{"id":888,"date":"2015-01-26T21:15:15","date_gmt":"2015-01-27T04:15:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inkofpark.wordpress.com\/?p=888"},"modified":"2024-09-01T19:58:11","modified_gmt":"2024-09-02T01:58:11","slug":"dip-pens-for-the-backs-of-photos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.inkofpark.com\/?p=888","title":{"rendered":"Dip Pens for the Backs of Photos"},"content":{"rendered":"

Quick Recommendation<\/strong><\/p>\n

Speedball B-5 nib<\/strong><\/p>\n

Rapidraw 3084-F<\/strong> or Reeves & Poole India Ink<\/strong><\/p>\n

The best solution I have found for writing on the back of plastic-coated photos, like those from Costco or most modern developers, is drafting ink. It would seem the inks are usually archival even though the paper is not. The writing is actually readable. When the ink is applied correctly it can be handled without risk of smearing in as little as a few minutes.<\/p>\n

If you can\u2019t stand my dip pen solution, more details are available here<\/a>, where I recommended the Zig Millenium (blotted) or the Zig Photo Signature. The problem with drafting inks is that they cannot be applied with a Bic pen. The inks can by applied with technical pens or with dip pens. Technical pens are a delight, you can cap them\u2014or rather you must cap them. They dry out and clog the pen if not cleaned properly. They are difficult to clean too.<\/p>\n

When I\u2019m writing on photos, I tend to do a batch at once, and then none for weeks. Filling a technical pen and cleaning it for an hour\u2019s use is unsatisfying. The alternative to technical pens is the dip pen. Not all dip pens are created equally, or at least not for the same purpose. I had purchased a set of drawing nibs at the local hobby shop thinking I was all set. However, the drawing nibs left puddles of ink on, snagged, and spattered. The photo below shows the bumps and still-wet pools of ink when using some nibs and the smooth, even writing from others.<\/p>\n

\"PensObliqueShot\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Different nibs, obviously, perform differently. I thought perhaps different inks would too, and set about to test the pair. A well-performing ink-and-nib combination should<\/p>\n