Mounting Photo's

[ke98ith]

Can anyboby give me some advice on mounting photo's

Thanks

[GaryTorello]

There's a number of processes for this, here's my process for framing, matting and mounting. I'm sure others here may have some better way of doing this:

Buy frames, mats, backer board (I use foamcore board, although SOME frames come with good backer board). Mats are best bought seperately- the cheapy frames that include mats are often inferior quality.


Work on a CLEAN surface... use cotton gloves to handle your print and mat.


CLEAN the frame glass thoroughly with glass cleaner.


Cut backer board to size, fit-up everything into frame without photo to check alignment.


Remove backer board, place on table


Lay photo on backer board in approx. correct position.


Lay Mat over photo & backer board and adjust photo for correct overlap/crop.


Making SURE that mat edges and backer board edges are aligned, hold photo firmly in position and remove Mat.


Mark the photo corners onto backer board with a pencil.


remove photo and lay upside down in a spray-box (old cardboard box with layers of paper is sufficient)


Spray back of photo with 3M photo mount, being CAREFUL not to angle spray so as to spray under or lift photo. I work from the center of the photo outward.


Carefully lift photo by edges and place one edge in alignment with pencil marks, and then lay all the way down. Smooth into place with old lense cloth.


Mat can then be secured to backer board with either two-sided tape or glue - your preference. (fixing the mat in place to the backer board makes the whole assembly permanent and not likely to slip out of alignment in the frame.)


Now that the whole thing is glued up, place into frame and VOILA!


OOPS. one last step: remove picture repeatedly to get that TINY peice of dust you missed ;)
A good source of frames, mats, etc. is http://www.dickblick.com (http://www.dickblick.com/)

Hope it helps!

______________________
Gary

you always shoot the ones you love

[robertwgross]

My mounting technique is a bit simplified. This is for an 8x10 inch print:
1. Print the photo on 8.5x11 paper.
2. Get a mat with 11x14 outer dimension and 8x10 window. The mat color should be thought out, since it might go with the print, or it might go with the frame, or it might go with the wall color. I buy only standard, off-the-shelf mats.
3. Hold the mat horizontally over your head, face side down. Lay the photo print on top of it, face side down. Budge the print around until you see it lined up the way you like. Apply single-side photo mounting tape in one or two corners.
4. Lower the combination down, face side up. Double check that it is lined up the way you want. Then fix the other corners with tape. At this stage, the print is on the mat.
5. Get a piece of 3/16 inch foamboard cut to 11x14.
6. (In open air) Spray one side of the foamboard with spray contact adhesive. Let it air dry for a few seconds.
7. Line up the print/mat on the foamboard and press it lightly into position. Double check the position.
8. Put it in a press for 30 minutes or so. I use two sheets of smooth plywood and a concrete block.
9. When it is finished, a label goes on the back. The label has the main title, location, copyright date, and photographer name. In some cases of plants or animals, I will add the scientific name (Latin) below the main title. In general, there is another label with my web address and email address.
10. The mounted print is now ready for framing.

Other than that, I would simply advise against the gratuitous apostrophe.

---Bob Gross---