Duratrans printing and LED lightboxes

[Enigma]

Does anyone have any experience of these for photographic prints?

I recently had a black and white print back on a canvas and the shadows were completely lost.
Up until then I have been happy with prints I have received.

I have done quite a bit of research, and can find a lot of backlit images, mainly on street signs etc., which have been printed using duratrans.
I don't seem to be able to find much in the way of art in the home.
These usually look impressive at night in cities, but could you, and more importantly would you, put them on a domestic wall??

I think they have the potential to either look absolutely unbelievably spectacular - or a bit like the menu in a burger king???

 

[Chappers]

Duratarns is designed to be used with backlit illumination. It has a diffusing rear coating. It also has a companion product Duraclear. Which is the same but without the coating. Both Duratrans and Duraclear were designed to be used in the backlit display arena but now have largely displaced with other media notably inkjet . Un backlit Duratrans is flat and unappealing. So unless you plan on using a light box I wouldn't recommend it. Canvas prints can look a bit flat, I think that is inherent in the media.

 

[Phil V]

There's loads of media more suitable for photography than canvas (in fact canvas is about the worst), look at somewhere like whitewall for options.

 

[The W]

Duratrans on lightboxes is what they always use at at the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition and it always looks top notch (of course the quality of the photographs doesn't hurt!). I think as long as you can solve the practicalities of a lightbox installation there's nothing lacking in the quality of the prints. That said, they always show them in a darkened room so I don't know how they look in sunlight.

As far as I'm aware, the NHM use these people (or have in the past): https://metroimaging.co.uk/professional-duratran-prints/