Hi mearussi,
Lol, your description of crystalline is spot on compared to mine above. I do some woodworking and if I close my eyes my hand tells me I have a sheet of 180 grit sand paper. I share your maximum life requirements but may use crystalline in limited instances with the appropriate caveats. To my eye, once mounted the glittery appearance is subdued somewhat.
Hi Mearussi and MKihne,
Right! Furthermore, the texture is not as regular on Crystalline than it is with Lyve. However, I find that people "love" this canvas structure as they feel it looks like a painting with my photographs (minimalist winter scenes of rural areas).
I have exhibited photographs of various types of scenes and printed on various medium (canvas, fine art paper, photo paper, acrylic, aluminium) and canvas is preferred (about 95% of my sales).
I have talked with other nature photographers in Canada and the US where aluminium and acrylic seem very popular, but my experience is the opposite.
My colleagues in Europe use a lot of fine art paper. My selling experience with fine art paper is good only for smaller photos.
My clients come from all over the world, in particular from California and Texas, and they all react the same way.
IMHO, the obvious texture of Crystalline is a selling point (Lyve texture is also excellent). Both of them have the texture of a canvas, i.e. not a smooth surface like photo paper.
I'm not saying that it is the best for all types of scenes, but for my photos it works very well. Many clients think they are paintings !