Advice sought on portfolio cases

[Bob_B]

I confess I love printing my photos, so much so that I need to find a way to store them safely and at the same time have a means to show off my portfolio, if needed. My current storage is via old photo paper boxes, but they aren't very good for showing off the prints, and I'm not so sure how well protected the prints are in these boxes. How do you store your prints? I have looked at the Onyx portfolio cases. They look nice, but are pricey (imho).

I welcome suggests and advice, and thank you for your time and efforts.

  Bob

[GrahamBy]

What size?

I use an album like this

https://www.missnumerique.com/prat-book-photo-a-spirales-modebook-a3-149p3348-p-7416.html

for A3+. The photos are under plastic but it's polyester(*), very transparent, and you don't have to stress about your viewer leaving finger-prints. An album holds up to 30 photos back-to-back in 15 inserts, although it comes with only 10... So if you buy two albums and one refill, you spend (in France) about 2€/per photo.

They do both landscape and portrait orientations, although I expect people to turn the album

(*) Polyester isn't weldable, the sleeves are simply folded along one edge and held by the spirals at the other, the top and bottom are open. Seems to work fine and it's much easier than trying to slide an A4 print into some regular, but too tight, sleeves.

[spinellino]

Here in Italy I found cheap but well made portfolio cases in A3 size
http://www.fotomatica.it/contents/it/d103_portafoto_flyone.html

I bet you can find something similar in the US too.

For smaller prints I love this
http://www.danecreekfolios.com/

Since they are made for US paper sizes and won't fit A4 paper, I make them myself.

[GrahamBy]

Also Hahnemuhle make reasonably priced boxes from A4 to A2 which come flat-packed (although A2 you still have to pick up):

http://www.digit-photo.com/Classement-aFA0027/HAHNEMUHLE-Boite-Archive-3mm-pour-Ft-A3-rHAHN10121211.html

However they don't look so attractive (think pizza box ) so they are more for storage than for showing.

[Peter Mellis]

Try one of these Itoya books: http://www.amazon.com/ITOYA-Profolio-Presentation-Display-ANAD247/dp/B001AJGYZA/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1457191792&sr=8-7&keywords=photo+portfolio+book I've been using them for a few years, in sizes up to A3. They are available both vertical and horizontal, are relatively inexpensive and the clarity is pretty good. I recently filled an A3 size book and was amazed at how heavy it got (48 pages).

[rdonson]

Like Peter I use several Itoya "books" in a few different sizes.  The work well and the prints I've put in them a decade ago are holding up well.

[Bob_B]

@GrahamBy: Regarding your question on size of print, I chiefly save 13x19 inch prints for my portfolio.

[AFairley]

Dick Blick art supplies has Itoya ring binder portfolios with clear artwork holding pages in sizes up to 18 x 24. I have not seen them but am thinking of getting one for an easy way to show my latest 17x22 output.  Not cheap, $110 for the binder and 20 pages, but in the long run.....

The 13x19 binder with 10 pages is $50, a pack of 10 13x19 pages is $25

[howardm]

BH has the Itoya 13x19 w/ 24 pages for $35.  I dont see any additional pages (plastic carriers).

[GrahamBy]

The Itoya with 24 pages sounds like a bargain. Judging against the Prat filled with 30 prints, you really wouldn't want to think about putting more than 48 13x19 prints into a book... that's 7.65m² of paper, or nearly 2.4kg (5.2lb) of 310gsm...

[rxchaos]

I use Canson's archival photo storage boxes to store A3 size prints. The boxes are well made and cost about $40/each.  Here's a link to the product... http://www.canson-infinity.com/en/products/archival-storage-boxes

[rdonson]

For storage boxes I use the ones from Frame Destination. For my use they are reasonably priced and well built.  I have a few different sizes.

http://www.framedestination.com/photo_storage_boxes.html

[GrahamBy]

It seems the Itoya books come in a refillable version, and a fixed 24 leaf version which is cheaper.

[Bob_B]

Thanks for all your help. I think I'll give the Itoya book a try, and a might also buy one of the FD storage boxes. That way, I'll have both sides of my print storage and portfolio display covered.

Bob

[chez]

I have one Itoya folder and personally I feel they are very cheap and do not present your photos in the best form. The plastic pages that hold your photos remind me of the old days when you put prints into photo albums. It's not easy to take the prints out from the plastic pages and looking at the prints through the shiny pages really obscures the quality in the print.

I now use Clamshell archival boxes with tissue paper between prints. This allows you to easily look at the true surface of the print and hold the print in your hands. Much better than the Itoya binders IMHO.