The photograph is awesome. It is exactly what you want for that specific spot. Now you need to wade through all the different print options... paper, metal, acrylic? Framed, unframed? The options are almost limitless, but the choice does not have to be difficult. When you are deciding the best print option there are three questions to answer. The answers will eliminate most of the options and make the choice easier.
- Do you want the presentation of the photograph to be traditional mat-and-frame, or have a modern gallery-like feel?
- Is the place the piece will be hung high traffic or low traffic?
- Is the room where the photograph will be hung brightly lit with ambient light, or more dimly lit with average indoor lighting?
Traditional or Modern
The traditional mat and frame presentation is going to look best in intimate settings, such as most of the rooms in your home, especially if your home is not a mansion with massive rooms and high vaulted ceilings. Most people's homes are not furnished in an ultra-modern style, but do have a warm, homey atmosphere.
The modern gallery-like presentation is going to look best in spaces that are furnished in a more modern style. While there are certainly going to be private homes decorated in this way, the spaces where the modern gallery-look is most common are in places like office buildings, reception areas, schools, retail stores, restaurants, and other public spaces where furnishings are more contemporary, walls are wide and open, and space is not cluttered with a lot of stuff. Furniture in these types of spaces tend to be very consistent and formal, resulting in an atmosphere that can be austere and uninviting... negatives that a big, beautiful, colorful art-photograph can offset.
High Traffic or Low Traffic
When a lot of people are moving around a place there is a greater chance that accident will happen. Furnishings, including art on the wall, will get dirtier and will need regular cleaning. High traffic spaces tend to be public spaces. Low traffic rooms tend to be in more private settings, like your home or your private office at work.
Brightly Lit or Dimly Lit
Ambient light is the general overall lighting in a room and is an important factor to consider, because photography is a visual medium and the amount and type of light will affect how the picture looks overall. When light is coming from many directions all at once, the room have a very uniform light, but those light sources may cause unwanted reflections on a photography or art piece.
Dimly lit rooms have much less ambient light, but that light is usually coming from a specific direction. The source of light may also change throughout the day. An east-facing window may light up a room in the morning, but in the afternoon the light may be coming from a window on the opposite side of the space. Artificial light sources such as overhead fixtures or table lamps will also affect the amount and direction of light in small, but very noticeable ways.
How Would You Describe Your Room?
Keeping these three factors in mind (style of furnishing, amount of traffic, amount and type of light), what we have in our society are two basic types of spaces. Public spaces that are more modern, well lit, have a lot of open space, and get more traffic. And private spaces that are generally smaller and more intimate, traditionally furnished, and get less traffic. Which print presentations are best for each?
Public, Well-lit, High Traffic Spaces
The more modern gallery-like look provided by metal and acrylic face-mount prints is more suitable for the institutional setting. Both of these frameless (typically) options are also more durable and easier to clean than the traditional paper print in a mat-and-frame. There are also anti-glare acrylic options that will help reduce unsightly reflections in large, brightly-lit rooms.
Private, Intimate, Traditional Rooms
The smaller, dimly-lit, low traffic spaces are more suitable for the traditional mat-and-frame. The available wall space is smaller than the large public spaces, so the prints will also be smaller. Using a mat-and-frame on smaller prints helps to draw attention to the art, and the frame can match the other decor in the room.
There are always going to be exceptions, like the doctor's office waiting room decorated like a comfortable and inviting living room, the traditionally-furnished private office of a business executive, a brightly lit foyer or great room with a high vaulted ceiling in a private home, or a home furnished sparingly in an ultra-modern style. Choose traditional mat-and-frame when the overall feel of the room is traditional, intimate, and homey. Choose modern gallery-like when the space is bright, big, and modern.