Winter Stroll, Flatirons. Boulder, Colorado, 2015
First, before I forget: change your clocks if you are in a Daylight Saving Time combat zone. Remember: “Spring forward; Fall back”, so roll ’em back an hour. For those lucky ducks without DST…just look at your clocks and sigh heavily.
OK, now the framing idea…This assumes you are trying to frame a matted photograph in a way that emphasizes the image and not the frame. Naturally, different styles of photography will dictate different styles of framing. The following idea works great for my monochrome images which are typically printed at 12″ x 18″ on 13 x 19 paper, then matted to 18″ x 24″ outside dimensions. (See my previous blog post, On Matting and Mounting, for suggestions on archival mounting and matting.)
Here is the recipe:
1) Order your frame based on the outside mat dimension. Try the Nielsen Profile 15 style in anodized aluminum and matte black. This particular frame has a 3/8″ width and a 19/32″ rabbet. (This latter term refers to the depth, to accommodate the combined thickness of your backer board, mat, and metal frame clips.)
2) Order your glazing to fit the frame. Frame Destination has a great discussion on glass versus acrylic and the various types of each: see Acrylic Picture Framing Information. I personally like acrylic for its lightness and unbreakability, but it does scratch easily. (Do NOT use normal glass cleaners on acrylic. A damp micro fiber cloth will work just fine in most cases.)
[NOTE and UPDATE (Dec, 2015): I am seriously reconsidering the type of acrylic I use. I have been using UV-protecting/anti-glare acrylic, but…the anti-glare makes the print behind it look slightly soft and the UV acrylic gives the print a slight yellowish tone. Plain acrylic works better to show off the print more accurately if you don’t mind the reflections. I am also printing on wood and canvas a lot more using Duraplaq products and I have been very satisfied with the results.]
3) You’ll also need a thin, archival, filler board to fit behind whatever your photograph is mounted on as well as polyester tape.
4) Assemble the frame following these instructions/video.
5) The order of all framing items, from front to back: the picture frame, the glazing, the window mat, the photograph itself, the backer board, then a filler board, the polyester tape to seal the frame, and finally the wire hanging hardware. Consider a stamp or seal of authentication with signature on the back of the filler board so it is easily visible in addition to signing the actual photograph and/or mat.
6) Note that there is a filler board behind your matted photograph and that polyester tape is used to seal the gap between the frame and the filler board to keep out dust and bugs. On wooden frames, this is usually some sort of paper that is stapled into place to seal the artwork. Make sure that the entire thickness of your matted photograph, including the glazing and the filler board–along with the metal frame clips–will all fit within the depth of the frame (rabbet). If you use 8-play mats, as I do, this can make for a tight fit.
Frame Destination also has some great educational information about the various ways of mounting and matting your photographs. Try this link, for example. Another online frame source you might check out is American Frame and they also have framing tutorials on their page, Framing Basics. A third option for price and product comparison is PictureFramesdotCom.
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2 Comments
this is good Dan, I should probably just lift this, put in something about profile 117 being another great option, and mentioning that acrylic is one nightmare to clean and rid of dust.
Frame Destination is really a great company and incredibly helpful. I had a small crack in the corner in one of the glass covers and the immediately sent me 2 as a replacement. AND I have never seen an errant cut or blemish on the matte, a scratched frame, and for the most part, the glass doesn’t even need cleaning. dana
Thanks, Dana. Yeah, I should probably add a note about how difficult acrylic can be to clean–a slightly damp microfiber cloth works well. It’s important not to use normal glass cleansers on it or you can scratch the surface. And, yes, I like the look of the Profile 117 now that I have seen it up close.