Having had a few bad experiences with selling printed digital images, mainly due to light fade innuendos, I've stuck to film (if it's commercial) and not really taken much notice of developments until now.
Reason being, I've just had a conversation with a school photographer who only shoots digital. When I questioned him about light fade issues he didn't comprehend what I was talking about. It's non-existant as far as he's concerned.
Is there still an issue with printed (non-film)images fading too fast?
Nothing lasts forever.
Printed photos are affected by many variables.
The type of paper used. The type of ink used.
Storage, heat, moisture, untraviolet light, cigarette smoke etc.
Most inkjet inks are water based, and are not water resistant. You can increase their life by protecting them agains the above pollutants.
Framing them behind glass, or laminating them should help.
HP states 2 - 70 years.
Epson sells a snapshot printer they claim can produce prints that could last a century on water-resistant paper.
Any photo - either digital or film - left out in direct sunlight will fade fast. Normal glass won't help prevent it. You can buy a special glass though, sorry not sure of the name for it. I work in the printing industry. For stuff that's going to be suffering sunlight, such as posters etc, we use special light fast inks. Reds always fade first, & blues last. Photos kept in an album should last a lifetime.
A number of online printing serviced (I use ICD) produce prints using a 'photographic' process and paper made by Fuji. Reports I have read suggest that the life of prints is pretty good though, as previously stated, leaving them in direct sunlight is not the best thing to do.
Used to find the azo dyes in Cibachrome lasted well.
Chris (Bangkok)
I've got some Cibachromes I made in the 80s Arthur, and they're struck by direct sunlight every day the sun shines. That's 20+ years now, and they look like the day they came out of the drum.
tom.
I did an A/B comparison over nearly two years with some A4 prints I did. (I didnt realise this at the beginning!) One I laminated one I didnt, These I then pinned on a wall, and forgot about.
Much later I moved house, I then suddenly realised how much the non laminated on had faded and the other still looked freshly printed when I came to take these down. They were both printed onto HP photo paper on a Photosmart P1000