How to Decorate With Original Photos

Displaying your own original photography can be a great way to add a personal touch to your home decor. If you are a photography hobbyist, you can choose pictures that both express your artistic abilities and remind you of a fun occasion. Simply get prints, mat, frame and hang your favorite photos.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Pick out the photos that you like the most, both aesthetically and sentimentally. Choose pieces that you most want to see everyday.

2. Try out different color effects on your pictures to see what you like. Some people like to have all their hanging photography in black and white or sepia (brown), while others prefer bold colors.

3. Produce quality prints. You can order digital prints by uploading them from your computer and ordering online from any number of stores. Try 8-by-10 inches for photo prints.

4. Choose a finish. The options are usually be matte or glossy, but many print developers now offer a hybrid finish that resists fingerprints like glossy but isn't quite as shiny.

5. Select mats and frames for the photos. Always use a mat if you're going to frame the photo behind glass—having the photo up against the glass can damage it over time. Pick a mat that matches the photo rather than the room you want to place it in.

6. Consider all of your framing options. While photos that are a standard size are easier to frame with ready-made frames, if you are matting a photo you may end up with a slightly different frame size and then need to custom-frame it.

Tips & Warnings

• With good photo editing software, you can even play with effects like leaving only one object colored in while the rest black and white.
• If you are blowing up a photo to print, the file size must be large enough to support the size you want. Most photo websites alert you if you are trying to order prints that are too large.
• Custom framing can be expensive, so consider buying a standard size frame the next size larger than your photo, and then just getting a custom mat made. This, in total, is much cheaper.
• When buying a mat, you can find precut mats at most frame and craft stores. If you need to have one margin of the mat larger than the others for some reason, it should be at the bottom edge to give the picture weight.
• If you are framing a number of photos, hang them with other photos that are similar.