Print, Digitally Matted or Fully Framed?
After your family portrait session, you have three different options for ordering your photographs – print, digitally matted or fully framed. In today’s video I’m going to show you exactly what each of those options are, and help you figure out what’s best for you and your home.
Peppered throughout the studio Product Guide, sent when you first reach out to us about photographing your family, are sample wall galleries. The galleries are there help you imagine how your family photographs could look on the walls of your home. Next to each sample gallery you’ll see 3 prices – print, digitally matted and fully framed.
The print is what you’re most used to seeing and similar to what you’d have printed at whichever local consumer lab you use to print your photos…. if you still print your photos, which I hope you do. The main difference between the prints we offer and the prints you have access to is the colour – the trueness of tones and the depth of colours available. This may sound insignificant, but I promise you it’s not.
When you order a print from us, it comes just like this. Before you can hang it on your wall you’ll need to purchase both a mat and a frame. If you want to know what a mat is or why you need one check out “What is a Mat? (and why you should care)”.
This the least expensive way of ordering through the studio but you do still need to buy your mat and frame elsewhere, so you’ll want to factor that cost in.
The downside for ordering your photographs as prints is a big one. You’re going to need to frame with glass. I’m guessing you’re thinking that’s not a big deal – all frames come with glass, don’t they? – but framing your photographs without glass is a way to truly elevate your photographs to works of art. Once I show you the digitally matted photographs, you’ll see how….
Digitally Matted
In this digitally matted photograph I’ve added the white space you would normally get from a mat to the photograph, mounted it and then protected it with a UV coating. Because you no longer need a paper mat or glass to protect your photograph, you can frame it without the glass.
You’ll take your store-bought frame, remove the glass and the mat (if it comes with one) and then place your digitally matted photograph into the frame and you’re done.
The downside to ordering your photographs this way is that you’re limited by the frames you can buy in stores – both the sizes and the colours. If you’re happy framing your photographs in either white or black, I have a great source of frames I can work with that offer a fairly decent range of sizes. You can sometimes find some great metal ones too.
The other downside is that you do have a little bit of work ahead of you. You’re going to need to spend some time getting your digitally matted photographs into the frame.
Fully Framed
If you don’t want to spend that time, our framed photographs are the way to go. They are delivered to your home fully finished and ready to hang on your wall. They’re framed glassless with one of the 60 different frame styles we offer at the studio.
In addition to the fact that you’re not going to need to do any work to frame them, we’re not limited by standard sizes. We can literally design your gallery with almost any sized photograph we want. And, of course, you have access to a bunch of really unique frames that add a lot of personality to your space.
You can see some of my favourite frames here… “Favourite Frames for Family Photographs”
My Recommendation
I recommend you go with either digitally matted photographs or fully framed photographs depending on what colour frame you’d like and whether you’re willing to put a bit of work in on your own. Both of these options mean your photographs can be displayed in your home without being behind glass, a look that truly elevates your family portraits.
If you want to get your hands on the Jenn Di Spirito Photography Product Guide, call or email the studio and we’ll make sure that happens.
