizes and colors available, making them an easy choice for the home framer.  However, these products are not as acid-free as the labeling would have you believe.  In most cases, it is only the outer paper linings that have been treated to be acid-free; the inner core is made from the same material as non-acid-free boards.  These mats and boards will provide some additional protection to your print in the short term, but the acids in the core will eventually reach the print through leaching and out gassing. 

 

Do these drawbacks mean that these materials should be completely avoided?  Absolutely not.  These are the most readily available and least expensive acid-free mats and boards, and they suit many home framing projects perfectly – especially when you are not inclined to cut your own mats or pay to have a professional cut them for you.  Anything of significant sentimental or monetary value should be framed with either conservation- or museum-grade materials, but it is perfectly appropriate to use the easily available, pre-cut, “acid-free” labeled materials on many other prints.  It is up to the framer to decide the level of protection appropriate to each individual print.  Let’s face it: not every image we want to frame and display needs the red-carpet treatment.  If you do use these materials, you can help to extend their useable lifespan by sealing them with an acrylic matte finish, available at most framing and art supply stores.  Make sure that you are in a well-ventilated area and spray the mats evenly and completely, especially the bevels and the edges where the core is exposed.  The spray will slightly darken the mats’ surface, which is one reason an even coat is so important.  Be certain to allow the spray to completely dry before using the mats; you don’t want to introduce any moisture into the interior of the frame.  This technique will not give your print the equivalent protection of using conservation- or museum-grade materials, but by sealing the exposed edges of the beveled paper core, it helps to prolong the cleanliness of the frame’s interior environment – and thereby slow the degradation process.

 

In a similar vein, the rabbets of wooden frames should also be sealed, and for the same reasons.  Most ready-made frames have the rabbets already sealed through paint or some other finish that coats the wood.  Thus, the home framer rarely has to do anything at all to the rabbet.  At times, however, the rabbet is raw wood.  In these cases, to create an acid-free environment, the rabbet needs to be sealed with either some version of a wood sealant (shellac, paint, etc.), or aluminum frame-sealing tape. 

 

Of course, to create and maintain an acid-free environment, any adhesives used must also be acid-free.  Fortunately, with the rise of scrapbooking, the availability of acid-free (sometimes referred to as “archival”) adhesives has skyrocketed, while their prices have fallen.  It is always a good idea to ask your local frame-shop professional about any particular adhesive you are considering, as their qualities vary widely, and each has distinctive pros and cons.  Like the acid-free paper products, adhesives have a hierarchy of “acid-freeness”: true museum mounts use Japanese rice paper and rice-starch paste, but they can be challenging to work with and fall far outside the realm of the typical home framer.  Linen tapes fall into the conservation-grade level, but they are generally thick and can leave impressions or grooves on the print being mounted.  Acid-free paper tape is thinner and therefore leaves no grooves, but it is not strong enough to hold works of substantial weight, including mats.  Adhesive sheets can be fantastic, but are not reversible.  Mylar photo corners can be employed to safely mount the print, possibly eliminating the need for any adhesive at all, but they cannot be used to hinge mats to mounting boards.  (They also come in a much greater range of sizes than most of us realize.  They are not limited to the commonly found 1/2 inch-size, but rather are available in sizes all the way up to 3”.  For even larger prints, mounting strips are available that can be cut to the desired size.)  Spray adhesives, while useful for many framing projects, are not generally acid-free.  Most household tapes and glues are not acid-free either, and/or they will react with the chemicals in photographic paper in ways that can harm the image.  They should therefore be avoided.  And as Vivian Kistler, an authority on conservation framing techniques, says, when it comes to using duct tape in your framing projects, “Don’t even think about it.”

 

 

October’s Fun Facts

 

In Halloween’s month, when humans dress in frightening costumes and make light of the macabre, it seems only fitting that our “fun fact” subject should be something that gives many people the willies: the black widow spider.  As with many of our creepy-crawly friends, it is only the female that is a danger to humans.  Not only do the males rarely bite people, but their venom sacs are too small to pose much of a threat even if they did.  And no wonder: males are about 1/4 the size of females.  Nor are the males black: they are usually gray or brown, and if they exhibit the tell-tale hourglass at all, it is normally yellow or white.  Only the females display the bright red coloration that we have come to fear.  Of course, not all females have an hourglass-shaped marking, or indeed any marking at all, but any markings a female black widow does have will be bright red.  And just to keep things, um, colorful, there are also brown widows and red widows in the United States; white widows in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia; grey widows in South America, Australia, and Africa; and the list goes on…

 

 

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509-396-5154

 

Home Photo Framing Basics, Part 2: Acid-Free Materials

 

In our second installment of our series on home photo framing basics, we look at acid-free materials: what they are, when to use them, and whether the “acid-free” label can be trusted. 

 

In photo framing, the term “acid-free” is applied to those substances that have a neutral or slightly alkaline pH.  This is important for conservation purposes as the acids in framing materials can cause degradation, yellowing, and brittleness of framed photographs.  Some acid-free materials are acid-free by nature, while others have had the acids in them neutralized and/or a buffer added.  (Buffers create a reserve of alkalinity in the material, which will react with the acids produced to create a neutral pH, delaying the onset of damage to a print from acid-containing materials.)  Anything from mat boards and foam boards to the glue, tape, and even the ink used to sign or label photographs might be labeled “acid-free.”

 

When acid-free materials should be used is, to a certain degree, a matter of personal choice.  Certainly a print that has significant monetary value should be framed using only acid-free materials.  However, any print that you wish to preserve for many years, whether monetarily valuable or not, should be framed with acid-free materials as well, as these materials can add decades to the life of a print.

 

What causes acidity in the majority of framing materials?  In short, wood.  Lignin and other substances found in wood and wood pulp are major culprits in the deterioration of paper products.  Newsprint, for example, still has most of the wood’s original lignin, and it is this lignin that is responsible for its rapid yellowing.   Because most mat board and the paper coatings of foam board are, like most other papers, made from wood pulp, they too have lignin in them, unless it is first removed from the pulp.  If the acids created by the lignin in a mat come into contact with the photograph, it will, over time, cause what is known as “mat burn,” or the browning of the print from the edges inward, as the acids make their way further into the interior of the photo.  If the mounting board is not acid-free, it will eventually attack the entire photograph, “eating” the print from the back to the front.

 

Before we go any further, I should point out one inalterable rule of photo framing: under no circumstances should corrugated cardboard ever be used in any capacity during the framing process.  It is highly acidic, and will do an inordinate amount of damage in a very short time.  I have seen it used as mounting boards, as filler boards behind mounting boards, and as spacers between mats to create a shadow effect.  Even as a filler board, with a mounting board between it and the print, corrugated cardboard is so acidic that its outgases will penetrate the mounting board and begin to damage the print in a matter of months. 

 

What should you look for in acid-free materials?  That depends largely on two considerations: how long of a life-expectancy you expect the print to have, and how much money and time you are willing to invest in your framing project.

 

There are varying degrees of “acid-free”.  The highest quality materials are made from cotton rag paper.  These are innately acid-free, as they are not made from wood pulp at all, but rather, as the name suggests, cotton fibers.  Often referred to as museum- or archival-grade, cotton rag is generally the longest-lived of the mat and mount boards, and is available from most framing shops.  However, it is not generally pre-cut and off-the-shelf, and it tends to be the most expensive of the boards; it therefore does not fit easily into the home photo framer’s arsenal.

 

Conservation-grade mats and boards are made from traditional wood pulp that has had the pulp acids removed, and the resulting paper is buffered.  By some estimates, conservation-grade materials will last well over 100 years before damage begins.  Conservation-grade materials may or may not be available in pre-cut sizes at your local frame shop.  (In my experience, non-national chain frame shops, and frame shops that focus mostly on art and framing supplies, have a better selection of pre-cut, conservation-grade materials than national chains and larger craft stores.)

 

Mats and boards simply labeled “acid-free” are generally composed of three layers: an inner core covered on either side by a paper liner.  These are the most common pre-cut, acid-free materials at the disposal of the home framer.  Many frame shops will have a wide variety of pre-cut sizes and colors available, making them an easy choice for the home framer.  However, these products are not as acid-free as the labeling would have you believe.  In most cases, it is only the outer paper linings that have been treated to be acid-free; the inner core is made from the same material as non-acid-free boards.  These mats and boards will provide some additional protection to your print in the short term, but the acids in the core will eventually reach the print through leaching and out gassing. 

 

Do these drawbacks mean that these materials should be completely avoided?  Absolutely not.  These are the most readily available and least expensive acid-free mats and boards, and they suit many home framing projects perfectly – especially when you are not inclined to cut your own mats or pay to have a professional cut them for you.  Anything of significant sentimental or monetary value should be framed with either conservation- or museum-grade materials, but it is perfectly appropriate to use the easily available, pre-cut, “acid-free” labeled materials on many other prints.  It is up to the framer to decide the level of protection appropriate to each individual print.  Let’s face it: not every image we want to frame and display needs the red-carpet treatment.  If you do use these materials, you can help to extend their useable lifespan by sealing them with an acrylic matte finish, available at most framing and art supply stores.  Make sure that you are in a well-ventilated area and spray the mats evenly and completely, especially the bevels and the edges where the core is exposed.  The spray will slightly darken the mats’ surface, which is one reason an even coat is so important.  Be certain to allow the spray to completely dry before using the mats; you don’t want to introduce any moisture into the interior of the frame.  This technique will not give your print the equivalent protection of using conservation- or museum-grade materials, but by sealing the exposed edges of the beveled paper core, it helps to prolong the cleanliness of the frame’s interior environment – and thereby slow the degradation process.

 

In a similar vein, the rabbets of wooden frames should also be sealed, and for the same reasons.  Most ready-made frames have the rabbets already sealed through paint or some other finish that coats the wood.  Thus, the home framer rarely has to do anything at all to the rabbet.  At times, however, the rabbet is raw wood.  In these cases, to create an acid-free environment, the rabbet needs to be sealed with either some version of a wood sealant (shellac, paint, etc.), or aluminum frame-sealing tape. 

 

Of course, to create and maintain an acid-free environment, any adhesives used must also be acid-free.  Fortunately, with the rise of scrapbooking, the availability of acid-free (sometimes referred to as “archival”) adhesives has skyrocketed, while their prices have fallen.  It is always a good idea to ask your local frame-shop professional about any particular adhesive you are considering, as their qualities vary widely, and each has distinctive pros and cons.  Like the acid-free paper products, adhesives have a hierarchy of “acid-freeness”: true museum mounts use Japanese rice paper and rice-starch paste, but they can be challenging to work with and fall far outside the realm of the typical home framer.  Linen tapes fall into the conservation-grade level, but they are generally thick and can leave impressions or grooves on the print being mounted.  Acid-free paper tape is thinner and therefore leaves no grooves, but it is not strong enough to hold works of substantial weight, including mats.  Adhesive sheets can be fantastic, but are not reversible.  Mylar photo corners can be employed to safely mount the print, possibly eliminating the need for any adhesive at all, but they cannot be used to hinge mats to mounting boards.  (They also come in a much greater range of sizes than most of us realize.  They are not limited to the commonly found 1/2 inch-size, but rather are available in sizes all the way up to 3”.  For even larger prints, mounting strips are available that can be cut to the desired size.)  Spray adhesives, while useful for many framing projects, are not generally acid-free.  Most household tapes and glues are not acid-free either, and/or they will react with the chemicals in photographic paper in ways that can harm the image.  They should therefore be avoided.  And as Vivian Kistler, an authority on conservation framing techniques, says, when it comes to using duct tape in your framing projects, “Don’t even think about it.”

 

Jodi

City Escapes Nature Photography, LLC

 

Jasper-park-lodge-review

Hotel Review: Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, Jasper National Park, Alberta Canada

Rating: 1 star

Date of visit: July 2010

 

This is a Fairmont hotel? Seriously? This is the worst Fairmont hotel I have ever been in – by far. In general, Fairmont hotels are known for luxury: they have courteous and helpful staff, they often offer  afternoon teas (and have their own Fairmont-branded teas in the hotel rooms), the towels, robes, and linens are plush, and the rooms are well-maintained and well-equipped.  To top things off, the hotel itself is usually a building that is a work of art, in a location that is inspiring (whether that is the center of Vancouver or Banff National Park). In general, the guest can reasonably expect a first class experience.  Further, while Fairmonts are never cheap, they often offer discounts that place them in the affordable splurge category.

 

My experience with the Jasper Park Lodge has left me wondering if this was the worst hotel in the chain – and hoping that if it wasn’t, I never find out which one is.

 

First, the good things.

·         The location is wonderful, with the main lodge (registration, restaurants and shops) on a lakefront within the beautiful Jasper National Park. 

·         The main lodge is everything that you would expect of a Fairmont: breathtaking architecture appropriate for the location, plush interiors.

·         The housekeeping service was outstanding during my stay. They did absolutely everything right (replaced everything that was used, didn’t throw away anything not in the garbage). This sounds minor, but it is very rare to find these days.

·         The standard Fairmont towels, robes, teas and soaps were all present, providing the only tangible association with the luxury component of the hotel to be found in the guest rooms

·         Lots of activities from golf to horseback riding to kayaking available at the hotel.

 

Unfortunately, the bad outweighed the good by far in this case. The worst part of this facility is the complete and total lack of maintenance that has been performed on the guest rooms.  I have been in Super8s that have looked better. I won’t even mention the lack of air conditioning on an 80+ degree day and the ceiling fan that was incredibly slow, even on high. Instead, I will focus on: the entrance doors that were scratched up and down, both inside and out; the peeling paint; the peeling wallpaper; closet doors that didn’t open; the concrete steps that were falling apart to the point of being a safety hazard; the mold growing in the bathroom window (the only source of ventilation in the bathroom) and the decomposing wood on the window frame; the old carpets; and the layout of the room that caused numerous meetings between bed frame and shin, despite the room being a decent size. 

 

Other, more minor but still extremely disappointing experiences include:

·         The hotel was expensive, even for a Fairmont (the discount walk-in rate was 25% more than I was charged at the Chateaux Lake Louise – a nicer hotel - the day before).

·         The layout of the units is unduly complex. This is a lodge, not a hotel, and as such the rooms are spread among a collection of separate buildings (with stand-alone houses also available). Unfortunately, the roads are narrow and 1-way which makes loading / unloading and generally navigating the land less pleasant than it should be.  We had to unload our car in front of our unit, then drive 0.25km to get to the parking area.  To get from the parking area to the front of our unit, for loading, we had to go across the entire complex again.

·         Service was extremely poor. From the initial check-in ,where our introduction to the property was “Park here to unload your car, then drive to this parking lot when you are done.” (whatever happened to – “Do you need help with your luggage” or “Our lounge is open until 11”?), to the sprinklers in front of the unit (where we needed to load and unload our luggage ourselves, a rarity at Fairmonts) turning on and watering not only the grass, but also all of the walkways as we were trying to load our vehicle to leave before checkout, to the lack of paper delivery and not receiving a copy of the bill before checking out at the front desk in person, to the grounds staff driving over curbs to get around cars, to no-one bothering to ask how the stay was on checkout. Housekeeping excepted, the entire staff seemed completely unaware that they were working at what was supposed to be a luxury resort instead of a low-end motel.

·         Security clearly wasn’t a concern. There was no safe in the room and the use of actual keys instead of cardkeys means that room access cannot be tracked. Why are these standards not in place? 

·         The welcome note in the room was for someone else who was expected to check in the same day that we did – and it arrived, addressed to the wrong guest,  after we had already been in the room awhile.

·         Since all of the rooms are on the ground level, the curtains have to be drawn in order to prevent people from seeing into the room. Unfortunately, this also limits natural light in the room.

·         There was a loud, rowdy, and drunken group of people who passed outside of our open window (the only way to cool down the room) several times in the middle of the night and remained within earshot for several minutes each time. Not completely within the hotel’s control but not exactly the ambience expected at a Fairmont.

 

For this, people are expected to pay several hundred dollars a night? I certainly won’t ever do so again. This hotel is clearly not worth it.

 

Worse, it has made me seriously question the Fairmont brand – which until now I have always held in high esteem. The inclusion of this hotel in the chain makes me wonder which of my experiences have been the exception and which the rule...

 

 

Terence

 

City Escapes Nature Photography