If you are a gifted photographer who is handy with Photoshop and has a stockpile of showpiece photographs, fantastic. Unfortunately, most persons wielding cameras are not Ansel Adams doppelgangers. Nevertheless, if you think your accumulations of photos are not works of art that ought to hang prominently on the wall, you are wrong.
Advances in digital photography and printing have made it possible for the computer illiterate, mediocre photographer to have an edited collection of great photos. Most photo-printing facilities have helpful technicians and user-friendly options for cropping, color enhancing, and conversion to black and white or sepia, all of which can correct, disguise or distract from a poorly taken picture.
For instance, your blah, washed out photo of Uncle Jed telling stories to a bored audience at a family reunion. Crop it to an off-center close-up capturing Jed’s storytelling face, and then convert it to black and white with increased contrast. The way his eyes crinkle, the crook in his nose, and the tar-stained fingers clutching his Bud Lite, now give you a photograph of depth and interest. What to do with the consummate banal pet photo: a cat asleep on some household surface, with three quarters of the photo insipid carpet and couch background. Crop it right up to the feline’s head and frame it with a thick white mat.
Once you’ve played with your photographs and created some masterpieces they need to be displayed effectively. Pick a wall in the house that can be transformed into a gallery wall. Begin collecting frames of various sizes that have a common trait.
The currently popular transitional style home would be complemented by champagne frames of varied thickness, patterns and sizes. If your home tilts toward a Victorian style, chose heavier frames in aged gold each with unique rococo patterns. For a mod look, select black or stainless angular frames. Select different kinds of green frames, painted, upholstered, and glass for a playful effect.
Rustic wooden frames or wrought iron would function well for an old-world style. The key is to have a common element in your frame collection which compliments the feel of your home and ties the photographs together.
For a tighter collection in your gallery, select photographs with a theme. Dig up all the beach photos you have and frame them in a driftwood color for a relaxed look in the bathroom. If you like more color and pizzazz, you might prefer sea glass mosaic frames. Use whatever beach-y trait floats your boat.
Enliven your mud room with a smattering of camping and outdoor photos framed in knotty pine. For warmth and romance in the bedroom, hang a triptych of photos above the headboard of you and your spouse in young love. (It’s nice to remember those younger, thinner days.) For some sizzle, mat them in a luscious chianti!
Be creative, have fun. Since you want your home to reflect your personality, let these suggestions be merely suggestions. Regardless of your choice, the result will be a gallery of well-framed personal photographs to give you pleasure to see on a daily basis and leave an indelible imprint of your character in your home.
