How do you display your photographs?

Jay Levy · Feb 2, 2004

With all of the wonderful pictures the folks in this forum are always showing, I have to ask how everyone displays printed pictures around your home?

do you mount all pics?
frame them?
matt them?

I'm looking for a creative way to start displaying more of my pictures without the expense and time of framing each one.

I'm not worried as much about picture preservation (cheap and easy to print them again if necessary

) as I am having an attractive yet easy way to display all the good ones!

any ideas?

--
regards -- jay levy

Dustin Finn · Feb 2, 2004

I had printed a bunch of them (ofoto.com, shutteryfly.com, snapfish.com) just to test and see which companies I liked. So now I have a bunch of 5x7's and some 8x10's . I have them just stuck and hung all around my cube at work - and only 1 or 2 in regular off the shelf do-it-yourself frames from Target in my house

Its not impressive - but I don't have a window where I sit - so its nice to see some pictures of the outside world

Its just what I do.

-Dustin

Http: www.DustinFinn.com

Spike666 · Feb 2, 2004

If you're printing them digitally, you really should frame them behind glass, or maybe plexi, although I don't know how they do behind plexi. And with both glass and plexi, use something like Tru-Vu for longest life.

For me, I use Nielsen frames (easy to assemble at home) and buy Tru-Vu in bulk and cut the glass to fit. My wife prefers more artistic frames and goes to the frame shop when I'm not looking.

E Scott Cragg · Feb 2, 2004

I'm a college student, so I don't have the money to frame all my work-

I have taken a liking to 6x9" prints from my Canon i850. I print on 8.5x11 paper, and then crop out a .5" border around the entire shot. The result is a very classy, simply .5" white border around each shot that mimics a frame without the cost.

I just use double-sided putty to stick them to my wall in a regular patter (every two feet) at eye level in my dorm room. The end effect has gotten many compliments. I tend to rotate the posted images fairly regularly.

I don't worry about longitivity - at 70 sheets for 12 bucks, the illford paper I use is expendable (and very nice quality)...

-Scott

Jace Mouse28973 · Feb 3, 2004

I put my prints in an inexpensive portfolio, and set them on my coffee table in the living room.

For my walls, I use really cheap plastic/plexi frames. I forget the name, but they are at most art stores. An 8x10 frame is about $4. I usually don't mat mine, though I'm begining to appreciate the aesthetic impact this adds.

90% of my frames are hanging on a gallery wall that I created in my kitchen. I suspend them from a rail, so it's easy to add and rearange prints without having to drive any nails. The location is a nice way to entertain my guests while I work on momentary cooking tasks.

--
http://jacemouse.com

David Dahlstrom · Feb 3, 2004

I take a very different approach to digital prints than I did with film prints. With film prints, the print itself was considered valuable--especially if it was a high-quality one done in a lab, or one for which the negative was damaged or no longer available. So I would carefully frame it in a traditional manner, sunk behind a mat, protected by glass, in a permanent or semi-permanent fashion. Some might argue that digital prints are even more delicate and so should be protected even more; but why? Especially if these are your personal photos, printed by you, and mounted in your own home or office!

With digital, I perceive the RAW digital file to be what is valuable. The print, on the other hand, is expendable. I say this because if the print fades or is damaged--or if I just want another one in a different size or crop, I just go to my computer and make another one. No big deal (except a small cost in ink and paper), and the new prints always come out looking pristine and identical to the original. What does this mean? Well it means that I now mount my digital pictures almost opposite from the way I mount traditional photos. This is because I no longer worry much at all about making sure photo is archivally protected, but worry only about displaying it with maximized artistic impact to the viewer.

First, I never use glass. To me, glass mutes colors, can introduce glare (unless you use expensive non-glare glass), and places a barrier between the viewer and the photo. I also do not sink the photo behind a mat anymore (which is really more a measure to keep traditional photos from touching the glass than being the best aesthetic device). Instead, I mount the photo on a beveled mat that sits on top of the backing such that it projects out from the frame. This pushes the photo toward the viewer. And because there is no glass, all the vibrancy of the print is retained.

I also construct the mount in such a way that it is easy to replace the print (either with a new copy of the same print or a new picture altogether). If the picture fades or gets too dusty or damaged in any way, I just print a new one and mount it on the same frame.

Dave

Jim1002 · Feb 3, 2004

Dave, would you mind posting a photo of one of your prints in the "beveled matte" process you described?

bwalker228 · Feb 3, 2004

I print 13x19 inch prints of my favorite pictures and mount them on foam board that I get at Michael's. I use a non-acidic spray adhesive (also from Michael's). I do not use any frames on these mounted prints. I like the way the prints look hanging on the wall without any frames (which would get quite expensive on 13x19 prints!).

Good lighting is really important. I was lucky enough to have installed a lot of recessed lighting in my large rec room that I built several years ago. I bought the kit that allows you to direct the recessed lighting to the wall where the prints are hanging. This makes a huge difference in displaying your prints because it really makes the prints 'pop'. I have found that one recessed light will adequately light 2 vertically composed prints that are about 12-15 inches apart. I also added dimmers to the light switches controlling the lighting.

I have about 15 prints hanging in the rec room (mostly of my 4 & 7 year old girls). I have received a lot of compliments on this display technique.

I rotate pictures out easily. The foamboard is cheap...I think it averages out to about $1 per print.

I also have mounted 8x10 prints in small frames and mounted them in clusters on a wall. Again, I have the recessed lighting to illuminate the pictures.

In my office at work I display the foamboard mounted 13x19 prints also. I also display 8x10 prints mounted wherever there is a good space for display (no frames).

Digital photography has really changed the way I print and display images. I rarely print 4x6 images anymore (mainly when my wife asks for one).

Good luck.
Brad

rdbruski · Feb 3, 2004

I'm currently working with a supplier/manufacturer on a design I've come up with. Basically, you will need NO matte and NO mounting. The viewers total attention will be on the photo alone. Yet, the photo will be protected from UV and gas fading as well as other damage. I'm hoping to manufacture them cheap enough to sell them to average Joe's like us as well as to museums and artists. Shoot me an e-mail if you want some more details and I can let you know when they are ready: [email protected].

Wayne Jacobsen · Feb 3, 2004

First, at a vacation house, I have a "wall of fame" for informal, fun shots of friends and family. These are framed in whatever inexpensive photoframes I can find at disocunt stores (e.g, Ross, Marshalls). Since its informal, the frames don't have to match.

Second, I print shots on letter size paper, slip them into clear covers that go into three-ring notebooks. For example, I have a book of shots (perhaps the best 20 or so) from each vacation. Its cheap, its unpretentious, it lets the viewer look as long (or short) as he or she likes.

--Wayne

Ari Riutto · Feb 3, 2004

put "the picture of the month" or "the week" on the lobby's wall.
Usually myself as a judge to decide which picture

--

That's my 0,02 € -

Ari -

http://www.sci.fi/~ajr/ ; (16-35 L pictures)
http://koti.phnet.fi/arriutto/index.html ; (24-70 L pictures)

Pat Gray · Feb 3, 2004

Scott 59 · Feb 3, 2004

I stand them up up in the plate recess of my china cabinet. I can't fit my 13*19 that way, only 8.5*11. One of these days I'm going to get serious about matting & framing.

Seminole1986 · Feb 3, 2004

I print 12x18 images on 13x19 Canon Pro paper, mount them myself on standard mats w/12x18 windows, frame them on standard frames made for the standard mats, and display them at home and at the in the common areas of my office. My office, five lawyers, is pretty much my photo gallery. At last count I had 17 images framed and mounted.

TB14 · Feb 3, 2004

Hi,

I just put one of these Wall Easels up from potterybarn in my home office.

http://ww1.potterybarn.com/cat/pip.cfm?src=schi1%7Cp1%7Cwwall%5Cseasl&pkey=sa1s0easl%2Cwall&gids=p4318

It seems very flexible. Now I just have to take enough good shots to fill it up.

Lou

Jamie W · Feb 3, 2004

Hi Scott,

Sounds like an interesting "framing" idea. Could you take a photo of your prints hanging on the wall and post it so we can see how it looks?

Thanks!

--
Jamie W.

Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants to see us happy. -- Benjamin Franklin

Bill Bradstreet · Feb 3, 2004

My house has a lot of dust. I have three labrador retrievers that help produce it and kick it up around the house. I have plenty of great wall space for prints. I figure I would start going to Costco and doing some 12x18's of my favorite shots.

The foam board from Michael's is definitely the way to go. But I would like know the dust will collect on the print very quickly.

Does anyone have a spray type protectant they put on their prints that won't affect the look too much? I am in agreement that glass/plexi just gets in the way, so I want to avoid that sort of layer if possible.

Thanks... Bill

--
Regards,

Bill

http://o2bnme.fotki.com/

Bill Bradstreet · Feb 3, 2004

I think displaying your own work is a great conversation piece.

I have all my pictures rotate via my webshot's photo manager. So, my background and screensaver show my work. When a customer comes by and sees something on my computer it makes for a good coversation when they realize I took the picture. I think it enhances work relationships.

I think I'm going to start this at home too. I have a great spot for this sort of thing.

--
Regards,

Bill

http://o2bnme.fotki.com/

Doug Warner · Feb 3, 2004

Don't display them at home, no audience there. I stick them to my cubicle walls at work with double-sided poster tape.

Pips · Feb 3, 2004

I use IPhoto to create Photo Books these are done by "Apple" and there must be a Windows equivalent. The lines bound book recieve nothing but wonder and acclaim from all who see them.

--
Pips

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