No real arguments here, Wayne, we're both basically on the same page. Semantics aside, (even "art is in the eye of the beholder" - [yuck]- aside) there are differences between landscapes ala Adams and abstracts ala Weston, et al, etc., and these things come under difficult categories to characterize as being subject to that term. (I.e, certain landscapes can be art, certain abstracts can be art but according to who, blah blah blah, etc., so mostly, yes, I agree, as well and dislike, although do not disdain the aspects of labels like "fine art" in most but not all cases, as well, and would not wish to get into a philosophical and/or epistemolgical discussion about what constitutes such as either/or, etc. Suffice it to say that I do believe there is opportunity to define these terms in addition to "archival" but not in the broadest sense, here, where as you have outlined, damage over time will most likely trump any "quality" shift in the long run.
If Sawgrass has a lock on these inks and both Epson and Canon and HP inks outlast and outperform, then there simply is no comparison - there are no comparables, other than the film paradigm, which, again, I ask the question, is it a fair comparison, when comparing two outputs such as Cibachrome and Chromaluxe with Dye Sub. I suspect your answer would be that hands down, in this case, dye sub on chromaluxe wins (please correct me if I am wrong - I have no wish to put words in your mouth).
My only point in asking this is that in the world of some galleries in certain parts of the photographic world, film is still king and it might follow that a process such as dye sublimation might be seen as more akin to that photo process than inkjet. I wonder if this is not a possibility. Of course if you disdain the segment of the photographic world I'm referring to, then it is mute and inappropriate , and actually unreasonable to even ask this question of you. Be that as it may, bear with me, if you will. There is a resistance to inkjet via perception and a bias towards film and somehow, at some point, there's got to be a tipping point whereby inkjet becomes acceptable, if only for the sake of longevity and luxe verite, particularly if all things are equal in terms of objects (image for image).
If there are red/green color shifts, in which case is it most significant, and in which case will it become abundantly clear the soonest? In this regard, I submit the answer is self revealing, indeed, self selective.
Oh well - I'm sure you'll reiterate your previous apprehensions which I did read and understood, LOL.
Regarding Bay Photo, I hear you, there as well. I brought this up to the SP representative and he adamantly stressed that their process was entirely different, said that they had been there first and Bay followed suit. When I asked HOW, their process was different, he said he couldn't discuss it, that it was proprietary. (To which I say, maybe yes, maybe no).
I also agree, again, to your reiteration that SPIX does seem to be marketing directly to the "consumer", and there is apparently NO room for a wholesale entry point, based on my conversations with the rep/owner or whoever the gentleman was.
Regarding your statement that Bay has a full time staff dedicated to "lab within a lab" - thanks for that - good to know, it makes me more interested in trying them out, but I sure hope Dan gets his stuff up and running, LOL.
And finally - man oh man, truer words were never spoken:
" (I) am constantly amazed at what people think is "good" ... mostly because they or their friend took the shot. "
Now on THAT, we can agree!
