Very Important: You must start the actual flow of spray while aimed off the side of the print, then draw the spray all the way across the surface of the print and off the other side before stopping it. The person in this video is doing that, but at the speed he's going, it's not going to be obvious to everyone that he's not, for example, just trying to conserve spray between passes. Again, what he's showing is correct, but AFAIK he never actually says this explicitly. Personally I have used this spray varnish successfully many times, and I actually just keep the spray going continuously for each pass from top to bottom (meaning I don't start and stop the spray as I change direction left to right). To each their own. The important thing is to never have the spray pointed at the print itself when you start or stop the flow of spray. Also just for clarity, the reason behind not swiveling your wrist is to try and maintain, as much as possible, a constant distance and angle between the sprayhead, and the artwork, while spraying. As another commenter mentioned, I tend to actually use my legs to try and move my whole body left to right, not just my arm, as shown in the video. Maybe that's more of an issue/concern when spraying larger-format prints.
Spraying should be a physical dance, even with a small target / object. Holding your wrist to ensure a consistent angle vis-a-vis the item to be sprayed is fine, but one's entire body should move up and down, left and right, during the spraying. Watch how master car painters move. You should be employing legs and torso to keep the same physical attitude / orientation to the spraying target. Again, it's like a dance among the sprayer, the target, and one's body. Thx for the video.
I tried this varnish on Red River SanGabriel Baryta and Palo Duro SoftGloss Rag papers exactly following the directions in the video (distance from print, holding my wrist, reversing the print to complete a full coat). The next day after totally drying, to my great surprise and disappointment, the varnish left raised run streaks (like frozen drips of water running down the page) on both papers ruining the prints. To be fair, I am going to try using the varnish one more time.
We only recommend using the Desert Varnish on matte papers/matte black papers. With other surfaces (photo black) such as baryta or satin the surface does not properly absorb the coating, leaving blotches, streaks, or dots, as you are seeing. For baryta, satin, luster, and other glossy papers the best protectant if you are not framing is a clear laminate. There may also be coating products in the market that can be applied with a roller or hvlp sprayer that are designed for photo black papers.
Greetings! Thank you for the great explanation and information, its very valuable to me considering I’m starting to produce my own prints… But I have a question related to my current situation, I’m printing on canvas material with inkjet (it seems fairly matte to me), but I was wondering before taking a step forward… Can I still use that same spray considering my materials of printing?
I tried this yesterday for the first time, following Les's directions. However, in viewing the print after it dried, I see blotchy areas where there doesn't appear to be varnish.
Sometimes the angle of the can during spraying can cause an uneven coat, also if the varnish is not shaken enough before application it could be inconsistent. Rotating the print 90-degrees and applying another coat may fill in the gaps.
Before and after would have been helpful. Also, explain what you mean when you say the spray can "affect" a glossy or semi-glossy print. Does it give the print a matte finish? Does it dull the finish? Other?
We don't recommend using the Desert Varnish on a glossy, semigloss, or satin paper. It is not designed for those coatings, and will not disappear into the surface as it does on matte papers.
Thanks. My first question is how important is it to use spray, given the fact (well, claim) that supposedly archival-quality, pigment-based inks on archival quality paper should last for 200-400 years? My second question is how important is an additional layer of (cehimcal) protection if the print is framed with glass or plexi? My third question is, how much long-term testing has been done to determine the effectiveness of spray varnish over the years and are there any negatives associated with its use (other than of course the toxicity)?
1- The desert varnish and preservation coatings generally are used to protect against UV, scratches and scuffs, and to some extent humidity changes. Longevity numbers for inks assume dark storage or archival conditions for maximum permanence. 2- If the print is framed with archival materials and UV-filtering conservation or museum glass, there is no need to add a coating to the print. If you're using non-UV filtering glass, or displaying without glazing, then coating the print is an important step. 3- We do not have longevity testing comparisons available for prints with and without the Desert Varnish.
I know you said to wait 4 mins between HALF coats, but how long should I wait between full coats? And how long after that until it's fully dry and I can package it up?
We recommend letting the varnish dry overnight if possible, but a few hours at standard temperature and humidity (65-75 degrees F, 35-60% humidity) should be sufficient.
For inkjet prints you only want to use an inkjet or aqueous fixative spray. Most of the glossy sprays available at art stores contain solvents or other chemicals which are OK for art mediums (paint, pencils, etc) but are not compatible with inkjet inks. For a glossy finish on matte paper we recommend liquid inkjet coatings applied with a roller or HVLP sprayer. These are generally marketed for canvas prints.
The best option for displaying gloss and semigloss prints without glass is to apply a UV laminate in a vacuum press. These come in various finishes from matte to gloss- your local frame shop would be a good place to start.
I have common digital prints that I want a uniform matte finish on. Some coating are not adhering well to the shiner ink. What would be a good product to apply?
With glossy/satin papers a matte laminate will be your best option. A frame shop can apply it for you, we don't have specific recommendations for an at-home product.
Is outdoor application the only option? Could it safely be applied in the basement of a house while using a mask, but without special ventilation? I would be working with prints no larger than 12x18 inches. If outdoor application is the only option, what is the minimum temperature for getting good results?
We don't recommend indoor application without ventilation, the smell of the varnish will likely linger for a while after application. That said, depending on your location it may be the only viable option in winter, as the varnish is best applied above 40-45 degrees F. For safety & liability we have to say 'indoor application would be done at your own risk.'
Wish I could use this. Looks like a good product. But I live in a small apartment and could not use the spray indoors. There is no outdoor space to do it in either. Are there any sprays that are less lethal to the lungs and human body?
There are some coatings that can be applied with a brush or roller, however they are generally designed for canvas, so they may not completely disappear into the paper like the Desert Varnish.
If you are doing a small number of applications your health is at not much if any risk of a problem if you open your windows, turn on a fan blowing thru an open door or window. The propellant is the most bad chemical and likely most varnish sprays have something similar. Also masks as was demonstrated in the video really work and should give you more than adequate protection. Don't use masks to prevent, say, Covid-19. In my view it would take a lot of exposure to develop a chronic respiratory problem but that is dependent on lot of of other factors, smoker, previous chemical exposures, and of course genes. However not being exposed at all is an inconvenient but best strategy. (I am a chemist and I do research in toxic waste epidemiology)
I was thinking of using desert varnish, but where I live can be quite humid in the summer. Are there issues with this and is there a recommended humidity level? Thanks!
The higher the ambient humidity the longer it will take each coat of varnish to dry. If you spray it outside, and then bring it indoors to dry (assuming your home has a lower humidity) then the average times should apply. We don't have time guidelines for application in humid conditions.
Hello Lester Question Regarding a glossy pro inkjet paper for a print, I am not planning on using glass of any kind so do I spray a glossy print? Will the varnish cloud the glossy finish of the paper? Or I have good quality anti-reflective glass, should I use glass with a glossy print? Thank you again for your training info. I appreciate your kind and expert advice. Scott
Hi Scott. Good question, but a complex answer. We did a series of experiments a few years ago with sprays on matte, semigloss/satin, and glossy prints. What we found is that glossy prints lost some of the gloss, resulting in a semi-gloss print, but not quite as nice looking as a manufacturer's semi-gloss or satin coating. Some glossy coatings claim to have some UV resistance, but we have not tested that. Also, there are some protective sprays that claim UV protection but also claim that glossy prints will maintain their gloss. We intend to test those in the future. Your suggestion of putting the print behind a good quality, non-reflective glass is probably best, but I also suggest you print 3-4 8.5x11" glossy prints, cut them into thirds and try sprays from different manufacturers. Best of luck and if you do this experiment, please let us know how this turns out.
@@lespicker Thank you for your reply and excellent idea Cutting two or three up and trying different sprays. I’ll probably do that with the two sprays that I have. I kind of waited late on this and I’ve gotta turn in the framed finished picture by Monday. So I’ll probably put it all together with glass see how that looks with a good nonreflective glass and if that diminishes The glossy print too much I might just dry mount it to foam core and leave it exposed. Thank you again as always appreciate your great insight, information and kind replies Scott
