Thursday, March 20, 2008
A few tips for better snapshots
I was going to talk about how to hang your photo but changed my mind..I'll do that later.. instead I started thinking, after seeing hundreds or maybe thousands( or did it just seem like that many) of photos with the same problems, I'd give a couple hints for better snapshots..You may not care about taking the artsy fartsy stuff but most everyone wants to take a better shot of little Hershel with great-grandma Bertha..So even if you don't know an f stop from a short stop, read on...
Tip 1...READ YOUR MANUAL...today's cameras are marvels of simplicity, turn a dial, push a button and instant gratification, you can see the moment you wanted to capture. Another touch of a button makes it a print for all to share. So then why are so many snapshots, well, not particularly anything you want to put in a time capsule for future generations? Could it be the camera's operator never read his manual? For shame! For instance, did he even know he had a place on his camera for "night mode" that set the right aperture, exposure and flash for a night shot that would let him make out not only the family he posed but the background as well? Instead he got either a totally black photo( just what was that supposed to be a shot of ?????) , a photo with a weirdly shiny, oddly complected family standing in front of a black hole or photo with a weirdly lit background with some dark humps in front. Too bad, had he read his manual he would have had a keeper.
So sit down with camera in hand( put a battery and memory card in it as well) pull out your manual ( hoping you did not throw it away) and just see what great photos your camera can practically take for you. You'll be glad you did.
Tip 2: Hooray, now you and your camera are on a first name basis! So you can now start thinking about things like composition before you take that shot. Take your time, think which setting will work best for you and then look around you, how should you compose your shot? Well you have 3 kids you want in the picture so plant them flush up against the nearest wall and fire away? NO! How bout moving them out a little bit from that wall, (maybe 10 ft or so, you might need to experiment a little here) so the background in the photo is a nice blurry background...you aren't really hoping to get a nice sharp photo of a brick wall, you are hoping for a nice sharp photos of the kids...the slightly blurry background will make the subjects stand out much better. And while you are at it, scout around for a fairly plain background, not tons of color that will drag your eye away from your subject, unless you want a photo of that stop sign for your stop sign photo collection as well, then whatever, go right ahead. If you have a nice pretty background that won't detract, place your subject in the middle and the tree, bush , whatever slightly to the side of them and behind them, ie not a bush snapdab in the center with a person snapdab in it's center...try to make it interesting. Try to teach your eye to really look, if it looks good before you take it, it will look good afterwards to. And line them up in an interesting fashion if more than one subject is involved...a natural looking pose, slightly different for each one, making sure all their faces are visible, not in shadow, or hidden behind someone else. And while you are looking, make sure you are not going to inadvertantly take a self portrait...that glass, mirror, highly polished building, water is going to reflect you when you least expect it to!
Lots more tips but I'm tired of typing and you are tired of reading!
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Framing Your Photo
As we left off, you had the mat or planned on getting one in a neutral color or at least the dominant color of the photo...a double or single or even triple, according to taste but any mat is better than none, right?
Same reasons apply for frames as for mat...S.A.P...Supportive, Artistic, Protective.
What are the important parts of a frame? Well naturally part 1 is the molding...usually wood, plastic, ceramic, sterling silver, whatever suits your decor and wallet and is at least somewhat cohesive with the photo. For example, a simple flower in black and white probably needs a simple mat and simple wooden, metal or plastic frame, also in black , white or a combo of the two. Ahhh, unity and peace, at least on your wall. And a teddy bear frame that looks great in a baby's room might be a little curious in your 20 yr old son's room. You get the picture, err idea. Get a frame you like that wil enhance not detract from your art and it's surrounding.
Ok part 2 would be the backing, usually cardboard included in many frames...you can get acid free backing if you want to pass the photo down to your great grandkids some day.
Part 3 would be a mounting board, which is duh, a board the photo is mounted on. In my opinion, get the photo mounted when you buy it. It's a few dollars and worth it. It saves you from doing it and since it 's done by a pro, it should be wrinkle free. That actually can make or break your photo since little ripples and wavy bits can reflect light in odd ways making you wonder if you need to visit the eye doctor. The mounting board naturally gives your photo support and helps it lay flat.
Part 4 probably is not used as much as it should but it's good to have some of that brown paper they put on the back of art that acts as a dust seal. Hopefully your frame will have some kind of a protective back.
Part 5, almost done, is the glass. Plexiglass is fine as is real glass. Plexiglass is lighter but scratches easily so take that into account. You can buy reflective or glare resistant glass. The normal reflective glass is probably most widely used and will be fine unless you put your photo right where you get strong light from a window, or (if you are a Seinfield fan), live across from a Kenny Rogers Chicken shop. And a bright light is pretty much sure to fade your photo so maybe choose another spot and get regular glass. Some of the less expensive glare resistant glass can make your photo look less sharp and less vivid so could actually be a negative. ( Ouch! no photo pun intended)
Okay put the frame together in the following order...clean off 5 and let it completely dry ...completely dry....repeat after me....completely dry! Some spray cleaners and their vapors are reported to actually fade and stain photos instantly so to be on the safe side do it someplace away from the photo...fill Part 1 with part 5 and set aside. If you listened and got your photo mounted, good for you, put in the mat, next to the glass that is all clean and dry then lay your mounted photo on top . if you didn't want to spend the extra couple bucks go buy a mounting board, and ask your local art store/craft store/framer what he would recommend you use to mount it with, then kick yourself for not having it mounted when you bought it since you probably spent more than you would have and now have to hope you don't bend or wrinkle the photo when you mount it....we'll wait right here and have some coffee and cookies and chat till you are done.... ok , now everybody check and make sure the picture is not upside down , then put on the backing board, the back of the frame and a dust seal if you are using it and shwoooo...finished!
Now you have to hang it..some tips on that next.
Same reasons apply for frames as for mat...S.A.P...Supportive, Artistic, Protective.
What are the important parts of a frame? Well naturally part 1 is the molding...usually wood, plastic, ceramic, sterling silver, whatever suits your decor and wallet and is at least somewhat cohesive with the photo. For example, a simple flower in black and white probably needs a simple mat and simple wooden, metal or plastic frame, also in black , white or a combo of the two. Ahhh, unity and peace, at least on your wall. And a teddy bear frame that looks great in a baby's room might be a little curious in your 20 yr old son's room. You get the picture, err idea. Get a frame you like that wil enhance not detract from your art and it's surrounding.
Ok part 2 would be the backing, usually cardboard included in many frames...you can get acid free backing if you want to pass the photo down to your great grandkids some day.
Part 3 would be a mounting board, which is duh, a board the photo is mounted on. In my opinion, get the photo mounted when you buy it. It's a few dollars and worth it. It saves you from doing it and since it 's done by a pro, it should be wrinkle free. That actually can make or break your photo since little ripples and wavy bits can reflect light in odd ways making you wonder if you need to visit the eye doctor. The mounting board naturally gives your photo support and helps it lay flat.
Part 4 probably is not used as much as it should but it's good to have some of that brown paper they put on the back of art that acts as a dust seal. Hopefully your frame will have some kind of a protective back.
Part 5, almost done, is the glass. Plexiglass is fine as is real glass. Plexiglass is lighter but scratches easily so take that into account. You can buy reflective or glare resistant glass. The normal reflective glass is probably most widely used and will be fine unless you put your photo right where you get strong light from a window, or (if you are a Seinfield fan), live across from a Kenny Rogers Chicken shop. And a bright light is pretty much sure to fade your photo so maybe choose another spot and get regular glass. Some of the less expensive glare resistant glass can make your photo look less sharp and less vivid so could actually be a negative. ( Ouch! no photo pun intended)
Okay put the frame together in the following order...clean off 5 and let it completely dry ...completely dry....repeat after me....completely dry! Some spray cleaners and their vapors are reported to actually fade and stain photos instantly so to be on the safe side do it someplace away from the photo...fill Part 1 with part 5 and set aside. If you listened and got your photo mounted, good for you, put in the mat, next to the glass that is all clean and dry then lay your mounted photo on top . if you didn't want to spend the extra couple bucks go buy a mounting board, and ask your local art store/craft store/framer what he would recommend you use to mount it with, then kick yourself for not having it mounted when you bought it since you probably spent more than you would have and now have to hope you don't bend or wrinkle the photo when you mount it....we'll wait right here and have some coffee and cookies and chat till you are done.... ok , now everybody check and make sure the picture is not upside down , then put on the backing board, the back of the frame and a dust seal if you are using it and shwoooo...finished!
Now you have to hang it..some tips on that next.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Some Tips For Matting Your Photo
So you picked out the perfect photo for your living room and decided all that framing stuff was a waste...why not just go to a dollar store and buy a frame?
Other than the obvious quality of the frame you might get at a dollar store, a good frame and mat are really protection for your photo. They are not a ploy to get you to spend more money.
Mats serve a few purposes. Probably the most obvious is it creates a nice little bordered off area for your photo. You didn't buy a photo to have it blend into the wall and a mat and frame help do that. It creates more of a "presence" on the wall. Which leads to... "What color mat ?" NOT the same color as your wall or sofa but either black, white( or off white) or the dominant color in the photo. If you want a little color, use a double mat and pick the dominant photo color for the bottom mat, the one with the smallest opening. Only a little will show when you put the white or black mat on top of it. Another nice option is a single mat with a core of another color. When cut, that mat has a thin bevel of the core color, such as a white mat with a black thin stripe next to the photo. Very elegant and understated. Take your photo along when you shop for a mat and see what you like best. That way you can be careful the mat isn't so colorful it overwhelms the photo.
Have you ever gone through a box of old photos and that one of Uncle Harvey and Aunt Penny on their wedding day is stuck fast to the glass? Or maybe it has some funny blackish moldy looking stuff growing on it? Willing to bet it didn't have a mat. Reason number two for a mat is since a mat creates a little air space, it helps cut down moisture and keeps the glass and photo from touching.
Purpose number three is protection from handling. Never ever ever touch the photo front with your fingers. You may not see the fingerprints then but the oils in the fingers of even the cleanest hands leave traces that eventually will degrade your photo. So be careful to only touch the edges or back, never the front surface. If you want to go crazy about it, or you just are a little klutzy and don't want to take a chance, you can buy special white cotton gloves for framing but at least be careful where you touch the photo.
Imagine this disaster...you have an unframed, unmatted photo. In comes little Fredricka, ice cream cone in hand , and naturally runs right up to your photo..Yikes! So before you display it, get it in a mat and frame. The mat also helps keep it nice and flat. You might want to save all the packaging your photo comes in and keep it there till you get it matted and framed. Easier to transport it to the store to check out mats and frames without spilling coffee on it, bending it, whatever your choice of calamity might be.
Ok, ok you'll get the mat, now what? ( cliffhanger music plays in the background) You'll have to stop back and see;)
Other than the obvious quality of the frame you might get at a dollar store, a good frame and mat are really protection for your photo. They are not a ploy to get you to spend more money.
Mats serve a few purposes. Probably the most obvious is it creates a nice little bordered off area for your photo. You didn't buy a photo to have it blend into the wall and a mat and frame help do that. It creates more of a "presence" on the wall. Which leads to... "What color mat ?" NOT the same color as your wall or sofa but either black, white( or off white) or the dominant color in the photo. If you want a little color, use a double mat and pick the dominant photo color for the bottom mat, the one with the smallest opening. Only a little will show when you put the white or black mat on top of it. Another nice option is a single mat with a core of another color. When cut, that mat has a thin bevel of the core color, such as a white mat with a black thin stripe next to the photo. Very elegant and understated. Take your photo along when you shop for a mat and see what you like best. That way you can be careful the mat isn't so colorful it overwhelms the photo.
Have you ever gone through a box of old photos and that one of Uncle Harvey and Aunt Penny on their wedding day is stuck fast to the glass? Or maybe it has some funny blackish moldy looking stuff growing on it? Willing to bet it didn't have a mat. Reason number two for a mat is since a mat creates a little air space, it helps cut down moisture and keeps the glass and photo from touching.
Purpose number three is protection from handling. Never ever ever touch the photo front with your fingers. You may not see the fingerprints then but the oils in the fingers of even the cleanest hands leave traces that eventually will degrade your photo. So be careful to only touch the edges or back, never the front surface. If you want to go crazy about it, or you just are a little klutzy and don't want to take a chance, you can buy special white cotton gloves for framing but at least be careful where you touch the photo.
Imagine this disaster...you have an unframed, unmatted photo. In comes little Fredricka, ice cream cone in hand , and naturally runs right up to your photo..Yikes! So before you display it, get it in a mat and frame. The mat also helps keep it nice and flat. You might want to save all the packaging your photo comes in and keep it there till you get it matted and framed. Easier to transport it to the store to check out mats and frames without spilling coffee on it, bending it, whatever your choice of calamity might be.
Ok, ok you'll get the mat, now what? ( cliffhanger music plays in the background) You'll have to stop back and see;)
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