What to do with Your Photos NOW!?
So you got amazing professional photos taken. You may have budgeted money for new family photos this year or you invested into wedding photography. But you haven’t printed ANYTHING because you feel overwhelmed by the process of how to choose photos, where to print, and what to print. WELL friends I’m here to help!
I believe as a photographer it is my job to help clients print their work. It’s always been the photographers job since DAY ONE of photography but it’s been lost in the digital age due to DSLR cameras. Often times printing gets slipped on the to do list because it’s just ONE more thing to get done.
Say you carve out the time after the kids go to bed or when you have a free night and glass of wine- NOW WHAT? How to you choose what photos? Frames, canvas, album? Then what size? What color? How many?
Here are some visual ideas you can do easily that will transform your walls with the memories of your heart.
Tips on Choosing Photos:
- Go through your online gallery and “Heart” or pull the photos that instantly make you laugh, smile, brings a tear to your eye.
- Think about the season of life- what photo speaks most to that season? Remember you are printing photos that will remind you of your life, so choose photos that bring you back to a place of joy.
- Textures + details always help to tell the story- not just faces! If you are printing two side by side photos pull one photo of faces and another one up close tight detail or far away landscape shot. It helps the eye give rest while looking over all on a wall.
Now you choose your photos, you must decide in what format do you want your memories to be hung on the walls or held in your hands. Below are 4 different options in photo formats for printing!
1.PRINTS
There are 100000 photos for you to print but only so much wall space. First- choose based on the above recommendations by season of life and what brings you the most joy. Then… PRINT THEM! DON’T WAIT.
I highly suggest going through the online gallery from where the printers are designed to communicate color space + pixel size with our high quality professional cameras. I’ve said this so much but I will say it again- print quality matters. Please whatever you do don’t go through Shutter Fly or Walmart- their printers are not designed for the professional camera. They are designed to communicate better with iPhones or quick photos. You paid HOW MUCH to get professional photos taken? Well professional printing matters JUST AS MUCH. Please.If you don’t go through your photographer- again which I highly suggest- here are a few other places that are quality prints:
- Artifact Uprising Prints
- Time Shel
- Nations Photo Lab
- Staples- They actually have great printers + quality for large prints (poster size)
- Your location Print Shop! Most towns have great local family owned businesses
2.FRAMES
These are my favorite way to add a little color and spunk to any wall in ANY room of the house. There are SO MANY different types of frames. You can find them inexpensive, custom, or unique as you want. Often times I will go to GoodWill and find old frames- paint them and put a photo in there for all under $1.00. Tips on buying frames:
- Bigger the better- in my opinion. If you have a large wall I would suggest 1-2 large frames to fill the wall next to each other
- Colors + texture- Think about accent colors in your room. Do you like gold? White, Black?
- White borders in photographs help the photograph stand out. But remember when you print you are trying to fit within the little frame not the full frame.
- Amazon Gold Frame
- Artifact Uprising Frames
- Hobby Lobby Frames
3.CANVAS
I have so many canvas’s in my house! I LOVE them so much because you get the full photo without the frame. They are statement pieces that stand off the wall and add an extra boost of boldness to any room.
I HIGHLY suggest going through me to order a canvas through CG PRO PRINTS. They are some of the best quality canvas’s I’ve seen for a fraction of the price at other places.
If you are a client of mine you can order wonderful canvas’s through your online gallery as well!! It makes it easy and quick.
4.ALBUMS/BOOKS
I rave about Kiss Wedding Books because they are THE BEST high quality albums I’ve ever seen. With thick pages, the most premium leather + linen covers, with the best customer service made right here in the US, they are the best heirloom gift to pass down through the generations. But if you cannot afford one of these $200-1000 custom made albums here are some other options:
I RAVE about Artifact Uprising and won’t stop. They are some of my favorite printers in the country because of their quality work and customer interface when designing albums and printing prints. They have options for quality books, large albums, and quick little magazine style books for little gifts.
From family vacation memories to baby books to wedding albums- they create the most beautiful gifts + memories to have on the coffee table for reasonable costs. You can even customize the front covers with gold embossing.
- Kiss Wedding Books– Family Heirloom lay flat leather + linen books ordered only through a photographer.
- BLURB! Great place to order little or large quality books
- Artifact Uprising- Matt paper + trendy styles + minimalism
- Chatbooks- on going subscription books made from instagram posts
- GrooveBook
This process can be stressful to choose which photos to print but once you do, you will be SO HAPPY you did!
Here are a link to order a handmade Kiss Album that can be passed down through each generation.
xoxo-Hannah Rose
