I am a complete newbie. I want to decorate my home with a few giant prints. After some reading I thought that prints under acrylic might be nice, but then I realized that literally the print itself is 1/8 of the price, and 7/8 is the acrylic glass. Fucking bonkers.Apparently the acrylic glass is supposed to protect the picture from damage. In my case the worst offender would be UV. In particular, a few photos need to be hung right behind a window which gets shitload of sunlight every day.On the other hand though, I can literally re-print the same picture 8 times for the price of one acrylic print. Okay, maybe I could lower the costs by buying some standard-sized frame on Amazon, but this only reduces the problem, doesn't completely eliminate it.This brings me to the crux of the question: suppose I print something and place it right behind my sunny window, without any form of protection. How long should I expect it to last before it fades? Will it be at least a few years? To be precise, I want to print using this:https://www.whitewall.com/eu/photo-prints/ultra-hd
>>4378340Not exactly answering your question, but have you considered getting metal prints instead of acrylic? I'm unsure if they'd end up being cheaper, but not needing to buy glass/frames for them would be the deciding factor, especially for larger sizes. I've heard they're quite resistant to fading as well but can't independently confirm that
>>4378354I ordered one sample of ChromaLuxe and the print quality was literal garbage
>>4378356I'm sorry to hear that
>>4378340your unprotected prints should be good for 2 to 3 years until you really notice any fading. that's for those in direct sunlight. the others will last 10 years+
>>4378403I found this thing:>Hahnemühle Digital FineArt Protective SprayDoes it actually do something?
I needed some polycarbonate for a project last year, and found a local place that put me in touch with their supplier. I was able to get a 6x12 foot sheet. It was very expensive but still about 1/3 the price per sq ft as buying a cut piece.
>>4378411yes, it makes you poorerthere's people who swear by those sprays and there's people who don't.re-printing usually is not a hassle and you will want to change your wall decoration every few years anyway. so I wouldn't spend extra on a spray unless you have some high value print you are absolutely sure will be hanging for 10+ years or it's some signed work by a youtuber faggot
