Around the same time as I set off on my adventures into inkjet negs, I began to make inkjet prints using archival pigment inks. The early results were interesting but I could not find a suitable combination of paper, pigment and curve that produced the kind of output I was seeking. This all changed when I started using the latest generation of archival pigment inksets with 100% cotton fine art papers. Life expectancy for an inkjet print, made with these new inksets, is comparable to today's analogue colour print. Ultimately the final output cannot be compared to a platinum print any more than a silver print can. An archival pigment inkjet print can exhibit some of the same qualities that is unique to other 'mechanical' processes such as photogravure. In the end each process possesses it's own distinctive character and beauty.

What began as an occassional 'leap of curiosity' has become the mainstay for much of my current work - namely the melding of analogue and digital technologies. An image taken either on film or with digital capture can then be used to make a traditional print, usually platinum, or an archival inkjet pigment print.

What does this all mean? At the moment I don't really know. One thing is for certain - I don't see it as the end to 'conventional' methods. The 'tools' may change but the foundations of photography - pre and post visualization, exposure, contrast, printing, dodging, burning, etc - remain the basis for both analogue and digital image making. As the sone says "Times are a changin" but some things never will. These new digital 'tools' are a welcome addition to the image making process. The 'sky' is still there.