Frame Your Picture in Style

Whether you are a fine-art photographer or a painter, one of the most exciting moments is finishing your artwork. You will then want to be able to show it to the world and the best way to do that is to invest in a picture frame. You will find many different styles, sizes and colors of pictures frames are available, and with dozens of choices available in ready-made as well as custom picture frames, you are sure to create the final look you want in your fine artwork.

One of the first choices you will make when it comes to selecting a picture frame is whether you want to use metal or wood. Wood picture frames are particularly suitable for paintings, although photographs and other types of artwork can certainly be used as well. Wood picture frames may be painted or ornately gilded, depending upon your preferences. Metal picture frames are traditionally used to frame fine art photographs. They are often of narrow black metal, and a mat board of white is used to throw focus into the center of the picture frame where the artwork resides, as well as to keep the photograph held in flat position inside the picture frame.

It is also a good idea to see what types of picture frame sizes are available, so that you can find one appropriate to your particular picture. Happily, the less-expensive ready-made picture frame comes in many dozens of standard sizes for photographs as well as canvases; so likely you will have this as an affordable option for your artwork. If your photograph or painting falls outside those picture frame sizes, custom framing options provide another means for achieving the best-fitting picture frame for your fine artwork.

If you are starting out with framing artwork, an easy way to get going is with picture frame kits. The picture frame kits come with everything you need to get your artwork into the frame, and usually include the frame, mat and mount boards, as well as glazing. With a kit, everything is sized to fit together, so you have much less to worry about than if you were to purchase each piece separately. There may be a time though, when buying individual framing components is called for. Glazing comes in glass and acrylic and you may prefer one over the other, so you can always get a frame to fit your picture, and then purchase the glazing that you like scaled to fit.

Individual frames as well as kits are available in wood and metal and you can find them online at quality fine-art photography supply websites.

Susan Slobac is a consultant in the frame industry. Susan writes about trends in picture frame & picture frames.