Different shades of color on vintage cards
 

Hey everyone,

Thanks to the wealth of knowledge here and the friendly help I've found myself dipping my toe into a bit of vintage. I started looking at some of then early Exhibit sets and going after some singles.

I've also wanted to pick up some rookie cards of some HOF'ers which are within my budget.

I've been looking at Campanella rookie cards and noticed what appears to be a pretty significant disparity in the shade of the dark; some a lot deeper orange (and overall darker) and some lighter.

I pulled a couple of scans from eBay as examples and was wondering if this is to be expected from vintage cards, or if there is something to know about the different shadings (and if one is more desirable than another, or if one has a potential concern.)

Thanks in advance!

There are 2 main reasons for the differences. The cards are made cheaply and the ink did not get mixed exactly the same every time. This can be seen on cards clear up to the early 90's. The other reason is cards fading from light exposure. Just having a card displayed for a long time in a room that gets any sunlight or has lights on several hours a day will cause fading.

Could be various reasons why certain cards have color differences:
1) Printing press had less ink during parts of the print run.
2) Color pass was forgotten entirely and only certain colors were applied.
3) Lighter cards may have been soaked or sun/UV faded or treated with chemicals.
4) Card could be fake.
5) Printed on a different sheet (second series printing)

You've really got to take it on a case by case basis. A lot of the 1952 Topps have different background colors.

Is the fact that fading may play a roll mean that people prefer the darker ones?

Just because they are lighter colored does not mean they are faded.

I think people(including myself) like the darker colored cards because they just look nicer.

While all the above is true, keep in mind that you chose a '49 Bowman set that is more varied in its tints than most others. If you use the "advanced search" function to look up Ted Z's posts on the subject you'll see what I mean.

Let us not forget disparities in scanners. Settings can be tweaked or not. Ambient lighting can play a role if the scanner lid is open during the scan. Brightness and contrast factory settings are not all created equal. Etc. Etc.