Aspect Ratio & Photo Paper & Matting & Framing

[Abitconfused]

I would like to find a do-it-yourself print to frame solution but no size fits anything when matting enters the picture (pun intended). For best results, the photo should have a 1/2 inch to tuck under the matting.

[Shadowman]

Try this link.
http://www.outbackphoto.com/portfoli..._36/essay.html

[Manfred M]

I go anywhere from 1/4" to 1", not just 1/2", depending on the size of the print. A 5x7 I'll go with 1/4" and a 16 x 20 I'll go with 1". That is my personal taste and experience. You really want the paper to sit it the matte so that you can manipulate it while mounting.

If you want 1/2" all around for an 8 x 10, cut your print to 9" x 11". If you want a white border from the print (usually 1/4" minimum) the print size has to be adjusted. If you want an asymmetrical mount then you have to adjust accordingly.

You don't need a web based calculator to figure this out...

A couple of words of caution. Frames may not be exactly the size they say and the openings in commercial matte boards may be off a bit too. I always measure the frame and matte board sizes before determining my final print crop PLUS any empty space for mounting PLUS show purpose. Having a 1" (or wider) border is quite common right now and you need less accuracy in mounting a bring with a wider border.

Mistakes do happen. I have to do a reprint of an image I'm framing right now because I trimmed it too tightly (i.e. measured the matte opening incorrectly).

[Rufus]

Try this link.
http://www.outbackphoto.com/portfoli..._36/essay.html

This could be useful. When I click the link to download the software, it goes to another site that is in Japanese or Chinese which I cannot translate.

[george013]

When editing photo's on a pc there is a canvas and an image. Mostly the image has the same size as the canvas. If you want a border around the image you must enlarge the canvas. Your problem will be that this is done in pixels. You must know the print resolution to know how much that will be in metric values.
I'm no printer

George

[Manfred M]

When editing photo's on a pc there is a canvas and an image. Mostly the image has the same size as the canvas. If you want a border around the image you must enlarge the canvas. Your problem will be that this is done in pixels. You must know the print resolution to know how much that will be in metric values.
I'm no printer

George

Let's agree to disagree again George. Most software will handle this automatically.

Put in the printer's native resolution and all the math between pixels and other units of measure are taken care of for the user. The important part is to put in the correct printer resolution (Epson - 360 ppi and most other printers use 300 ppi). It will also handle the upsampling and downsampling as well.

This is what the Photoshop resizing screen looks like - pixels, cm, mm, inches, etc. are all there.

[DanK]

James,

It would help if you would clarify a little more. By do-it-yourself, do you mean frames that have standard cut-outs, or frames with custom cut-outs from the mat? When you say 1/2", do you mean that you want 1/2" of white paper showing or that you want 1/2" of the printed image under the mat? And what software to you use for printing?

If you are printing from Lightroom (I do), you can ignore the issues raised by George. In Lightroom's print module, you specify the print size and the resolution in ppi in separate places. It will give you the specified dimensions regardless of the ppi you specify. It does all of the arithmetic internally.

If you mean having the mat cover 1/2", my reaction is that is a lot of image to hide. I generally overlap by 1/8" on each side, which is plenty if you are careful. I can post instructions (fairly standard) for placing the print if you would like.

If you want standard frames with precut mats, one option is Nielsen photo frames, which you can buy from art supply places like Blick online. They sell two sizes, one with a cutout for an 8x10 and one for 11x14. They use a very high-end 8-ply mat, everything is acid-free, and it comes with UV-protective glass. The only drawback is that the overlap of the frame on the glass is very narrow, so if there is any chipping during shipment, you need to get new glass. I used quite a lot of these in the past, particularly for 8 x 10, and they are very good-looking, but I did have to have several panes of glass replaced.

To print for those, I simply created Lightroom templates that matched the size of their cutouts, adding 1/8" on every side. I saved the templates and simply applied them whenever I printed for one of those frames.

If you want custom cutouts, you either have to buy from a company that will cut them for you or cut them yourself, using a mat cutter. There are several online firms that will do that. I use https://www.framedestination.com/ and have been entirely satisfied. They offer a wide variety of frames, mat boards, backing boards, and types of glass and acrylic. They have a fairly straightforward interface that asks you the art size, the overlap, the border sizes, etc. My standard is to start with that and then cut my own mat if I reuse the frame and need a different cutout.

Particularly in certain sizes (when the size precludes many cuts from a sheet), the choice of mat board can be a big component of the cost. 8-ply, which I like, costs much more than 4-ply. In addition, many mat cutters come with cutters for 4-ply, and you have to buy the 8-ply device separately. Mat cutters are expensive, so they are only worth it if you are going to do a fair amount of cutting yourself. I use a Logan 450-1, which costs about $190 from B&H, not counting the extra device for cutting 8-ply mats.

Dan

[george013]

Let's agree to disagree again George. Most software will handle this automatically.

Put in the printer's native resolution and all the math between pixels and other units of measure are taken care of for the user. The important part is to put in the correct printer resolution (Epson - 360 ppi and most other printers use 300 ppi). It will also handle the upsampling and downsampling as well.

This is what the Photoshop resizing screen looks like - pixels, cm, mm, inches, etc. are all there.

Let's agree with that.

I've been looking how LR handles with that. It's in the printer driver or in the output to the print. Resizing the image and moving around with that image on the paper.
For those who're interested https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfaPTc1NYbY.
It's an old version but the idea is clear.

George